After the C++ appetiser comes the COBOL main course

Abstract

In a first programming course, it is usual to select a programming language that encourages best practice and then to choose simple but elegant applications that enhance the beauty of the language and reinforce important programming and language constructs. This luxury is not available for the teaching of a second language, particularly when the application domain is the more mundane one of business systems. This paper reports on the teaching of business application development using COBOL to students who have previously been exposed to C++, and where the aim is to instill a respect for the legacy language and an empathy for business applications. The paper describes the success of a model where such teaching is woven into a real-world simulation of software engineering practice using team-based maintenance and development to create substantial systems.