Kinds of language, kinds of learning

Abstract

The starting- (and finishing-) point for this discussion is a reflection, in general terms, on the question of what kinds of learning can take place in a programming course. More specifically, I shall consider the nature of the overall intellectual structure with which learners of Java are confronted. What does it mean for learners to fully "internalise" such a structure in their minds? I shall draw attention to the "anatomy" of this structure, to some of the ways in which it can be dissected, and how such dissections translate into orders of business in a first Java course. My central concern is to argue the merits of making some of the anatomical features explicit to learners, even at an early stage, and even if this entails a detour through extensive sub-Java or non-Java terrains in order to arrive at the promised land.