Compiler construction is an area of computer science that deals with the theory and practice of developing programming languages and their associated compilers.
The theoretical portion is primarily concerned with syntax, grammar and semantics of programming languages. One could say that this gives this particular area of computer science a strong tie with linguistics. Some courses on compiler construction will include a simplified grammar of a spoken language that can be used to form a valid sentence for the purposes of providing students with an analogy to help them understand how grammar works for programming languages.
The practical portion covers actual implementation of compilers for languages. Students will typically end up writing the front end of a compiler for a simplistic teaching language, such as Micro.
Read more about Compiler Construction: Lexical Analysis, Syntax Analysis, Subfields
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“There is, I think, no point in the philosophy of progressive education which is sounder than its emphasis upon the importance of the participation of the learner in the formation of the purposes which direct his activities in the learning process, just as there is no defect in traditional education greater than its failure to secure the active cooperation of the pupil in construction of the purposes involved in his studying.”
—John Dewey (1859–1952)