4 ms·

In physics, at least 20-some years ago when I was in academia, the notation of our common language (math) was simply part of the exposition when teaching new ma

by sidlls 6y ago

In physics, at least 20-some years ago when I was in academia, the notation of our common language (math) was simply part of the exposition when teaching new material to students. Maybe I had exceptions as instructors, but I carried their methods of presenting new notation into my classroom when I taught. Every field develops jargon and writing shorthand. It doesn’t have to be an artificial barrier to entry, and it’s a bit weird to me that this seems to be the case in programming.

tsumnia 6y ago
I don't think its so much the introduction of the notation, but rather the lack of practice in ensuring the learning of the notation. The analogies I've used in the past come from music and martial arts. In music, when you are first trying to learn an instrument, you aren't also being tested on music theory or creating brand new musical scores. You are focusing solely on being able to smoothly transition between keystrokes. Similarly, martial arts often see a high attrition rate. This has a number a reasons, but one that can be addressed is forcing novices to spar with more advanced students way too early. I know the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu schools shifted away from letting new students spar until they've trained for at least 6 months specifically because they didn't want students to show up, get destroyed, and quit out of frustration. Sort of my point is that the jargon and notation shouldn't simply be introduced and expected to be assimilated without explicit practice that is not confounded with additional problem-solving skills. Those can still be another practice activity, but students should be given the opportunity to just practice the skill without it.
- sidlls 6y ago
  Yes, exactly. It is hard for me to imagine a physics instructor at any level introducing new mathematical techniques and more or less leaving the student on his or her own to decipher the runes required. The important part is the physics and the relationships of the quantities; not how they're represented on paper. It's kind of sad that CS doesn't seem to have a similar view.

by sidlls 6y ago

tsumnia 6y ago

I don't think its so much the introduction of the notation, but rather the lack of practice in ensuring the learning of the notation. The analogies I've used in the past come from music and martial arts. In music, when you are first trying to learn an instrument, you aren't also being tested on music theory or creating brand new musical scores. You are focusing solely on being able to smoothly transition between keystrokes. Similarly, martial arts often see a high attrition rate. This has a number a reasons, but one that can be addressed is forcing novices to spar with more advanced students way too early. I know the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu schools shifted away from letting new students spar until they've trained for at least 6 months specifically because they didn't want students to show up, get destroyed, and quit out of frustration. Sort of my point is that the jargon and notation shouldn't simply be introduced and expected to be assimilated without explicit practice that is not confounded with additional problem-solving skills. Those can still be another practice activity, but students should be given the opportunity to just practice the skill without it.

sidlls 6y ago
Yes, exactly. It is hard for me to imagine a physics instructor at any level introducing new mathematical techniques and more or less leaving the student on his or her own to decipher the runes required. The important part is the physics and the relationships of the quantities; not how they're represented on paper. It's kind of sad that CS doesn't seem to have a similar view.