Computers are everywhere, but fewer schools teach computer science than 10 years ago and girls and minorities are severely underrepresented.
The good news is there is a way to change this statistic. That’s why every one of the fourth through eighth grade students at Sanborn Central Middle School participated in one of the largest learning events in history: The Hour of Code, Dec. 7-13.
Under the guidance of Marci Farmer, students participated in at least an hour of code using well known characters from Star Wars, Minecraft and Frozen. The Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics.
Every student should have the opportunity to learn computer science. It helps nurture problem-solving skills, logic and creativity and, by starting early, students will have a foundation for success in any 21st Century career path. The students are motivated learners and enjoy the challenge of creating computer code that controls their characters.
The Hour of Code, organized by the nonprofit Code.org and over 100 others, is a statement that today’s generation of students are ready to learn critical skills for 21st Century success.
With the Hour of Code, computer science has been on homepages of Google, MSN, Yahoo! and Disney. Over 100 partners joined together to support this movement. Apple Stores across the world hosted an Hour of Code and even President Obama wrote his first line of code as part of the campaign.