[math4] Learning in software

[Greg Dekoenigsberg]

On Tue, 24 Mar 2009, Kathy Pusztavari wrote:

> Hi, I'm just curious as to what is motivating people like Greg D. to 
> tackle this.  Do you guys have kids?

Deep personal confession time:

No, I don't have kids, and I am unlikely to ever have them, which is a 
great personal disappointment in my life.  And since I won't ever be able 
to shape my own children -- then maybe, if I'm very lucky and work hard, 
I'll have the opportunity to shape the children of others.

> Also, as a newbie, I'm curious if all the activities will be written in 
> python or is that a foregone conclusion - is everything for sugar 
> written in python?

I think it's an open question.  In one way, Python is the best choice, 
because Sugar is strongly tied to it.  On the other hand, there's nothing 
wrong with other languages.  What *must* be true: the code, and the 
mechanisms to run the code, must be freely redistributable.  Which means 
no Flash, for instance.

> And finally, are you writing to flat files or is there some sort of 
> scaled down database in use or to be used?

For which piece?

> Sorry for all the stupid questions. The 2 math activities are great. 
> The way you laid out the state standards and then are tying activities 
> to each is beyond brilliance.

I give all credit to the book "Disrupting Class".  It has fundamentally 
changed the way I think.

> One suggestion is that you look at Direct Instruction curriculum (DISTAR 
> Math I/II preschool/K, Connecting Math Concepts A-E for K-4th grade). 
> This will show how skills and concepts are broken down and build up on 
> themselves in a logical sequence of steps.  I only suggest DI stuff (by 
> SRA) because it has 1/2 billion dollars of research showing it is 
> effective (see Project Follow Through).

Wow.  We should indeed look at that.  Is there a URL?  Is the data 
publicly available?

--g

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