I mostly agree with this answer. However, in my experience, starting with a high-level language (like python) is a double-edged sword.
a) It fails to get people interested in low-level things like call stacks and frames. Someone once told me, "My language frees me up to think about the really important things: like solving the problem at hand. I don't have to worry about things like the stack and where my memory is going or coming from." Perfectly valid point maybe, but I didn't learn about these things because I needed to, I did it because I was interested and curious. I think C and it's pointers played a big role in helping me "get interested".
b) People take the _awesome_ things in high-level languages for granted. When I first moved into python from C, functions as first class entities blew me away! Lisp macros were like learning to do magic. People who have only used a high-level language don't give these features the credit they deserve. (Alright, this might just be a pet peeve of mine...)
I think that C _should_ be taught to students, at a slower pace and in more detail than it was taught to us. And if it occasionally blows up in their face, I think they'll be better off for it.
a) It fails to get people interested in low-level things like call stacks and frames. Someone once told me, "My language frees me up to think about the really important things: like solving the problem at hand. I don't have to worry about things like the stack and where my memory is going or coming from." Perfectly valid point maybe, but I didn't learn about these things because I needed to, I did it because I was interested and curious. I think C and it's pointers played a big role in helping me "get interested".
b) People take the _awesome_ things in high-level languages for granted. When I first moved into python from C, functions as first class entities blew me away! Lisp macros were like learning to do magic. People who have only used a high-level language don't give these features the credit they deserve. (Alright, this might just be a pet peeve of mine...)
I think that C _should_ be taught to students, at a slower pace and in more detail than it was taught to us. And if it occasionally blows up in their face, I think they'll be better off for it.