Where Next?
- ``Advanced'' Data Structures
- Armed with this methodology, students can easily progress to
advanced data structures such as linked lists, trees, stacks, queues
and so forth. Indeed, our example in the
methodology section illustrated a use of linked lists! Since these
features are supported by the language with a minimum of fuss (no need
to worry about allocation, de-allocation, pointers, and so forth),
students can approach this material from a very early stage.
- Recursion
- Recursion is presented as one of the most mysterious topics the
student of programming encounters. Yet recursion is just as natural
as advanced data structures; indeed, the two go hand-in-hand. As
evidence, consider again our example: the
function defined is recursive! Our methodology takes the mystery out
of recursion. Hence, students can use it from the very beginning,
instead of waiting a semester, or year, or longer to encounter this
immensely important, and natural, idea.
- Graphics, Games, etc
- To animate the learning process, we present our exercises in
exciting scenarios such as completing games, animating graphical
objects, or processing Web pages. Our libraries (and our programming
environment) make graphics easy to manipulate. Thus students get
visual feedback for their work, without having to spend a long time
understanding and debugging graphical routines.
- Other Disciplines
- One of the reasons computer science has become such a prominent
field is that it provides tools which can be used in a wide variety of
disciplines. Unfortunately, many programming courses do not draw on
these connections, and also fail to give students enough knowledge to
apply in other interesting realms. In contrast, we regularly relate
material to mathematics, physics, political science, the stock market,
and other interesting topics that students encounter in classes and in
everyday life. This enlivens the material; more imporantly, it helps
students understand how to use computer science in other areas.
PLT /
scheme@cs.rice.edu
Last modified at 10:49:08 CST on Monday, November 10, 1997