Majority of Parents Want Coding to be Integrated into the National Curriculum
After Michael Gove suspended the ‘dull and derivative’ national ICT curriculum last year, the place of computer science and coding in school education has been hotly debated.
With countries like Vietnam and Estonia teaching seven year olds how to code, a central topic of discussion in the UK is at what age it’s appropriate to introduce schoolchildren to programme computers.
Yet, with the rate of technological development as fast as it is, this debate misses the point completely. The way programmes are built will change so dramatically in the next ten years that knowledge of existing systems will not be essential for today’s children.
If we want to shape a generation of creative and successful adults, we need to ensure that they are exposed to as many different strands of learning as possible.
However, coding can help children to hone essential skills like problem-solving and the ability to think logically – areas which British schools have failed to focus on as yet.
Holly Seddon, editor in chief of Quib.ly, said: “A good knowledge of technology is increasingly important across all aspects of modern life.
“For our kids to get the most of school and be open to as many opportunities as possible, it is essential that they are taught the right technical skills, alongside literature, art and music.
“While coding is one important strand of this, our members have also stressed that it is the logic and problem solving skills that go along with coding that are also crucial.”
Recently, the topic of the importance of coding in education has been widely discussed on online parenting community Quib.ly. There was a strong consensus that children should be taught about computer programming in school but not only for its practical applications.
One parent on Quib.ly said: “I know from personal experience how easily too many science-based, "hard" subjects can poorly prepare you for life outside academia - where there are no right answers.
“Coding is arguably better for that than, say, maths, as there often aren't "right" answers so much as "elegant" answers. But still, I'd like to see kids learn a lot more in terms of logic, reasoning, debate, communication, experimentation at school - and I don't believe coding is the best vehicle to do so.”
Learning coding skills encourages both logical and creative thinking, while improving problem-solving skills and a child’s ability to adapt and innovate - but it cannot do this by itself.
The key issue is not how old a child should be when introduced to coding, but how the subject can be effectively integrated into the school curriculum to boost children’s skills across the board.
Another parent added: “I'd not go for "prioritizing" [coding over Arts subjects] but for integrating. When you start doing creative programming with modern coding languages, you could also start a blog documenting what you've been doing, for example.
“Or you could integrate arts expression into your computing projects.”
Parents do, however, understand the benefits of coding. One person added: “Technology opens new options for engaging students, differentiating delivery, improving outcomes, and reducing cost – we should use it to enhance and engage in every way we can.”
“Integration is really powerful. Technology can be very creative - there is no dichotomy there. I think we need to teach our kids to be creative, adaptive, and innovative and both the arts and technology support those. I think this will be evermore important as our world changes more quickly than ever.”
Holly added: “If we want to shape a generation of creative and successful adults, we need to ensure that they are exposed to as many different strands of learning as possible.
“Every child has different interests and needs, but whether individual kids go on to be the programmers of tomorrow or follow a completely different path, they deserve to be exposed to all those ways of working and encouraged to explore new ideas and approaches, alongside traditional subjects.”
What are your thoughts on this issue? Do you think children should be taught coding in schools? Tell us in the comments below or tweet us @FemaleFirst_UK
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