I haven’t returned to high school for many years. Many fond memories though. So I was interested when my son, his mom, and I attended one of the local high schools’ information night. I enjoyed the presentation and booths that were setup. It reminded me of when I went to high school many years ago. A good education in a positive environment.
But the problem I see is that it IS the same education as back when I went to high school. I asked at the Science booth if they taught Computer Science and they said no. I checked in the after school programs for technology and there was not a robotics, programming, etc. class. Even the Anime group did not do their own creation of art, stories, etc. on computer. I checked other high schools in our area and it is basically the same story.
Our goal is for our children to have the best opportunities to learn and grow. So when they graduate from high school (and college) they are able to compete in the global marketplace. In almost any field they go into – these students will have to interact with computers. Students graduating from high school will be using computers in the jobs they go into or the college they attend. Students are using computers in gaming, phones, documentation, etc. – why not offer to teach them the fundamentals of computers and the computer language basics?
I find it very hard to understand how high schools can offer four years of a language and industrial arts classes – but no computer technology classes. I am not downplaying that curriculum – just saying we need to add classes that are relevant to today’s job market. Compare four years of high school language to four years of computer technology classes and tell me which would be applied more after high school. I’m not saying students need to take the technology path and work as software developers when they get out of school – I’m saying four years of technology training would provide a foundation for any profession the students go into.
My definition of computer technology training in high school is:
- A class in computer mathematics (binary, hexadecimal, logic, error detection
- A class on general computer programming languages.
- A class on intro to a specific programming language (Java, C#, Python, etc.)
- A class on an advanced programming language (Java, C#, Python, etc.)
- A class on website programming.
- A class on databases.
- A class on computer graphics.
These aren’t expensive to teach. There are Open Source alternatives as well as cheap laptops.
When I was in high school we had a smart board and computers in every room. They also taught QBASIC, Visual BASIC 6, C++, and HTML. I didn’t do any binary, or hex math until I took an Assembly course in college.
When I went to college I worked in the computer lab and you’d be amazed how many students didn’t know the basics of the Microsoft Office Suite. You’d think someone born in the 80’s/90’s would know this stuff.
After four years of language I could at least insult in a dizzying array of ways. Why teach kids Java when they will end up getting outsourced by Java IBM developers who are cheaper? Nyuk nyuk nyuk.
Thank you for this. I have been studding this and I could not comprehend many things until I got that video professor CD ( link: http://bit.ly/learning-software ) With a combination of sites like this and the video tutorials form the bald guy (lol) I was up and running in no time.