Most of us agree that the youth are the key demographic that needs to be reached with coding education. They’re the ones entering the workforce that is more demanding of skilled laborers by the day, especially workers with technical skills like coding. Different states are going about reaching youth in different ways.
For example, in Utah, lawmakers just approved a bill to fund computer coding classes. According to Morgan Jacobsen of KSL, “SB107 would allocate just more than $2 million for the Utah STEM Action Center and the Utah State Board of Education to approve and purchase computer coding software programs teachers could use to teach the skill, which is in high demand among employers in the state and across the nation, according to bill sponsor Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper… Up to $1.5 million would be used to license computer coding instructional software for schools, and $320,000 would be used to provide professional development for teachers. The bill would also require the STEM Action Center and the State School Board to report back to the Legislature on how successful the program becomes. The bill doesn’t recommend any particular source for instructional software. Instead, several programs would be selected on a competitive basis. Some schools that are already using free software to teach the skill could allocate the funds to professional development instead, Stephenson said.”
Meanwhile, in Boulder, Colorado, one firm is using an apprenticeship program to tackle the problem. According to Gloria Dickie of the Daily Camera, “Located in Boulder’s core, Techtonic Group is a software development company with clients that range from the Denver Center for Performing Arts to Disney to FedEx. But while its clientele may be impressive, it’s Techtonic’s programmers who truly set the business apart. In early 2014, CEO Heather Terenzio grew concerned about what she saw as a gap in the workforce. Where were the minorities and the women, she wondered, and the high school dropouts? So Terenzio set about to establish an apprenticeship program that would allow disadvantaged youths to enter the coding world without hitting the barriers they would encounter at other traditional institutions.”
At CodeRev Kids we believe we can best tackle coding education with after-school programs and summer camps taught by instructors who focus on both being informative and fun. We even customize our classes for each of our students because we understand everyone learns differently. CodeRev Kids has a variety of after-school programs options including robotics, game development, and interactive programming.
If you’re looking to give your child the most informative, as well as engaging, coding education experience, no one does it better than CodeRev Kids!