On 2/20/07, Levi Pearson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I think that my primary idea through this thread is that although it is entirely possible to separate theory and practice in computer science, it's a bad idea to try to teach it that way, especially at the undergraduate level. I don't think that this principle only applies to computer science, either, which was the gist of my argument against the supposed physics/computer science difference.
My wife teaches English at BYU and I think she'd wholeheartedly agree with you (us) there.
I also think that computer science education should involve a great deal of practicality, since solving real-world problems with computers is a pressing need. However, I believe there is a distinction between practicality and tool-specific training, which I don't believe is within the purview of a computer science degree. Teaching students to be able to apply their knowledge to the use of any set of tools should be paramount, and is ultimately more beneficial to both student, future employers, and the computing community in general.
This is one of the things I'm liking about my studies at BYU. Occasionally it becomes quite a time burden to teach myself the tools to implement the principles taught in the classes. But, this is a time burden I usually place on myself as I try to pick up and keep good programming practices along the way, as well as try to use features of tools that I haven't used before, etc... This often has a negative effect on my grades, even though it has a positive effect on my actual learning.
This, of course, completely leaves out the self-taught individuals, who may well be the best qualified of all. I won't deny that for a moment, nor do I believe that education requires attending classes. It's simply beside the point; I would love for a good computer science curriculum to be identified and made available to these kinds of self-teachers. In fact, I've compiled quite a few resources myself, if anyone is interested.
I'm definitely interested, as I'm also always bookmarking anything that appears to be a resource I can come back to and learn from. -- Alex Esplin /* PLUG: http://plug.org, #utah on irc.freenode.net Unsubscribe: http://plug.org/mailman/options/plug Don't fear the penguin. */
