[Python-ideas] Framework for Python for CS101

[Terry Reedy]

On 5/25/2015 10:56 PM, Rustom Mody wrote:

> It would be rather ridiculous to remove the print from a realistic language.
> However if you've taught enough beginners you'd know how hard it is to
> get beginners to write
> ... return <something>
> as against
> ... print (<something>)

Programming is composition, the connections of outputs to inputs (as 
with circuit design).  'Print' is the enemy of composition. We agree so far.

If submitting code with 'print' instead of 'return' gets a grade of 0 or 
'fail', don't people learn fairly quickly?  If assignments are partially 
test-defined and automatically test-graded, 'print' rather than 'return' 
will fail.  Example: 'write a function that returns a tuple of the 
number of positive and negative values in an finite iterable of signed 
numbers', followed by examples with the caveat that the grading test 
will have other inputs and expected outputs.

> And so in an early teachpack, I'd disable the print statement.

Print is essential for debugging.  You should only want to disallow 
print in the final submission of function code, as suggested above.

-- 
Terry Jan Reedy