AN OPEN LETTER TO PARENTS IN GOMBE STATE ON THE FUTURE OF THEIR CHILDREN, TECHNOLOGY AND CODING
It’s time to quit sleeping, wake up from slumber, and come to terms with reality! The absolute reality of what’s on ground before it’s too late. It’s a fast changing world, changing way faster than our imaginations. We either embrace it in its entirety, or be compelled to pale into oblivion.
Every day, we hear about technological innovation giving rise to new jobs, media, and products; these advances are occurring at a dizzying and superlinear rate. No doubt that there are objects we consider cutting-edge technology today that we'll laugh about or have to explain in twenty years, but there's one thing that all of the r/evolutions in technology have in common: They are possible because someone wrote the code.
Every era demands, and rewards different skills.
In different times and different places, we have taught our children to grow a farm, build a house, forge a sword, and bake bread among other things.
Now we are teaching them to code.
We are living in a digital age where mobile phones and tablets are a natural part of kids' lives. In addition to reading, writing and arithmetic, today's kids need to learn how to create digital programs, not just consume them. These kids are going to be surrounded by computers—in their pockets, in their offices, in their homes—for the rest of their lives. The younger they learn how computers think, how to coax the machine into producing what they want—the earlier they learn that they have the power to do that—the better.
Coding (computer programming) is the art of creating anything from computer games and phone apps to computational models that help us improve our lives.
It is especially clear that the ability to code is taking on an unprecedented level of importance. As our kids grow up, this ability to code will become as fundamental as reading and writing to their success, regardless of what occupation they ultimately choose.
REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH YOUR KIDS COMPUTER CODING
1. Programming is a basic literacy in the digital age.
Kids are growing up in a very different world than that of their parents. Smartphones, computers, Youtube, Facebook are embedded in their daily lives.
It is one thing to know how to use these technologies. It’s another, however, to understand the logic behind them. When learning to program, kids understand and tinker with the digital world they inhabit. Coding draws back the seeming “magic” of technology so they can truly understand the logic and science that controls these technologies.
Our reliance on technology will only increase. The students of today must be able to not only passively consume this technology, but also to understand and control it, becoming an active part of this huge digital shift.
2. Programming can change the world.
For the last several centuries, people relied on the written word to spread ideas. The ability to write was the ability to create change. Today, writing is not enough. To change behavior, it is crucial to leverage the digital medium. We are seeing all around us that programming is changing the world.
3. “You have an idea for the next big innovation? Great. Can you bring it to life?”
Everyone has ideas. Only a select few can make them happen. The ability to code separates those who merely have an idea from those who can make their ideas a reality.
If you want your child to be a thinker and innovator who can bring ideas to life, encourage him or her to learn how to program.
4. Coding teaches critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
When kids learn to code, they learn to overcome difficult tasks, think clearer and build self-confidence. Kids learn not just about computer science but they also learn strategies for solving problems, designing projects and communicating ideas. Skills that are useful to everyone.
SOFTWARE IS THE LANGUAGE OF OUR WORLD
Software is becoming a critical layer of all our lives. It
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