Mailman 3 April 2008 - Edu-sig

more thoughts about Python pedagogy (pyPed)
by kirby urner 28 Apr '08

28 Apr '08

So to reintroduce myself to some of you newer subscribers, I was a high school math teacher in a Dominican run school in Jersey City, before entering a career of mostly NGO work, as a programmer on the front lines (xBase). Python started as a hobby interest, connected with geometry studies, only became a part of my income stream toolkit much later in the game (many stories). I live in Portland, Oregon and am a veteran of the OSCON, PyCon and EuroPython speaker circuit, with a lot of that stuff archived and easily accessible if you want to email me for links. My current practice is to follow Saxon, one of the popular math text book authors, in using a spiraling approach, meaning we cover data structures, functions, and classes the first day, but not exhaustively in any "silo" (they all go very deep as we know from experience). So like strings and lists, dabble in the shell, def a couple simple functions like from algebra class (these kids are all taking traditional math sequence), then do my Biotum, one of the simplest types possible that can still eat and divide (using copy module). Then on like a second pass, we'd add dictionary to data structures, default args to functions, more methods to a simple class. On a third pass, sets as data structures (a bridge to discussing concept of "immutability" thence on to tuples as a kind of list that will work as a dictionary key -- starting to tie it all together here), start with the *kw, **kwarg stuff inside the function mouth f( ), and finally bridge to inheritance (Monkey and Dog as subclasses of Mammal (object), the subclasses distinct as to __repr__ only -- __init__ at Mammal level only, simple assignment of a moniker i.e. self.name = name). So that's the Saxon idea of a spiral: data structures; functions; classes each time, but also a little deeper each time. The goal is for concepts to gain traction by being immediately *used* in a next context (something Wayne and I were yakking about on Math Forum recently). We introduce vectors only to use them in a next lesson, as constituents of polyhedra. Or I'll start with polyhedra as my primitive objects and get to vectors only secondarily, as constituents of an Edge class. I believe in teacher discretion in these matters, as a best judge of hers or his own students and teaching abilities. I keep blogs, still use xBase for a living, mostly in hospital work (having SQL embedded right in the native syntax is like bread and butter for me, not saying Python isn't good at it), have hung out on edu-sig here since its inception, lots of fun dialogs, got us a PhD thesis focused on us 'n everything (collective blush) **. I think it'd be unsurprising that Python has a dynamic core list focused on education, given all the focus and interest on improving curricula these days. I definitely think the open source languages, combined with low cost hardware, is in the process of revolutionizing the classroom once again, to the lasting improvement of the student experience, teacher as well. Kirby 4dsolutions.net ** PROMOTING COMPUTER LITERACY THROUGH PROGRAMMING PYTHON by John Alexander Miller A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Education) in The University of Michigan 2004 Doctoral Committee: Professor Frederick Goodman, Chair Emeritus Professor Carl Berger Professor Jay Lemke Professor John Swales http://www.python.org/files/miller-dissertation.pdf

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Re: [Edu-sig] Self Study for Kids
by Albert Sweigart 27 Apr '08

27 Apr '08

Jay, I am also writing a book on game programming in Python aimed at 10-12 year olds. The title is "Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python" and it is nearing completion. (All the source code is there, and only the last chapter needs writing, along with general editing.) A complete PDF of the final work should be ready within a couple weeks. http://pythonbook.coffeeghost.net/ Al Sweigart

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SA 8629 day 2
by kirby urner 27 Apr '08

27 Apr '08

Plug for VPython in today's write-up (a YouTube): http://controlroom.blogspot.com/2008/04/sa-classnotes-2008426.html Kirby

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Re: [Edu-sig] Question about Python - Social Networking Software
by Laura Creighton 26 Apr '08

26 Apr '08

In a message of Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:26:58 EDT, =?UTF-8?Q?Ivan_Krsti=C4=87?= writ es: >On Apr 25, 2008, at 8:49 AM, csev wrote: >> Should I just use DJango with a few modules? I worry that DJango is >> too much of a Mambo-clone > >Mambo is a content management system. Django is a framework for >writing web applications with particularly nice support for writing >content management systems. You're confusing the two; you can't just >"use Django". I recommend looking at something like Plone (<http://plone. >org/ > >). > >-- >Ivan KrstiÄ <krstic(a)solarsail.hcs.harvard.edu> | http://radian.org But Plone, like all content managment systems which use the 'publish/approve' method are organisation-centred. So you might be happier just using a wiki such as moinmoin. http://moinmo.in/ Laura Creighton

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Question about Python - Social Networking Software
by csev 25 Apr '08

25 Apr '08

I am looking for some social networking software for a course I am teaching next winter. I would love for it to be Python. In PHP - something like Elgg would be great. It needs a Wiki, Blog, RSS feeds, etc etc. Should I just use DJango with a few modules? I worry that DJango is too much of a Mambo-clone - I want something that is user-centered (student centered) - not organization centered. Something with good access controls - with the ability to have closed groups - would be a nice feature. Thanks. Charles Severance University of Michigan

