Simulation - A Practical Guide to Teaching Computing and ICT in the Secondary School - page 113

Task 6.9

Programming
Identify other Open Source packages or Apps that you might employ to teach the
principles of programming. Classify these as using graphical and textual-based
languages. Evaluate their suitability for use with those with intermediate or
advanced knowledge of programming.

Others have continued to build on Papert's legacy. A group including Eben Upton,
Rob Mullins, Jack Lang and Alan Mycroft, who were based at the University
of Cambridge's Computer Laboratory, noticed over a number years that there
appeared to be a decline in the programming skills of A-Level students applying
to study Computer Science. This was in stark contrast to the situation in the 1990s,
when pupils could readily develop their skills through access to BBC Micros,
Spectrum ZX and Commodore 64 machines, ( see Resources: Programming).
In response, Upton and the others developed Raspberry Pi, a platform like the
BBC Micro, which could provide ready access to a programming environment
( see Resources: Programming). This device can also help pupils to understand
computer architecture more readily, and how the parts of a system relate to each
other. However, although physical resources are important, teaching strategies are
paramount. In Programming, the use of examples or analogies, as in other aspects
of Computing, is a very powerful teaching tool. For instance, you can explain
algorithms by asking your pupils to consider the different ways to get home after
attending a club at school. These might be identified as follows:

1 Algorithm of the Bus:

a) Go to Bus Stop; b) Catch Number 30 to Tranmere Road; c) Transfer to
bus 27; d) Get off at United Street; e) Walk for two minutes to my house.

2 Algorithm of the Taxi:

a) Wait for taxi; b) Confirm it is booked for me; c) Get in taxi; d) At destination,
pay fare; e) Get out and go to my house.

3 Algorithm of the phone call home:

a) Ring home and ask for a lift; b) Wait for guardian/parent/friend of the
family to arrive; c) Moan all the way home about what is for tea; d) Get out
and go straight upstairs without talking to anybody.

You might make the point to your pupils that all three algorithms have the same
objective, but each achieves it differently. The variations between them in terms
of cost, time and safety are worth discussing in depth. It is also important to
establish which algorithm they favour and why ( see Chapter 5 , Computational
Thinking and the curriculum, for more on algorithms). It is not a huge step to
apply this learning to more abstract contexts when the tools used as a metaphor
become more challenging; i.e. Boolean algebra and decision-making. Similarly,
you may explore some aspect of programming languages by asking pupils to
start with a sequence of commands and decipher what they mean given a set
of clues: a sort of code-breaking exercise. For example, in Logo, the sequence
forward 120: right 90: Repeat 4 can be 'cracked' to mean 'draw a square'. The
introduction of Pseudo Code, which allows pupils to bridge the gap between