{"id":4571,"date":"2014-12-21T09:00:28","date_gmt":"2014-12-21T16:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/?p=4571"},"modified":"2014-12-20T09:24:00","modified_gmt":"2014-12-20T16:24:00","slug":"kids-should-code-why-computational-thinking-needs-to-be-taught-in-schools-jim-chalmers-and-tim-watts-comment-is-free-theguardian-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2014\/12\/21\/kids-should-code-why-computational-thinking-needs-to-be-taught-in-schools-jim-chalmers-and-tim-watts-comment-is-free-theguardian-com\/","title":{"rendered":"Kids should code: why &#8216;computational thinking&#8217; needs to be taught in schools | Jim Chalmers and Tim Watts | Comment is free | theguardian.com"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> &lt; 1<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute<\/span><\/span><p>Learning to code is about understanding the tools and devices that are all around us, so that we have control rather than the people who made those tools.<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2014\/dec\/19\/kids-should-code-why-computational-thinking-needs-to-be-taught-in-schools\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/2435823037_982e775726_o-460x276.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2014\/dec\/19\/kids-should-code-why-computational-thinking-needs-to-be-taught-in-schools\">Kids should code: why &#8216;computational thinking&#8217; needs to be taught in schools | Jim Chalmers and Tim Watts | Comment is free | theguardian.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>But it\u2019s more than being able to interact with the remarkable microcomputers in our everyday lives, it\u2019s about having the knowhow and the confidence to look beyond the shiny applications and to the code beneath: about using technology to create from the ground up, not just consume.<\/p>\n<p>More of our schools\u2019 curricula should be devoted to this kind of knowledge. It\u2019s not just student\u2019s technical skills that benefit from this type of learning. The spillover is that students develop better ways to approach and think about problems, which is just as valuable as the technical skills themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Jeanette Wing, vice president of Microsoft research and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=U67utvZai8s\">pioneer of computational thinking<\/a> \u2013 the ability to break a problem down and express the solution in a form that a computer can understand and evaluate \u2013 sees it as a skill as important as reading, writing and arithmetic, and one that will be embraced by everyone by the middle of the 21st century.<\/p>\n<p>This type of thinking will be embraced not only for its computer science applications, but because the abilities to abstract, compartmentalise and synthesise can be transferred to any domain.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<div class='wp_likes' id='wp_likes_post-4571'><a class='like' href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(4571);\" title='' ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-likes\/images\/like.png\" alt='' border='0'\/><\/a><span class='text'>Be the first to like.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class='like' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(4571);\">Like<\/a><\/div>\n<div class='unlike' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.unlike(4571);\">Unlike<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> &lt; 1<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute<\/span><\/span>Learning to code is about understanding the tools and devices that are all around us, so that we have control rather than the people who made those tools. Kids should code: why &#8216;computational thinking&#8217; needs to be taught in schools &hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2014\/12\/21\/kids-should-code-why-computational-thinking-needs-to-be-taught-in-schools-jim-chalmers-and-tim-watts-comment-is-free-theguardian-com\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[353,81,24],"tags":[388,6,135,393,53],"class_list":["post-4571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-computers-2","category-information-technology","category-teaching-learning","tag-academia","tag-computer-science","tag-computing-education","tag-teaching-learning","tag-technology"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Hsb6-1bJ","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2113,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2012\/04\/02\/it-turns-out-that-learning-about-computing-is-not-like-learning-to-drive-a-car\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":0},"title":"It Turns Out that Learning About Computing is NOT like Learning to Drive a Car","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"April 2, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Why all our kids should be taught how to code: m.guardian.co.uk. I'm just sayin' ...... almost everything we have done over the last two decades in the area of ICT education in British schools has been misguided and largely futile. Instead of educating children about the most revolutionary technology of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3264,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2013\/01\/16\/bbc-news-viewpoint-computer-code-frees-us-to-think-in-new-ways\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":1},"title":"BBC News &#8211; Viewpoint: Computer code frees us to think in new ways","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"January 16, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"BBC News - Viewpoint: Computer code frees us to think in new ways. Very well said. There's lots here to like and agree with: To date the reasons behind the changes have seemed very skills-based, as if instilling particular skills will lead to growth in business and the economy. Really,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Computers&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Computers","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/computers-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2202,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2012\/05\/22\/computational-literacy-and-literacy-vs-competency\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":2},"title":"Computational Literacy and Literacy vs. Competency","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"May 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The comment about competency vs literacy is a really good one. So I\u2019ll end with a caution about relying on the word literacy. It\u2019s a word I\u2019m deeply troubled by, loaded with historical and social baggage and it\u2019s often misused as a gatekeeping concept, an either\/or state; one is either\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1810,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2011\/08\/02\/instruction-makes-student-attitudes-on-computational-modeling-worse-caballero-thesis-part-3-%c2%ab-computing-education-blog\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":3},"title":"On Mark Guzdial&#8217;s Post: Instruction makes student attitudes on computational modeling worse.","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"August 2, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"From Mark Guzdial's Blog today: Instruction makes student attitudes on computational modeling worse: Caballero thesis part 3 \u00ab Computing Education Blog. I think this is pretty interesting but I can't say I'm surprised. My reaction: Given the experiences I've had with what the majority of CS professors\/instructors teach, my first\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2308,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2012\/06\/16\/the-end-user-view-of-technology-not-good-enough\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":4},"title":"The End-User View of Technology &#8211; Not Good Enough","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"June 16, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Sadly, this is the POV (point of view = perspective) that most teachers have. I don't blame them - it's not really their fault. On the other hand, the professors who teach them should know better. Them I do blame. They're the ones who decide what you need to know\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1482,"url":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2010\/12\/07\/computational-science-needs-cs-education-but-does-it-need-cs\/","url_meta":{"origin":4571,"position":5},"title":"Computational Science needs CS Education: But Does It Need CS?","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"December 7, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Computer Science is dead (or should be). I love reading Mark Guzdial's blog. He so often talks about things I think are important, AND (perhaps not surprisingly) things about which I have strong opinions. Here's another: Computational Science needs CS Education \u00ab Computing Education Blog. Computer science professors may not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4571"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4578,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4571\/revisions\/4578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}