CompTIA, the voice of the information technology industry, is proud to support Code.org’s second annual Computer Science Education Week, December 7 - 13, 2015. The week, originally held in celebration of the birthday of the late Grace Hopper promotes the importance of computer science as a key subject in K-12 education.
Throughout the week, several events will take place to mark the importance of computer science in education like Hour of Code events which introduce children to the basics of computer programming and demystifies the language in which computers communicate. The Hour of Code events can be done at any point during the week at the individual, class, school or community levels. Participation in the tutorials introduces students to computer science as a fun hobby that can lead to a viable career pathway as they grow. Additionally, as further exploration of the subject grows, students will learn valuable soft skills such as critical thinking and creativity. In 2013, over 15 million student worldwide learned an hour of code with over 10 million of those student being girls, leading to the most girls trying computer science than in the last 70 years.
According to Code.org, 9 in 10 parents want their child to study computer science, but only 1 in 4 schools teach the subject. If we educate all children early on in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) based subjects, they have a greater opportunity to become interested in a STEM based career. Women who take AP Computer Science in high school are ten times more likely to major in the subject in college, while Black and Hispanic students are seven times as likely. Including these subjects as a part of the core curriculum subject only makes it easier for students to gain a fundamental understanding of the subject which then creates a solid pipeline for the future technology workforce.
Over 180 countries participate in an Hour of Code event. Take this opportunity to check it out for yourself!
