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Our LMS allows teachers to enroll students in classes so they can assign lessons and track progress. Students' work is automatically graded, collected, and returned to the teachers' dashboard.

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Our LMS allows teachers to enroll students in classes so they can assign lessons and track progress. Students' work is automatically graded, collected, and returned to the teachers' dashboard.

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importance in teachers knowing how to code

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importance in teachers knowing how to code

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Like a slow moving barge, the discussions around teaching students to code have remained afloat, drifting slowly towards a far away destination for many years. Although there is still progress to be made to achieve the goals of code fluency, current activities indicate that significant change is happening and thankfully, on a global scale.

In recent years, things have started to pick up speed. Steve Jobs of course was a passionate advocate of everybody, everywhere learning computer programming as a vital way to train us in new approaches to thinking. New York's Mayor Michael Bloomberg made some waves in 2012 when he declared his new year's resolution to be to learn to write code. Celebrities have started to pop up in various campaigns and the momentum is building.

The endorsement of code literacy's importance is nowhere more welcome than through governments. Countries such as Singapore, the UK, and the US have made the news as they stood up and showed it was firmly on their agenda and in the places where it matters most - in schools.

Estonia was one of the first to trial the coding in the classroom concept, launching a pilot program for 1st graders into 20 schools in 2012, and schools elsewhere started to follow suit. In July this year, the Singapore Education Minister announced a SG$2.8 million dollar investment into a 'Robotics and Maker Academy' to teach teachers and students robotics and coding. The intention? To make Singapore "gear up to be a smart nation" said the minister. In 2013, the UK government mandated that coding would become a permanent part of the school curriculum, and the non-profit campaign Year of Code was launched in 2014 to support the transition in the lead up to and during the implementation into schools in September.

In the USA, last year's State of the Union address saw Barack Obama speak of the importance of making sure graduates were better equipped for the future, by educating through a stronger focus on STEM subjects including those with foundations in technology. He put his support behind The Hour of Code which was a resounding success in 2013 with millions of people signing up to get involved in an hour of introductory computer science training, in over 33,000 events across the globe. The importance of teaching code in schools is now a constant and essential conversation.

The global conversation is of course important but it is really the foundation level action that is necessary for real progress to be made: teachers learning how to teach coding, students learning coding in class. However there must be effective education options in place to bridge the gap that still exists between the adult digital immigrants and the digital native children.

A variety of online platforms such as Codecademy, Lynda.com, Code.org and General Assembly are focusing their efforts on making coding more accessible not just to tech types but to everyone. Free online training, web based tutorials and customized subjects and courses for a range of required 21st century skills means everybody can get tech literate through whichever method they find suits them best.

As governments implement the necessary changes, it provides great opportunity to the various platforms to innovate and develop new systems for future proofing education. Helping schools transition content into their curriculum and providing tools and support to the millions of teachers worldwide who will be required to teach code will soon become core business for many tech ed platforms.

Given that the task of effectively educating the current and future generations of coders is held with teachers, CareerFoundry's recent partnering with Teacher Tube is an example of how innovations are being made in the teaching of code in classrooms. Over a million users have joined TeacherTube since its inception in 2007 and with the recent appointment of former Apple EdTech guru Alan Greenberg as Director, CareerFoundry has secured its position as Europe's number 1 online tech educator. With these two platforms collaborating together, the partnership will see CareerFoundry's ' Teaching Teachers to Code ' program connected to TeacherTube's rapidly growing community of educators to share educational resources that assist and enhance teacher training. This new partnership will see the two platforms accelerate the training of teachers to teach code in classrooms in US schools.

The learning of tech skills, as Steve Jobs said, makes us think in different ways. It requires a more creative approach to thinking and educational platforms such as Scratch from MIT are a great example of how seemingly concept principles can be delivered in a way that engages the user by providing chances to engage in creative ways and see their technology skills in action. Through construction and simple design, the user's involvement requires critical thinking and active problem solving as opposed to passively absorbing content, which has less meaning and does not offer the benefits of experiential learning. Human beings thrive when given creative opportunities and coding is a perfect example of how dynamic and creative thinking can lead to innovation.

For more on coding, check out:

Melinda Barlow is an Australian freelance writer and editor, based in Berlin. Find Melinda on Twitter at@melindajbarlow.

