5 ms·

Even if you do have a "fast" track and a "slow" track, the only ways I can think of to get travelers on either of these paths to the same place at the same time

Even if you do have a "fast" track and a "slow" track, the only ways I can think of to get travelers on either of these paths to the same place at the same time is to either slow down those on the "fast" track, or speed up those on the "slow" track. What I seem to be witnessing is a willingness of people to slow down those on the "fast" track instead of expecting people on the "slow" track to work harder to catch up.

naasking 7y ago
> Even if you do have a "fast" track and a "slow" track, the only ways I can think of to get travelers on either of these paths to the same place at the same time They don't have to get to the same place at the same time, they just all have to cross a finish line. The finish line is the same for everyone, even if the fast track students get to take a more fun route and play doing other things they enjoy along the way. Certainly the fast track students will still have a competitive advantage since they will probably have worked on more challenging problems, but it fixes the graduation stats. Who knows if it will have positive downstream effects.
hkmurakami 7y ago
They definitely don't need to get to the same place at the same time, and don't even need to end up at the same final destination. Some will go onto PhD programs, some will not, etc. Having two (or more) separate tracks allows the late starters a better chance at gaining competence without getting crushed by the competition with more experience.
shajhansbx 7y ago
I went to Pomona College, which shared some CS classes with Harvey Mudd. We also had gender parity among CS majors. I can assure you that everyone admitted to Mudd is whip-smart. There is a strong catalog of courses and the faculty there will find a way to challenge anyone. Nobody at Mudd is getting slowed down. Talk to anyone who has worked with someone who graduated from Mudd and they’ll agree.
kelnos 7y ago
That assumes that there's no "padding" built in, and that to complete a 4-year CS degree you need to be focused on CS for every class that you take, every minute of the day. Not a perfect analogy, but: due to my AP scores, I placed out of the first two semesters of the four-semester mathematics requirements. After two years, I didn't know more math than those who didn't place out, I just finished learning it a little earlier. People with existing programming experience will start off at a slightly higher level than those without, but the latter group will end up in roughly the same place, by taking an elective or three fewer. And even if they don't, so what? Maybe someone with more experience ends up diving deep into OS design, compiler writing, and database design, while someone with less experience only gets to dive deep into database design. The CS program has still prepared both groups for their first job after they graduate (or their masters/PhD program, if they choose that route), some people might just have less or more to learn later as they grow into the rest of their lives. This is true of pretty much any profession; programming is by no means unique here.

naasking 7y ago

> Even if you do have a "fast" track and a "slow" track, the only ways I can think of to get travelers on either of these paths to the same place at the same time They don't have to get to the same place at the same time, they just all have to cross a finish line. The finish line is the same for everyone, even if the fast track students get to take a more fun route and play doing other things they enjoy along the way. Certainly the fast track students will still have a competitive advantage since they will probably have worked on more challenging problems, but it fixes the graduation stats. Who knows if it will have positive downstream effects.

hkmurakami 7y ago

They definitely don't need to get to the same place at the same time, and don't even need to end up at the same final destination. Some will go onto PhD programs, some will not, etc. Having two (or more) separate tracks allows the late starters a better chance at gaining competence without getting crushed by the competition with more experience.

shajhansbx 7y ago

I went to Pomona College, which shared some CS classes with Harvey Mudd. We also had gender parity among CS majors. I can assure you that everyone admitted to Mudd is whip-smart. There is a strong catalog of courses and the faculty there will find a way to challenge anyone. Nobody at Mudd is getting slowed down. Talk to anyone who has worked with someone who graduated from Mudd and they’ll agree.

kelnos 7y ago

That assumes that there's no "padding" built in, and that to complete a 4-year CS degree you need to be focused on CS for every class that you take, every minute of the day. Not a perfect analogy, but: due to my AP scores, I placed out of the first two semesters of the four-semester mathematics requirements. After two years, I didn't know more math than those who didn't place out, I just finished learning it a little earlier. People with existing programming experience will start off at a slightly higher level than those without, but the latter group will end up in roughly the same place, by taking an elective or three fewer. And even if they don't, so what? Maybe someone with more experience ends up diving deep into OS design, compiler writing, and database design, while someone with less experience only gets to dive deep into database design. The CS program has still prepared both groups for their first job after they graduate (or their masters/PhD program, if they choose that route), some people might just have less or more to learn later as they grow into the rest of their lives. This is true of pretty much any profession; programming is by no means unique here.