Straighterline Programming in C++

[Photog]

If you have zero knowledge I think Saylor and SL are both going to be very challenging. SL may be a little easier to pass because of the grading system, Saylor is all on the final exam and no project grades. The first half of the SL projects are fairly straightforward, the projects near the end require a bit more skill and extra thinking.

I have just looked at the grading criteria and the programming assignments have changed since I did the SL course. Im not sure the grading criteria on the SL website is correct, there seems to be too many Cipher assignments.

The last 3 assignments are now:
Programming assignments: Breaking Transposition Ciphers
Programming assignments: Breaking Substitution and Transposition Ciphers
Programming assignments: Cryptographic File Manager

I did:
Programming Assignment 6: Upset Fowl (text based Angry Birds game)
Programming Assignment 7: Marketing Software
Programming Assignment 8: Inventory System

[cookderosa]

Penn Foster Intro to programming.

Thank you! I'm looking for a good class for one of my kids this summer!

[bluebooger]

Thank you! I'm looking for a good class for one of my kids this summer!

then don't make them do pseudo code

it will bore them to tears

it's like taking a class in Mandarin and then being told, "well, we aren't actually going to be learning Mandarin. We're going to learn pseudo mandarin. But it will make learning Mandarin easier in the future"

no, no it won't
it will be boirng and a waste of time

sign your kid up for a course at coursera or edx

have your kid take
An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python (Part 1)
https://www.coursera.org/course/interactivepython1

where they'll actually learn to program and learn to make a video game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e23oJZCjXTI

or this
Programming in Scratch
https://www.edx.org/course/programming-s...ddx-cs002x

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWYNZLu1o-M

Scratch is probably the best thing for a first time programmer
it's ridiculously easy, but still teaches important concepts
it's even used at Harvard the first week of their Intro to CS course

at least then they're actually learning something, building something
as opposed to "hey, let's take a class on cooking, but never set foot in a kitchen and never touch any food"

pseudo code has it's place, but building an entire course around it is a waste

yeah, neither of those are for credit
but with that knowledge they can easily take a credit course in C or Java or C++

[Photog]

Thank you! I'm looking for a good class for one of my kids this summer!

Have a look at a few of the free tutorial sites and see how they get on.

Learn C++ Very good site from a UC professor.

C++ Beginner’s Tutorial | The Penguin Programmer
https://www.thenewboston.com/videos.php?...ideo=17477 ----- lots of videos.

If they can get through most of learncpp, SL will be be straightforward.

[cookderosa]

Thanks everyone (didn't mean to hijack the thread) but since everyone is being generous- what about this? https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/co...rogramming

[mpie18]

Since I knew programming, the C++ course from Straighterline was an easy course for me and didn't take too long to complete. ( Maybe a week or less, I do not remember exactly...) It had 8 written assignments where I had to submit tested workable code. It also had 4 graded quizzes, midterm and final ( final proctored through ProctorU). If you do not like programming and do not know C ++ to start with, it will be much better for you to take Penn Foster Intro to programming course, where you do not program actually , but write pseudocode. There is no proctored test in Penn Foster. They will send you a textbook for the course and you will need to install Visio.

I also took Saylor CS101 Introduction to Computer Science I ( NCCRS recommended) that, in my opinion, is somewhat similar to Straighterline C++, but in Java. You do not need to submit any code in the Saylor course and the final is a multiple choice test through ProctorU .

TESC trancribed the mentioned 3 courses as followed:

from Saylor - Introduction to computers COS 101( 3 credits)
from Straighterline - C++ programming COS-213 ( 4 credits)
from Penn Foster - Intro to Programming COS -111 (3 credits)

They put all 3 courses in area of study for BA in Computer Science.

Thanks for your feedback. Looks like I'll be taking the Penn Foster course when the time comes. I've struggled with programming courses (for example, Codecademy) because they simply bore me to tears and frustrate me. Maybe an introduction to the logic behind coding will help me with future excursions into programming languages.

So what exactly do you do for the Penn Foster course to earn the credit?

[bluebooger]

...Maybe an introduction to the logic behind coding will help me with future excursions into programming languages.

all the "logic" in coding can be taught in 15 minutes, 30 minutes tops

read this
Program Arcade Games With Python And Pygame
and watch the watch the accompanying videos

there
that's it
that's all you need to know

programming logic is easy

if they stretch it out into an entire course you will be extremely bored

the reason Codecademy and those other courses are boring is because they treat you like an idiot

I once took a 4 credit course in java
and in week 3 we just started writing programs to convert Fahrenheit to Celsius

that is ridiculous
you should be doing that on day 3, not week 3

most programming classes are boring because they go too slow

the best way to learn to code is to be treated like an adult
be assigned a problem and then you have to come up with a solution

I'm doing a non-credit game programming with C# course through coursera right now
and most of the time is spent googling and searching for explanations and examples
because the homework assignments were complex from day 1

but everyone who has spent time looking for help and practicing variations of what they find is really learning the stuff and are posting some really cool videos

Harvard University posts the videos for all their lectures, sections and homework assignments for CS50 Introduction to Computer Science
CS50.tv
^link to videos

here's the video from day 2 of week one
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUB-aJXquUA

from 9:30 through 26:00 is devoted to pseudocode and how it applies to algorithms

then they move onto Scratch programming
Scratch is programming "language" that is really like a jigsaw puzzle
you take the different pieces (commands) and drag them together to form more complicated commands

and by the end of week one they're doing REAL programming making real games

that's how you learn to program

then on week two they leave the basics behind and move onto C in a linux environment

I am really against any class that doesn't require you to code in a real language and do real problems with real solutions
there is just really no point

watch the videos for CS50 casually just for fun
or do the course and work through the problems and do homework through edx
https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-...ardx-cs50x

or work through the python game programming web site that I mentioned above
Program Arcade Games With Python And Pygame

there are just so many good free sites that teach programming

and once you feel comfortable then you can take a course somewhere for credit

[mpie18]

Resurrecting this thread from the dead once again...

I'm knocking out much of my credits and am approaching my programming course soon. I've yet to choose between PF and SL.

My main concern with Penn Foster is the timeframe - how long does it take to complete (waiting for everything to get shipped, for the proctor to be approved, etc.) I don't want a relatively easy course to be prolonged into a month-long affair. My concern with Straighterline is the difficulty and the workload. As someone who's never liked or understood programming, I'm afraid of all of the assignments and quizzes needed to be completed, and that the whole ordeal will take a huge chunk of my time.

Could anyone address this?

[clep3705]

Since Jennifer brought up programming for kids, here are some resources: Inspiring the next generation of programmers - developer tools from Microsoft - Microsoft UK Faculty Connection - Site Home - MSDN Blogs and Mod Minecraft Online, Minecraft Modding Software - LearnToMod

These resources are even good for adults. Programming Minecraft is sort of like playing with Legos.

[petersouth]

Resurrecting this thread from the dead once again...

I'm knocking out much of my credits and am approaching my programming course soon. I've yet to choose between PF and SL.

My main concern with Penn Foster is the timeframe - how long does it take to complete (waiting for everything to get shipped, for the proctor to be approved, etc.) I don't want a relatively easy course to be prolonged into a month-long affair. My concern with Straighterline is the difficulty and the workload. As someone who's never liked or understood programming, I'm afraid of all of the assignments and quizzes needed to be completed, and that the whole ordeal will take a huge chunk of my time.

Could anyone address this?

Just to give you another option, UEXCEL made a Java Programming Course. It is multiple choice. i would think this would qualify like C++ or Visual Basic would. I bought my book and will be studying soon.