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Coding In The Classroom: How Teachers Are Learning To Code

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Like a slow moving barge, the discussions around teaching students to code have remained afloat, drifting slowly towards a far away destination for many years. Although there is still progress to be made to achieve the goals of code fluency, current activities indicate that significant change is happening and thankfully, on a global scale.

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December 08, 2016

Why should educators across all grade levels and subjects integrate coding computer sciences into the curriculum? That was the theme of my last blog. Now, let's talk about other ways educators can start integrating computer science education into their classrooms. For many, coding has been the answer, but this can be intimidating. Most of us never had any training in computer science in school, and it certainly wasn't a topic covered in my multi-subject, pre-service program. Primary teachers that I work with tend to be especially unsure about what computer science might look like in their TK-3 classrooms.

For teachers new to computer sciences, there are so many fantastic resources available to introduce coding to their students.

So how do you get started?

The best advice? Jump right in and learn with your students! Even if you have no coding experience at all, start some lessons on Code.org with your class and learn together. Many of the Hour of Code lessons on Code.org also come with lesson plans that support educators in teaching relevant academic vocabulary and computer science concepts.

Use the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) 2016 Interim CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards to guide integration of computer science or coding instruction.

Check out the Code.org workshops for K-5 educators where you'll learn the basics of computer science and how to use the Code.org lesson resources in your classroom.

Raspberry Pi is a U.K. based, non-profit organization dedicated to growing computer science education for teachers and students. Last year they expanded their "Picademy" computer science education program into the United States. Interested educators can apply to attend the program by visiting Raspberrypi.org.

There are other excellent benefits of incorporating coding and computer science into the classroom. It can encourage a more diverse population of students to embrace these subjects. Why does it matter? In 2015, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women made up only 24.7% of the computer science and mathematics industry. A mere 8% of those women were black and 9% were Hispanic. Diversity in the computer science and mathematics industry is still severely lacking - and we as educators can help with these concrete tips:

Start early: The earlier that we get children interested in computer sciences, the more likely they are to continue in computer science courses in high school and college.

Make the learning relevant and cool: If we want to see more students interested in computer science topics, we need to make it relevant to their lives. How can we integrate not just coding, but digital making into our classrooms as a way for children to create and solve problems? Students can use tools like Makey Makeys, Arduinos, and Raspberry Pi to apply their coding skills and create!

Share diverse computer science role models: Computer science is not just for geeky white males, as is often portrayed by the media. The STEM world is made up of a diverse group of individuals who have done amazing things; people like Ada Lovelace, Grace Hopper, Hedy Lamarr, Mae Jemison, Margaret Hamilton, Katherine Johnson, Annie Easley, Ellen Ochoa, and many more.

Encourage perseverance: Encourage all students to learn some coding. Encourage perseverance when students get stuck and collaboration so that students can help each other learn. A growth mindset - the idea that anyone can learn anything with hard work) - is one of the most important tools for coding and life.

A Coding Success Story for a Third Grade Class
Last month, my work with a 3rd grade class was proof that students at all grade levels are ready for this type of learning. I partnered with the teacher to introduce her students to the idea of physical computing and how to build and program a "voting/photo booth" using Raspberry Pi computers and Scratch for programming. Students had minimal experience with block coding and no experience in electronics or computer sciences. By the end of our 3-week long unit, students were using terms like input/output, circuit, and GPIO; persevering through problem solving with their teams; iterating the design of their devices and debugging code until both operated correctly; discussing mathematical concepts like multiples, repeated addition and decimal fractions in context; and could explain the relationship between the code they had written and the functionality of the device they had built. More importantly, the students had a chance to create something, to engage in relevant learning, and to have fun at school. These 8-year-olds far surpassed our expectations. Now I'm excited to see what happens in two upcoming programming and computer science projects with a TK (transitional kindergarten) class and a 2nd grade class!
Extra Tools and Resources for Teaching Coding
Check out the many resources available for educators to use to bring coding into the classroom, even with little coding knowledge themselves. Here are just a few of my favorites:
After seven years of teaching in grades K-5, Amanda is currently a Math and Technology Integration Coach. She is passionate about providing innovative learning opportunities for students on a daily basis and is enthusiastic about the power of technology in education. Her curriculum planning and delivery is supported by the use of technology as a tool to differentiate instruction and to access student engagement and critical thinking skills.

