Guess who's winning the brains race, with 100% of first graders learning to code?

Considering that maybe less than 1% of PROGRAMMERS know about computers, I don't think I would believe that they found such a person and got him or her to write books that convey all the ideas.

I was once in a programming class. Maybe 30 people! And we were asked to give all the details about how to change a tire. YEAH! a car's TIRE! Only about TWO could do so, though most CLAIMED to have done so! They forgot the chockblocks(the lack of which could cause a disaster), or the timing(the lack of which could make it 100 times as hard), or an entire step, like unscrewing the tire, or finding where to put the jack! Remember that I love lucy episode where they had to change a tire, and the jack wouldn't work, and they found it was raising the HOOD!?!?!? We LATER were asked to draw a sort flowchart. AGAIN, ****FEW**** accomplished the task! If this sounds like it is too strick, COMPUTERS ARE STRICT! They don't know where a number should be incremented, or even if it must. YOU have to tell them!

LUCKILY, in most cases, a lot of disasters are avoided through new IDEs and DBMS systems, but that still doesn't help when you have to stray.

Steve

Yeah? Well, my toddler talks to me in code.

I don't think that's a good idea.

First, I don't see the point that everyone should know to code. Why should they? Most people don't need to learn code. They don't, really. What they need is to know how to operate basic software that will make their life easier. This includes how to install an operating system, how to use it properly and at its full potential, how to use a document processing software, how to use an image processing software, you know... things that matter more and that you deal with sometimes on a daily basis.

I mean, when was the last time all your friends or a lot of them asked "I wonder how could I change the code of this software?" or "How was this software build?"

Second, they better be prepared, financially wise. In Romania they still teach code on a chalkboard and from time to time they get access to a real computer. Heck, even the final exam (the equivalent of the SAT) are on paper!

Third, they better make it interesting. Do you think children nowadays give a damn on how a game was built or are they more interested in how to play it? Learning code is boring as hell if you don't make it interesting or if you're not interested in learning it. It's like math, except the fact you use math from time to time.

Forth, this seems to be a reminisce of the communist era. In that period of time everyone was forced to learn math and physics (or at least in some communist countries) even if they didn't need it. Think about the art students, do you think they need to learn how to code?

Look, I get that IT is the new trend but that doesn't mean everyone should know how to code. What matters (in my opinion, anyway) how these people will be able to cope with the products software companies produce in order to make their life easier and more comfortable.

Lucian, those that know code usually are the one's that will operate a software at it's fullest potential. I'm willing to bet that a large majority of people don't even know half of what their operating systems are capable of.

Sure they don't really need to know it. But if you can teach young kids to code at a young age, and they pick it up like a second language, then I think they'll have a huge advantage in their future.

Sure everything now runs on easy to use software, but usually the easier the software is to use, the more complicated the coding is that runs it. Being able to make a human easily communicate with a machine takes a lot of underlying complicated machine language that most people don't even realize happens. - And if you're one of the few that can do that with ease, then you'll have no problem making your way in life. I wish I was a part of such an educational program at that age.

It may not be that everyone will take to actually writing and designing code, but I think the cognitive thought process that goes into it can still be very valuable...

As mentioned above, many steps of any process are done without thinking about it - they become rote, and unconscious processes...

This teaches children from a young age critical thinking, which can be useful in almost any endeavor in any field they choose to pursue. (imo)

I don't think it will be possible because unless they are learning visual basic or c# then the programming languages will be too hard and complex for a child so young to understand.

Lucian, It is actually BETTER to learn on an older computer, at least to learn coding.
On my first computer, I had to keep programs below 40K, etc... People today are SPOILED! At my last employer we actually had one programmer that wrote a program that shut down the timesharing of one of IBMs largest computers at the time. A ********MAINFRAME********, NOT a PC! It ran SLOW, and all that to PRINT CHECKS! INCREDIBLE! She stored EVERY transaction in main memory. She provided for about 10,000 records! She was asked what would happen if it had to deal with 100,000 checks, and she said the array could be increased. MOST check programs could handle a billion transactions with a TWO record buffer! I guess she just ddin't know about random access or controlled breaks.

Steve