4 ms·
Only a single data point, but Scratch has definitely sparked an interest in programming in my 12 year-old daughter. Though still early days, she has taken her
by agar 9y ago
Only a single data point, but Scratch has definitely sparked an interest in programming in my 12 year-old daughter.
Though still early days, she has taken her first steps into learning Python. The concepts of loops, variables, counters,
and even objects has definitely carried over from Scratch.
She still spends most of her time in Scratch though, sometimes creating her own games or drawing programs, sometimes playing others' creations, sometimes looking behind the curtain to see how her favorite games work and doing light remixing.
Will this turn her into a career programmer? Probably not, but she has told me that she now really appreciates what makes programs work, and every time she sees a new app she can't help but think about how it might be structured.
Overall, I think that's a pretty good argument for early exposure to visual editors.
- glaberficken 9y agoExactly my view =) I have a 7yo daughter and she has just tried some block based programming challenges and she loved tinkering and predicting what the program would do, and then fixing the bugs. Gave her a real sense of accomplishment. I also don't think it will automatically send her on to a career as a programmer. But I think it is important for everyone nowadays to have at least an notion of how software works, given that there is software is almost everything we use these days...
- agar 9y ago> I think it is important for everyone nowadays to have at least an notion of how software works, given that there is software is almost everything we use these days... I couldn't agree more. Education isn't just learning facts, it's providing tools so kids can contextualize the world around them. When the world is powered by software, even a passing familiarity with the basics of programming will be as important as learning history, literature, or basic science.
- leggomylibro 9y agoWell, that is great to hear - with any luck I'm just being too cynical. But what I'm saying is, it sounds like your daughter has a nurturing environment, easy access to these tools, and a healthy amount of encouragement. Are these new tools any better at reaching the marginalized people who the projects profess a desire to educate? That's where the real impact would be, in people who wouldn't otherwise have the opportunity/environment to learn about these concepts. But...most of this stuff is fairly expensive, and doesn't seem to be gaining any traction in any sort of national-scale programs. Maybe I'm just not paying enough attention.