Last time I posed the question: Why, exactly, is teaching kids to code so important?
And I introduced an August 2014 article from Inside Jersey about how programming is being rolled out in a number of NJ schools and why that is so great.
Did you catch how many reasons were cited? In a chain of 10 paragraphs, quoting 5 different people, there must have been 6 different angles on why programming is an important part of the curriculum.
That’s good, right?
If you read the research and the popular press, there are at least 4 plausible reasons why we should make Coding part of everyone’s school experience. (and I say “experience” on purpose)
This Aug 2014 article from a New Jersey newspaper is an absolute jumble of great reasons. That means it’s not exactly coherent and wouldn’t make a good policy roadmap, but you can see that different people can get excited about different aspects of Coding.
Here’s a succession of 4 quotes that manage to articulate 4 completely different (and great) reasons why teaching Coding is important:
“Just like we use the principles of math or the words in world languages as building blocks for those studies, code is a form of communication.”
i.e., Code is a language, a tool for expressing ideas you have.
“Code is how any technology works”
i.e., Code is a mechanism that technical and other things are composed of.
“Coding is its own language, not like anything else. It’s sort of like learning music and then applying it,”
i.e., Code is a creative, generative medium.
“I feel like this is the real meaning of and most effective way to teach logic — not in an abstract way, but rather making it happen right then.”
i.e., Code is a practical form of logic, and a good way to teach it.