Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!sun-barr!newstop!sun!shrike!rterek
From: rterek@shrike.Sun.COM (Robert Terek [Contractor])
Newsgroups: comp.edu
Subject: Re: Which language to teach first?
Message-ID: <119060@sun.Eng.Sun.COM>
Date: 2 Aug 89 05:47:56 GMT
References: <3876@shlump.nac.dec.com> <791@dms.UUCP>
Sender: news@sun.Eng.Sun.COM
Reply-To: rterek@sun.UUCP (Robert Terek)
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Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mountain View
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>From article <3876@shlump.nac.dec.com>, by gentile@horsey.dec.com (Sam Gentile):
> 	Allthough I love C and do most of my work in C, I don't think it is a
> good first language to learn for a student. I found C very difficult at first 
> and I had a lot of problems with it. Also some C coders write code that is
> completely un-readable. I think BASIC should be abolished and certainly not
> taught as a first language. It gives people very bad first habits. I don't
> think FORTRAN is a good first language either. I think PASCAL is still the
> ideal first language for a student. It will expouse the student to the 
> concepts of pointers in a more friendly way than C and teach structured
> programming habits.


Gee, where is Bill Wolfe when you need him?  I want to see some arguments
that ADA is the best language to teach first!  :-)


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bob Terek                               "If I'm not swinging from the rafters,
Software Consultant                      I'm not having fun!"