What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word ‘coding’? Is it only relatable to adults with particular mathematical and technological degrees? The answer would be NO! Coding can be learned by anyone from age six and beyond. It’s like any other language skill children can master in their early years, ex: English or French.
Let’s look at one of the most popular coding platforms students use worldwide – Scratch. One needs to snap blocks together to code in Scratch. Just imagine one can control an entire project or any story using that simple logic. That’s why children enjoy it so much. It’s only a game where they can find the opportunity of applying their logical skills.
The range of things a kid or a teenager can create and enjoy through coding is countless – interactive stories, games, animations, science projects, anime soap operas, greeting cards, opinion polls, informative tutorials, and the list is never-ending. It is proven that children are most creative between 6 – 10 years. Introducing coding at this age is just like teaching a language to the child through which they can read, think, speak, write, and, above all, foster creativity.
Coding platforms like scratch, code.org, code combat, and Khan Academy, amongst a hundred others, are not limited to creating. One also has the opportunity to share their work and learn from other’s creations. It helps to establish a global network of collaboration and learning. Sometimes when a function doesn’t run properly, coders also can find and fix the bugs. Through this process, they can become confident problem solvers with the help of the coding community.
One of the many benefits of learning to code is simultaneously learning the design thinking process. Skills like breaking down big complex ideas into doable smaller parts and planning and organization help improve academic performance and become relevant in any future career paths, ranging from Sales Manager to Social Worker.
Many argue that exposing children to computers at a young age might adversely affect their health. But if we are honest with ourselves, we’ll realize that children of today’s generation are exposed to laptops and mobiles from a young age. If parents can approve their TV and game time, they can surely understand that engaging a child in coding for 1 hour per day at max would not do any added harm.
Another argument is that when students should be playing outside, they get stuck in front of the computer screens and lose out on something more valuable. Today’s students are developing codes to interact with the physical world around them. Recently, in Hong Kong, kids made a game where the light sensor detects a hole in the board when they move their physical saw and controls the virtual saw on the screen. Coding is just the beginning of bringing together the virtual and the physical world.
Researchers like Mitchell Resnick and Seymour Paper have successfully proven that children acquainted with coding from an early age can naturally grasp mathematical interpretations and calculations much faster than their non-coder peers. So it can be rightly said that coding is not only restricted to adults. Coding is for everyone, especially young children!
References:
1. https://www.ted.com/talks/mitch_resnick_let_s_teach_kids_to_code
2. https://medium.com/mit-media-lab/the-seeds-that-seymour-sowed-4c50333f03fc