Kara, finite state machines, and the case for programming as part of general education

Authors:
W. Hartmann;J. Nievergelt;R. Reichert
Affiliations:
-;-;-
Venue:
HCC '01 Proceedings of the IEEE 2001 Symposia on Human Centric Computing Languages and Environments (HCC'01)
Year:
2001

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Abstract

As a major evolutionary step in computer technology,users have come to rely on ready-made applicationsoftware, rather than writing their own programs. Ifcomputer users no longer program, does it follow that theart of programming should only be taught to computingprofessionals? We argue the case for programming as acomponent of general education. Not because of anydirect utilitarian benefit, but in order to gain a personalexperience as to what it means, and what it takes, tospecify processes that evolve over time. An analogy tomathematics education shows that schools teach theconcept of ,,proof", although in daily life people usemathematical formulas without knowledge of their proof.Programming practiced as an educational exercise,free from utilitarian constraints, is best learned in a toyenvironment, designed to illustrate selected concepts inthe simplest possible setting. As an example, we presentthe programming system Kara based on the concept offinite state machines.