The next step would be an ipython notebook verses showing the student the debugger console with prepopulated state in Javascript.. In fact, later lessons as modules to interact with in a notebook would be kind of cool.

I really don't buy the "you have to own a car to drive one arguments" and the whole point of modern software engineering is to pull you away from the assumption of full system control and the ability to make problems go away with shell skills.

But, I would like more immediate source code management integration. That is the essential reality I always see lacking..

A non-programmer that understood git basics would be more helpful to me as a colleague than a competent programmer that doesn't.