Gumberoo - Making a new learning language intepreter using FPC

[Eric]

they just sit and learn a popular language, and then call themself programmers.

The same goes for just about every profession out there.

Not all of programming is art and science, arguably most of the programming jobs out there have more in common with repetitive factory jobs than with high tech, research and experimentation. This may be regrettable, but it's true, and that's true even in the game industry.

Just look at any AAA game title: you'll have maybe a handful of devs working on the hard parts of the game engine, on the core AI tech, while you'll have dozens working on scripts for the game levels, the game missions, the support tools for all the game assets and the back-office (not game related, but HR, sales, web servers etc.). Same goes for the artistic side btw, you'll have a few lead artists, and dozens that'll be working from specs with much less creative freedom.

It was the only task for a two hour test.

It's a bit problematic to have a single task IME, depending on previous experience on mood of the students, some can get blocked for various reason (f.i. like having never really manipulated a Rubik's cube in real life).

To think is the key, and being motivated too!

Indeed, but these days, the demand and jobs related to programming is too high, so there are hordes of people that pick programming as their job like they could have picked any other job, and you can't dismiss them, since they're needed. Never forget that there are many programming jobs which no programmer that considers programming as an art and science would willingly take (you included), but those jobs still need to be done by someone...

I guess the issue of education is not really about educating the motivated and brilliant ones (those will always find a way, if you let them), but about the masses that don't really care one way or another, and for which their job is just a boring requirement of life (happy the ones that can combine work and passion!).