(EDITOR’S NOTE: As the U.S. fights to keep up in math and science, a growing effort has started to encourage better education in computer science. In this guest column, Code.org founder Hadi Partovi weighs in on the topic.)
We all know the U.S. is falling behind China and India in math and science, and we worry if this will hurt our future. But the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on fixing this problem ignore the fastest-growing sector of innovation and job growth: computer science.
In 41 states, computer science doesn’t even count towards high school graduation requirements. Although programming jobs are growing at double the pace of the nation’s average, computer programming is declining in our education system. This is a skill that can be taught as early as 5th grade, yet it’s not even offered in 90% of US schools. Why isn’t today’s curriculum preparing our students for the 21st century?