Comment: What are the challenges and opportunities associated with learning computer coding?
Make an Update: Describe and evaluate a program, platform or pedagogy for increasing the understanding of how computing works.
Thanh Dao Viet commented on an update Repositioning Assessment and Instruction - Bill Cope.
Liliana Loureiro created the update The Future of Education.
Ana Babic created the update Example of social learning supported by ubiquitous learning devices.
Ana Babic commented on an update The Nature of Classroom Learning - Bill Cope.
Ana Babic created the update Museum experience.
Катерина Храмченко created the update Аналіз даних.
Катерина Храмченко created the update Raspberry Pi Foundation.
William Cope
Helen Repp
Gbadebo Temitope Ekunola
Joanne Endorf
Just like any other new teaching approach, which will require people to think and behave in new ways, learning computer coding will have its challenges and opportunities.
As said by Maya Israel, computer science, as a discipline, supports the development of skills such as collaboration, communication, logical and creative thinking in addition to knowing how to code. Moreover, building these artifacts through coding invites us to develop a more diverse and inclusive vision, allowing us to adapt and customize lesson materials for those with special needs.
I believe that the biggest challenge remains in the fact that we do not have clarity about the potential of this approach. There are still myths and beliefs that drive this idea away from educational scenarios...
And even in spaces where coding is already experimented, contemplating all the diversities is still a challenge, both in terms of biases, as well as in the expositive and content-focused models, which can make the experience uninteresting for students!
Learning to code can be both rewarding and challenging. Here are some of the most common obstacle people encounter when learning to code:
Conceptual Complexity: Programming concepts can be abstract and difficult to understand especially for beginners. Understanding basic concepts like variables, data types, loops, and conditionals takes patience and practice.
Debugging Skills: Debugging is an important skill for programmers, but it can be difficult to learn. Finding and fixing bugs in your code requires patience, attention to detail, and problem solving
Troubleshooting: Coding often involves solving complex problems, and breaking down problems into smaller, manageable tasks can be difficult for beginners. . Developing effective problem-solving strategies takes time and practice.
Lack of resources: Finding quality learning resources can be difficult, especially for self-taught developers. Sorting through the vast array of online tutorials, courses, and documentation to find the most effective resources can be time-consuming.
I believe that this practice, despite its challenges, opens up a great opportunity for students and teachers to develop skills essential for the future, such as collaboration and strategic thinking. I see that it will be easier for future generations to incorporate this practice into their day-to-day lives!
Challenges:
1. Learners with intellectual disabilities
2. Limited accessibility to computing resources
3. Inadequate mathematical and thinking abilities
4. A lack of drive
5. Finding quality educational resources is challenging
Opportunities:
1. Using video games to teach coding
2. Online educational tools
3. Coding schools
4. Mentorship initiatives
he biggest challenge when learning is to not ask for help; the biggest challenge when helping is to teach the solution rather than solve the problem.
Programming problems are frustrating, especially at the beginning (because you never really stop learning) but the best way to learn is by solving them yourself.
If you get someone else to solve them for you instead, you usually end up learning very little.
When I started to learn code, in the early nineties, there was almost nobody around to ask; and certainly no internet to turn to. Nowadays learners simply type their question in the browser address bar and have the answer in two seconds from Stack Overflow. Is that instructive?
Well, sometimes it depends on how the answer is written; but usually it’s just a copy/paste job.
Learning to program has evolved, from a brain-centred job into a copy/paste-centred job.
he biggest challenge when learning is to not ask for help; the biggest challenge when helping is to teach the solution rather than solve the problem.
Programming problems are frustrating, especially at the beginning (because you never really stop learning) but the best way to learn is by solving them yourself.
If you get someone else to solve them for you instead, you usually end up learning very little.
When I started to learn code, in the early nineties, there was almost nobody around to ask; and certainly no internet to turn to. Nowadays learners simply type their question in the browser address bar and have the answer in two seconds from Stack Overflow. Is that instructive?
Well, sometimes it depends on how the answer is written; but usually it’s just a copy/paste job.
Learning to program has evolved, from a brain-centred job into a copy/paste-centred job.
Learning for children with disabilities is a challenge for educational institutions itself. It takes an active role from both parents, teachers, and the surrounding environment. This can be described as follows:
1. Parents
Parents are the first person who know the most about the daily life of their child(ren) from waking up to sleeping again. Parents know what things will make their children comfortable and make them enjoy the learning process. Parents know what things will distract their children and make them lost their focus. This information is expected to be delivered to the teacher as initial information of their children
2. Teacher
The teacher as the party who will take over the role of parents during the learning process at school. With the information received about their students, it is expected that it will be the fundamental for teachers to create a conducive learning environment. As in the case of Horatio and Deacon, it is expected that the teacher can find a way for students to show the best side of themselves. Whether it is a reward system or special treatment, for example, by being accompanied side to side or next to the students, or any other ways according to the interests of each student.
3. Environment
After parents and teachers play an active role in building a learning atmosphere, this should also be in line with the creation of a supportive learning environment. Students will be conditioned to be in a fun learning atmosphere and (expectedly) according to their respective interests.
4. Facilities and infrastructure
The things mentioned above will certainly not be optimal if it is not supported by good facilities and infrastructure. Both in this case are not necessarily expensive, but how can the facilities and infrastructure provided by parents and schools support the learning process for disabled children so as to minimize the learning gap between disabled children and “normal” children.
Learning computer coding has many challenges. One of the challenges that can be seen is when students are less interested in logic. These students will easily feel bored and passive. Computer coding requires its own focus and interest from the students themselves, considering that the science of coding makes great use of logic. For students who like to be creative, they will encounter problems in using this computer coding.
This challenge can be overcome by the use of appropriate learning methods from educators, so that these gaps can be overcome. Students with characters who lack interest in logic can also continue to follow the learning process well.
Challenges of computer coding include its tricky syntax at times. Nevertheless, the opportunities are a potential career field that is open on all fronts, from small businesses to international projects, like the Linux Foundation.
Providing computer coding classes comprises of both its opportunities and challenges. Learning this specialisation broadens students’ knowledge that is in par with the advancement of technology these days and relevant to how technology in heavily incorporated into our daily lives. However, it is not accessible to every student depending on one’s availability of resources and accessibility to information. I also like how the lecture addresses the gender stereotypes of how computing is not only for males, but rather is open to every gender.
Sadly it seems that one of the challenges lies in teacher bias, the premature assumption that a student can't do the work for any number of reasons so there is little point in encouraging or finding ways to engage them. (I see this with my writing students who feel they were told at some point they'll never be able to do it and now they are convinced of that and won't even try anything new).
Update: I have the most meager background in computer coding and when Dr. Israel was talking about conditionals I had only the vaguest idea what that was. But when she described the card game a teacher used with elementary school kids, it made perfect sense to me. It was a really simple and effective way to teach if...then: if you get a red card, you get 3 points. So if that's the basic understanding I need to create conditionals in my code, I feel like maybe I could do that.