Hacketyhack/hacketyhack. Kids Ruby. 4 Tools for Teaching Kids to Code. In a recent PC Pro article, Professor Steven Furber, developer of the ARM microprocessor, laments the sharp decline in interest in computer science classes in the UK.
And although the U.S. hasn't seen that same drop in enrollment, a recent survey of some 14,000 U.S. high school teachers by the Computer Science Teachers Association found that only 65% of respondents taught in a school that offered some sort of introductory computer science course. As our world becomes more tech-oriented, educators are faced with not just teaching children how to use computers, but how to build and program them as well. ReadWriteWeb's Back to School Coverage: "We need to get students interested in computer science and that has to be done at an early age before they decide (incorrectly) that they can't do computer science or that it is dull and boring," says Alfred Thompson, Microsoft's K-12 Computer Science Academic Relations Manager. 1. 4 (More) Tools for Teaching Kids to Code. This week is National Computer Education Week, aimed at recognizing the crucial role of computing in today's world and at supporting efforts to boost computer science education at all levels.
The event purposefully coincides with Grace Hopper's birthday tomorrow. But it also happens to come the same week that the Program for International Student Assessment has released its data about student performance and finds that, compared to others worldwide, U.S. students get a C for math and science. According to ACM and CSTA, two organizations that address computer science education, very few states recognize computer science as a core graduation requirement, and states' curriculum standards focus on computing skills rather than computing concepts.