[Yr11 Information Technology] RE: about SCRATCH for Unit2?

[Greyruin]

Hate to sound like an arrogant prat here, but why use a pretend language 
like Scratch to illustrate sequence, iteration and branching when those 
concepts are so clearly modelled in a "real" programing language?

Why spend a year teaching students a language that has no practical 
value outside of the lower secondary classroom?  A language that 
students can actually use is no more difficult to teach (or to learn to 
teach). {Once again, we are watering down the course - not so that 
students can understand it, but so that teachers can teach something 
they understand.}

On another note - Y 10 Subject choices information sessions today. I 
gave them the guff about doing IT 1 & 2. Told them that, for those 
considering a career in IT, 1 & 2 were probably far more useful than 3 & 
4. Since you have 1 & 2 under your belts, why not take on 3 & 4, then, 
since it will be easy after that?

When I finished, I got applause. Nobody else got applause. Goody.

Greg