[erlang-questions] Erlang in education --- back from the dead

[Lloyd R. Prentice]

Hi Michael,

Actually, teaching elementary students how to program is an interesting problem, but wasn't what I had in mind when I started this thread.

I was thinking about how to leverage low-cost, low-power ARM boards like the Raspberry Pi 3 to evangelize Erlang among three groups:

o makers -- or at least those interested in advancing their skills beyond Arduino and wiring.
          A single board and Erlang stack would suffice. 
o software engineers interested in learning more about distributed computing; mnesia    
          replication, failure, and recovery; and/or Riak. ARM clusters of two to five nodes would 
          do the trick.
o software engineers interested in learning all about network protocols. Two boards running 
          Erlang would get these folks well under way.

So, cost of entry would range from $50 to $450 per student --- not counting instructional materials.

My sense is that there any number of hidden-gem Erlang libraries and open-source libraries that are neglected or, at best, under used for lack of good documentation. This could be a powerful way to expand interest and adoption.

My assumption here is that a more vibrant and knowledgable Erlang community benefits us all.

All the best,

LRP

Sent from my iPad

> On Mar 19, 2016, at 9:17 PM, Michael Turner <michael.eugene.turner@REDACTED> wrote:
> 
> I'm not writing Erlang anymore. I keep meaning to unsubscribe from the list, but then something interesting pops up.
> 
> I was involved briefly in the Computer Education Project at Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley, back in 1969-1971. Logo was just starting to happen there at the time.  
> 
> Regards,
> Michael Turner
> Executive Director
> Project Persephone
> K-1 bldg 3F
> 7-2-6 Nishishinjuku
> Shinjuku-ku Tokyo 160-0023
> Tel: +81 (3) 6890-1140
> Fax: +81 (3) 6890-1158
> Mobile: +81 (90) 5203-8682
> turner@REDACTED
> http://www.projectpersephone.org/
> 
> "Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
> 
>> On Sat, Mar 19, 2016 at 11:16 PM, Lloyd R. Prentice <lloyd@REDACTED> wrote:
>> Thanks, Michael,
>> 
>> Way back in the day I was the founding editor and publisher of Classroom Computer News, the first magazine devoted to computer applications in K-12 classrooms. I was aware of Alan Kay's work at the time, but haven't kept up. Seymour Papert's work with Logo at MIT was a major figure and influence at that time. The big controversy was Computer-Assisted Instruction vs. teaching programming skills. 
>> 
>> Are you currently teaching or developing in Erlang?
>> 
>> All the best,
>> 
>> Lloyd
>> 
>> Sent from my iPad
>> 
>>> On Mar 19, 2016, at 1:28 AM, Michael Turner <michael.eugene.turner@REDACTED> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Some years back, I mentioned that Erlang seemed a lot closer to what Alan Kay originally meant by "object oriented" (which at the time did not include inheritance) than most O-O languages since. He has long been occupied with the issues of education through writing software, even in the early grades. His foundation's software work seems a bit moribund (I guess Open Cobalt is what it has come down to, not a wildly active project) but what they've done over the years might provide some ideas.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Regards,
>>> Michael Turner
>>> Executive Director
>>> Project Persephone
>>> K-1 bldg 3F
>>> 7-2-6 Nishishinjuku
>>> Shinjuku-ku Tokyo 160-0023
>>> Tel: +81 (3) 6890-1140
>>> Fax: +81 (3) 6890-1158
>>> Mobile: +81 (90) 5203-8682
>>> turner@REDACTED
>>> http://www.projectpersephone.org/
>>> 
>>> "Love does not consist in gazing at each other, but in looking outward together in the same direction." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
>>> 
>>>> On Thu, Mar 17, 2016 at 11:48 AM, Lloyd R. Prentice <lloyd@REDACTED> wrote:
>>>> Hello,
>>>> 
>>>> A year or so ago there was on this list a wonderful spirited discussion of how to get kids and educators interested in Erlang.
>>>> 
>>>> We have now low-cost low-power 64-bit hardware platforms that open boundless opportunities:
>>>> 
>>>> https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/raspberry-pi-3-on-sale/
>>>> http://www.hardkernel.com/main/products/prdt_info.php?g_code=G145457216438
>>>> https://www.pine64.com/product
>>>> 
>>>> http://www.techspot.com/news/64113-western-digital-creates-314gb-hard-drive-specifically-raspberry.html
>>>> 
>>>> So, I'm wondering if the Erlang community, particularly our corporate members, would be interested in mounting a programming challenge to students of all ages to develop innovative applications on one or another of these platforms? All entries would be released as open-source. Incentives might range from hardware to cash to internships to jobs. I, in my Writers Glen incarnation, would be willing to seed the program with $500 and devote some time if we can secure enough interest and resources to mount a credible program.
>>>> 
>>>> Or, short of such a grandiose scheme, I'm wondering if there are folks in the community interested in cooperating off-list in exploring and publishing on-line or in print under Creative Commons license how-tos and tutorials designed to inspire kids and push these platforms to their limits.
>>>> 
>>>> Best wishes,
>>>> 
>>>> LRP
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> Sent from my iPad
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> erlang-questions mailing list
>>>> erlang-questions@REDACTED
>>>> http://erlang.org/mailman/listinfo/erlang-questions
>>> 
> 
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