The Next Generation: Should We Be Teaching Kids to Code?
by Natasha Christou Digital Marketing ConsultantWhile the world is constantly embracing new
technologies, so does our education system. Since the changes in the UK
curriculum in September 2014, kids as young as five have begun to embrace
branches of education that seem completely alien to many adults. The shift from
the classic ‘ICT’ to ‘computing’ has sparked controversy among some parents. Is
this because the idea of children this young harnessing something that seems so
high-tech is overwhelming and, well, intimidating? Fear of the unknown
certainly contributes to these concerns, as does the negativity surrounding
screen-time and the perceived lack of creativity behind coding. However,
experts believe that there are countless benefits to the introduction of new
branches of computing in schools.
Helps creativity
Despite people struggling to see the
creative side to coding, there is plenty of evidence that children and young
adults enjoy the creative aspect of their computing education. When answering a
survey about why they chose to learn coding at school, the top answer given by
the group of British teenagers was “I thought it would be fun” (30 per cent of
female respondents and 61 per cent of male respondents).
There are many elements of modern computing
education include creativity. After kids get to grips with coding, they will
understand the link it has with storytelling, as it follows a similar
‘beginning middles, and end’ structure. As well as coding, children who get the
opportunity to learn cross platform app
development, experience a fantastic opportunity to be creative and think
outside the box in a way that adults often can’t.
In a workshop conducted by Future Legends
at the Novoda offices in Berlin, a group of seven-to-nine-year-olds had a go at
designing their own mobile app. The workshop inspired creativity in unexpected
ways, especially in the discovery interview stage, in which the children were
tasked with quizzing each other about visiting the zoo. After finding out about
their zoo visits, they then came up with app ideas that could improve the zoo
experience, combining creativity, problem solving, and social skills.
Filling the STEM skill gap
Along with enjoyment, children will also
get fantastic career prospects out of the computing element of their
curriculum. The science and technology sector is the fastest going area of
employment and, as it stands, there simply aren’t enough people to fill all the
job opportunities. Although it may seem like an extremely long-term goal when
teaching these skills to a five-year-old, learning these skills at a young age
will brilliantly equip young people to enter into a constantly evolving
workforce.
When explaining these curriculum reforms in
2014, the department
of education referred to them as “a long-term project which will ultimately
be self-sustaining”. We’re certainly playing the long game but, with this,
young people are having the opportunity to learn these valuable skills and the future of computing and coding looks
bright.
Equipped for the internet
Along being taught the basics of algorithms
from the age of five, pupils are learning how to understand the concept of the
internet from seven years old. Many adults have protested, believing that children
should be allowed to remain naïve from the web and away from screens.
This aspect of their education is essential
for safeguarding children and making them aware of something that is inevitably
going to become a big part of their lives at some stage. Rather than letting
young people stumble blind into the challenging world of the internet, is it
not better that they are now discovering it in a safe and controlled
environment?
Perseverance and Problem Solving
Coding and computing can teach children
valuable lessons in problem solving and perseverance. One great thing about
coding, is that it teaches children how to approach problems creatively, and
break down difficult conundrums into smaller, more manageable, chunks. Even if
a child decides against a path in computer science, these skills are
transferable and beneficial to pretty much every potential career path a young
person might choose.
Despite this being somewhat difficult to
comprehend, the world of education is transforming before our eyes. These
changes are necessary for children’s smooth entrance into a
technology-dominated world, and armed with skills in computing, the next
generation is sure to bring some fantastic innovations in due time!
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Created on Feb 3rd 2020 06:17. Viewed 413 times.