Teaching your kid to write computer programs is not the same thing as forcing them into a career as a developer. Whenever I hear people equate the two, I like t

Teaching your kid to write computer programs is not the same thing as forcing them into a career as a developer. Whenever I hear people equate the two, I like to remind them that it wasn't that long ago that if you wanted to write a letter, you had to go to someone who knew how to write and dictate. Lots of non-technical jobs require you to sit at a computer all day. Why do you think they teach typing in school now? The ability to automate your tasks is a superpower that I would love my children to have regardless of what they do. I personally have had jobs that could probably be automated by a python script, although what I was doing them at the time I didn't know how python. Besides professional reasons, basic programming skills can be the gateway to any number of hobbies. I build things for myself all the time and because it's a creative thing, and programs can be written to aid in creating artwork music, or even to generate these things completely from the software. Most schools have art and music programs. They may even be a mandatory part of the curriculum. Because we recognize that there are benefits to learning these skills even though the majority of students will not go on to do these things professionally. Programming is the exact same thing.