[Katie_UPS]

It depends on your team and resources. The difference in speed between C++/java/Labview is going to go unnoticed, because even slow computers are fast.

If your students have programming courses offered that use c++ or Java, then go with that. If you have a mentor (or multiple) that are proficient in one of the languages, then use that one.

If you're starting at ground 0, look at your goals for the team and use that to guide you. If you want your students to get "real world" programming experience, C++ and Java (and other text based languages) are far more common in industry. Learning C++ in high school, I've been told, "is like drinking from a fire hose," but its also one of the harder languages to learn, so its a cool skill for high schooler to have. Java is considered more accessible for a text-based language, is commonly taught in high schools (AP and IB Comp Sci use it), and is one of the first languages students learn in college if they take a computer major (Computer Science, Computer Eng, Software Eng).

I can't really speak for Labview, as I've had minimal experience with it. Its barrier of entry is probably lower and students still learn skills necessary to "think like a programmer."