alice-teacher Help! Alice being replaced by Python in my intro classes

[Vanderhyde, James]

The only good reason I know of to use Python is that people use it in industry to solve real problems. This is a compelling argument.

I teach Alice to students who are going to learn either Python or Java in a later class anyway, so it is easy in my setting to bypass the argument by saying Alice is practice with programming concepts in a fun and easy-to-use environment. They can apply the concepts they learn to a typing-based language later. (Transfer is not automatic, though. You have to draw attention to it.)

You might suggest that students are not going to learn Python well enough in only one class to use it for real-world problems, but I’m not sure this is always true. It depends on the course and the teacher. I think the class would have to be focused on something like data science, or scientific modeling, or financial modeling, in order to be applicable after only one class. I don’t have evidence, but it’s an argument.

James
—
James Vanderhyde
Associate Professor and Department Chair
Computer Science
Saint Xavier University
3700 W. 103rd St.
Chicago, IL 60655
773-298-3454

On Mar 10, 2021, at 7:44 AM, Carlos Bovell <cbovell at nburlington.com<mailto:cbovell at nburlington.com>> wrote:

Hi,

Somebody has convinced my administrator that we should really be using Python in our intro courses. I could use some reasons why Alice makes a great alternative. Any and all arguments would be welcome!

Carlos Bovell
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