Thanks for the excellent introduction to my next topic: An important function of programming education is to teach people which things other people often find d

Thanks for the excellent introduction to my next topic: An important function of programming education is to teach people which things other people often find difficult. Because intuition is not a reliable guide. And the secret to all effective communication -- which certainly includes programming, as well as writing and teaching -- is to write stuff that your audience can understand. When the teacher says "this is tricky", consider the possibility that they aren't merely trying to motivate the students. It might just be a simple statement of fact: There's a significant population that doesn't get this at first glance, and you have to know that, regardless of whether you get it yourself or not.