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Self Study for Kids
by Jay Bloodworth 25 Apr '08

25 Apr '08

Anybody know any good self study resources for kids interested in learning programming, pythonic or otherwise? The kid(s) in question are 12-14. Jay

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Re: [Edu-sig] Self Study for Kids
by Richard Guenther 22 Apr '08

22 Apr '08

2008/4/21 Iman Darabi <iman.darabi(a)gmail.com>: > > > On Mon, Apr 21, 2008 at 2:20 PM, roberto <roberto03(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > > On 4/20/08, Iman Darabi <iman.darabi(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > > take a look at it : > > > http://www.computer-books.us/python_0003.php > > sorry, but this seems not to working at the moment ... > > so try this link ( tested and it's ok ) , as i remember this link is home > page of the book too > http://www.greenteapress.com/thinkpython/ > > What you've linked to is the new edition of the "How to Think Like A Computer Scientist" Python book by Allen Downey--a book that I'll be using in an introductory programming class. Jeffry Elkner is also working on a "different" new version of that book: http://openbookproject.net/thinkCSpy/index.xhtml It's interesting to compare the two new versions. Richard -- coldfrontramblings.blogspot.com

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Considering Idioms
by kirby urner 22 Apr '08

22 Apr '08

Dylan and I had some interesting chatter on the PPUG list (formerly PORPIG), regarding what I advanced as the David Goodger thesis (based on last year's OSCON tutorial), that it's more idiomatic to say "for e in thedict:" than "for e in thedict.keys():" The reasoning here (as I understood it) is thedict is an iterable and so has a __next__, meaning we don't need to flag it as anything special with the keys() modifier, i.e. stick with a more generic syntax to where the reader is just thinking "iterable" and not "dictionary" per se. Dylan points out that you might want to clue the reader that dictionaries are a special kind of iterable in having no specific sequence i.e. you can't get at its successive keys with integer subscripting, unlike with lists, tuples, and strings. Importantly, then, the concept of "iterable" is such that we may have no way of "jumping ahead" i.e. we can go next, next, next, but there's no way to subscript i.e. bypass the intermediate steps, to get to some distant element in the iteration. We have this in mathematics a lot: sequences with clear rules for getting the next one, but no closed form expression for getting the nth, short of computing all intermediate steps (cellular automata studies furnish any number of examples). Kirby ** http://mail.python.org/pipermail/portland/2008-April/000327.html

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Rambles from PDX/4D
by kirby urner 20 Apr '08

20 Apr '08

Programming in Python, aka Pythonic Math 8629, is a go for this spring, so I'm gearing up again, dunno how much I'll blog of this one, having done semi-exhaustive retrospectives a few times already.[1][2] Intersection with UK version of Math Wars at Pycon was fun, still writing little modules around Cuisenaires, some early source code, once you've got your feet wet with the rods, fractions, other age-appropriate materials, e.g. Peter Pan, Over the Hedge, Flushed Away... Narnia, or in our household, Spirited Away (a big hit).[3] Currently working on contrasting bare CGI versus the newer XMLhttpResponse approach, first intro'd by BigSoftie in ActiveX, since standardized to non-ActiveX browsers. Using I Ching again, in keeping with newsy themes (olympics etc. -- mostly about Unicode). None of this is new material, just wanting to contribute my share to the literature. Trucked the XO to my native Quaker habitat recently, where we have our measure of geeks in training, both XX and XY.[4] Some overlap twixt my SA: and these gnubees sometimes. Had a good meeting of PPUG.[5] A funny moment was when this slender newcomer wanted the Pycon swag Jason was being so generous with, but our default T-shirt sizes start at size L (with no upper limit?). An occupational hazard, and a bias we should work on. Standing workstations make sense, even if not on a tredmill. Or the idea for a leaden mouse might be good (heavy like, not saying made of element Pb, which could be a health hazard). I've been watching Pycon Youtubes, not just this year's. What I suggested on the Europython list is maybe focusing on getting speakers their audio tracks, as so often the cameras are unmanned and don't track, plus even if they do, slides come across better if added later, spliced with live video track.[6] Kirby 4D [1] http://saturdayacademy.org/ [2] http://worldgame.blogspot.com/2006/11/more-pythonic-mathematics.html [3] http://controlroom.blogspot.com/2008/03/disambiguation.html [4] http://worldgame.blogspot.com/2008/04/quaker-spectrum.html [5] http://controlroom.blogspot.com/2008/04/ppug-200848.html [6] http://mail.python.org/pipermail/europython/2008-April/006772.html

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Using Python 3.0 for teaching
by Andre Roberge 09 Apr '08

09 Apr '08

There is an interesting paper about using Python 3.0 to teach programming: http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/nde/papers/teachpy3.html André

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