From mboxrd@z Thu Jan  1 00:00:00 1970
X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me
X-Spam-Level: 
X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID
	autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4
X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit
X-Google-Thread: fac41,af40e09e753872c
X-Google-Attributes: gidfac41,public
X-Google-Thread: 109fba,f292779560fb8442
X-Google-Attributes: gid109fba,public
X-Google-Thread: f8c65,30e368bdb3310fe5
X-Google-Attributes: gidf8c65,public
X-Google-Thread: 1014db,30e368bdb3310fe5
X-Google-Attributes: gid1014db,public
X-Google-Thread: 103376,30e368bdb3310fe5
X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public
X-Google-Thread: 10db24,30e368bdb3310fe5
X-Google-Attributes: gid10db24,public
X-Google-Thread: 1008e3,30e368bdb3310fe5
X-Google-Attributes: gid1008e3,public
From: Steve Howard <howard@mtm.syr.ge.com>
Subject: Re: The Last Word on Comments (was Re: Hungarian notation)
Date: 1996/06/05
Message-ID: <31B5B869.4797@mtm.syr.ge.com>#1/1
X-Deja-AN: 158675263
references: <4o07o9$rfu@seagoon.newcastle.edu.au> <4o1vo3$p2a@news1.ni.net>
 <4oegks$ntn@goanna.cs.rmit.EDU.AU> <DsA0rM.2F4@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU>
 <4p2jau$hkp@seagoon.newcastle.edu.au>
 <4p3dad$mia@charm.magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>
content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
organization: Lockheed Martin Ocean, Radar & Sensor Systems - Syracuse
mime-version: 1.0
newsgroups: 
 comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.c++,comp.lang.c,comp.lang.modula3,comp.lang.modula2,comp.edu,comp.lang.eiffel
x-mailer: Mozilla 2.0 (WinNT; I)
Date: 1996-06-05T00:00:00+00:00
List-Id: <comp.lang.ada>


Mike Fulton wrote:

> Why don't schools design projects/labs that build upon themselves.  Every one
> of my projects could have been done without doing the preceding projects.
> When we implemented Abstract Data Types (ADT), they gave us the .def files and
> told use how to use the procedures.  Why not have us build those
> implementation modules first.  Start with what the language gives you and then
> extend it.  Create an ADT from the ground up.  Then have us use the ADT we
> made to implement other ADT by layering them over our first ones.  After we
> build enough structures and routines, have us use them to create a real
> project.  Something that would be difficult to build from scratch, but
> moderately easy using OUR tools.  This would truely show us the value of
> starting with good data structures.  And it would force us to write readable
> code and use good commenting, since you have to use today's code 1 or 2 months
> later, or even next quarter.
> 

I was going to respond in very much the same way. I think this 
progressive single project format would be much more valuable 
than a set of disjoint small projects.

One addition (for an intro to programming type of class) would 
be to throw in some maintenance-type programming towards the 
end. The instructor could supply some code that doesn't work 
right and ask the student to fix and/or extend the code. 
Sprinkled lightly with incorrect comments, unclear interfaces 
and data structures, etc., this would be a good introduction to 
what programming in the real world is like. 
-- 
E. Steve Howard                | Lockheed Martin
                               | Ocean, Radar, & Sensor Systems        
mailto:howard@mtm.syr.ge.com   | Syracuse, NY