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I agree. I don't get to choose whether or not I teach Java; that's determined by the state. However, in my class, we write our first working program on the firs
by teach 15y ago
I agree. I don't get to choose whether or not I teach Java; that's determined by the state. However, in my class, we write our first working program on the first day of coding.
We install the JDK, do a basic DOS primer, type in our first program (in Notepad), and compile and run it on the command line in a single 90-minute period, like the 3rd day of class.
Getting to the "bang" as quickly as possible is HUGELY important.
- sethg 15y agoDo the students move on to using an IDE? I realize that Eclipse or Visual Studio comes with a lot of overhead and you can easily spend a whole semester getting bogged down in all the options, but I would think that an editor with syntax highlighting and parenthesis matching would make a big difference.
- teach 15y agoYes, I only make them do the first ten assignments in Notepad and a command-line compiler. Then we switch to JCreator, which is a pretty unremarkable IDE, but it does have syntax highlighting and a few other niceties that make it a much more efficient code editor.