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Bring Coding To Your Classroom, TOMORROW | PBS Education

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December 08, 2016 Why should educators across all grade levels and subjects integrate coding computer sciences into the curriculum? That was the theme of my last blog. Now, let's talk about other ways educators can start integrating computer science education into their classrooms. For many, coding has been the answer, but this can be intimidating.

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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A beginners guide to brining coding in the classroom 

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A beginners guide to brining coding in the classroom 

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In case you haven't been paying attention, computer science skills are vastly becoming some of the most in-demand skills of the twenty-first century. In fact, some call it a new " superpower."

But there's a problem. There are approximately 587,000 computing jobs nationwide, which is growing at 2x the national average, but only about 38,000 computer science students graduated into the workforce this year. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that by the year 2020, there will be one million more computer science jobs than graduates prepared for these jobs.

Computer science is a primary driver of the U.S. economy, yet it does not (yet) play a significant role in K-12 education. Did you know that only 27 states allow students to count computer science courses toward high school graduation? But there's a way schools can help--by getting involved in Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek).

CSEdWeek and Hour of Code arrive December 7-13th, and this annual event is bigger than ever. Below, you will find a resource guide for CSEdWeek and Hour of Code, in order to help all of you K-12 educators bring coding into the classroom.

What are Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek) and Hour of Code?

Computer Science Education Week or CSEdWeek is an annual program designed to inspire K-12 students to take an interest in computer science. The program was originated by the Computing in the Core coalition, Code.org, and is supported by partners and educators worldwide. The philosophy is simple but significant: every student deserves the opportunity to learn computer science.

Hour of Code is a global movement in over 180 countries, and is a quick way to introduce coding to students or anyone. Anyone can learn the basics of computer science in a fun and easy way! By spending as little as one hour, you can spark coding interest in your students with one-hour lesson plans, tutorials, interactives and games.

How to Run an Hour of Code

Ready to get started? Running an Hour of Code doesn't have to be complicated. The resources are abundant and easy-to-follow.

No matter what grade level you teach, or what devices you have available, every student can participate in the Hour of Code and learn the basic principles that apply to all programming languages (like sequencing and looping). There are even options to go "unplugged" if you do not have access to devices in your classroom, because students can learn computer science principles with something as simple as a deck of cards.

Coding Resources & Lessons

There are hundreds of free resources, lesson plans, tutorials and events that bring the power of coding into the K-12 classroom. Below is a list of nine of my favorite options for anyone of any age to learn computer science skills. If you'd like to see more, click here to view my full list of coding resources.

Other Programming Languages

Computer Science Unplugged

No computer? No problem. As mentioned earlier, you can still teach and learn the basic principles of computer science without any computer or device at all. Try CS Unplugged, which is a collection of learning activities that teach computational thinking concepts without the need of a computer or device.

Moving Beyond the Hour of Code

Jumpstart Your Curriculum

The Hour of Code is just a starting point. When you and your students are ready for more, explore these fantastic resources, or give your teaching a boost with one of the following curriculums. (Keep in mind--most of these curriculums are tied in with the tools of the companies that created them!)

Professional Development and School District Partnerships

And for you district administrators, listen up! Code.org offers district partnerships to bring computer science to your entire district. Apply now--it's totally free!

Girls and Coding

The gender gap in the computer science industry is astonishing. Women today represent only 18% of all computer science graduates. In 1984, women were 37%. Encourage girls and young women to get started with coding using these inspiring programs.

Get Involved, No Matter Your Position!

No matter what your role, be it classroom teacher, administrator, parent, or community member, there are multiple ways to support CSEdWeek. Preparing students for the future, and equipping them with essential skills for success is always the end goal. Every student deserves a chance to learn computer science! Get started this week with the Hour of Code!

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A Beginner's Guide to Bringing Coding Into the Classroom - EdSurge News

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In case you haven't been paying attention, computer science skills are vastly becoming some of the most in-demand skills of the twenty-first century. In fact, some call it a new " superpower." But there's a problem. There are approximately 587,000 computing jobs nationwide, which is growing at 2x the national average, but only about 38,000 computer science students graduated into the workforce this year.