I imagine if there weren't compilers (or interpreter) I would never have learned how to code. My generation of programmers was taught with Java and in my university course we did all our homework in the first year using BlueJay, a program that made it _even easier_ to get up and running with a bit of Java code.
(just to save some face: I learned Prolog in my second year).
(just to save some face: I learned Prolog in my second year).