Category: news

BY MATTHEW FLAMM , FEBRUARY 5, 2014 11:19 A.M.

At least, not on paper. Fred Wilson and others are trying to change that.

The state does not recognize computer science as an official subject, which means that teachers do not get trained in it while they are becoming certified as instructors.

That’s one reason public-school students have little exposure to the skills needed to snag computer-software programming jobs, which are expected to grow faster than any other profession during the next decade.

Out of 75,000 teachers in New York City public schools, fewer than 100 teach computer science. While state officials are trying to modernize the education syllabus, industry leaders have been filling in the gap with a handful of innovative efforts that illustrate the ad hoc nature of the solution to the shortfall of qualified teachers. But it will be years before all 800 of New York City’s middle and high schools can offer even a single computer-science class.

It is widely acknowledged that for New York City to prosper in the 21st century, its middle and high schools must teach computer science. What is not so well known is that there are no computer-science teachers in New York—at least not on paper.

via There are no computer science teachers in NY | Crain’s New York Business.

The United States has fallen from producing a quarter of the world’s global output to less than one fifth, while nations like China and India have rapidly caught up. While there are many reasons for this trend, one major factor is the lack of innovation in computer science, due to lesser numbers of computer science students.

The Future Of Computing

In the next ten years, a million and a half jobs will need to be filled in the computer science industry. These may come from within the United States, but more likely will be filled by foreign workers. Between programmers, engineers, and administrators, the job growth in the computing industry is anywhere from twelve to thirty percent.

Financial Factors

Computer science is currently the highest-paid college degree. At the same time, employers say that they cannot find employees who have the computer skills needed to succeed in their workplace. This trend is expected to only get worse, with three times as many job openings as there are qualified persons to fit them. The end result is half a billion dollars on the table per year in salary.

Only one in four students in high school can take a computing class. 6 At the university level, only one in ten schools have computer-programming courses. Less than one in forty students graduate with a degree in computer science at the same time that there is a crucial labor shortage.5

To learn more about the “Why the US STEM Initiative Shouldn’t Overlook Computer Science”, created by New Jersey Institute of Technology, take a look at the infographic below.

NJIT Online Master of Science in Computer Science
via New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Online Masters Degree in Computer Science | STEM Infographic | Computer Science Online NJIT.

In this age of social media, edtech, smartphones, tablets and MOOCs, software applications play a larger role than ever in the learning environment. In fact, apps have reached such a level of ubiquity and everyday integration that a number of software companies are turning out apps that can help students create apps of their own. Here’s a list of 10 software tools that can jumpstart a student’s knowledge and skill in computer programming:

via Coding In The Classroom: 10 Tools Students Can Use To Design Apps & Video Games –.

J. Paul Gibson began to teach programming classes for teens out of frustration. A computer scientist at the National University of Ireland, he had by 1998 become shocked at the ineptness of his students. “I was seeing 18- and 19-year-olds having trouble with basic programming concepts that I myself had learned when I was 12,” recalls Gibson, who taught himself to code on a Sinclair ZX81. “I realized they hadn’t seen any programming in school at all up to that point. So I thought maybe one of the problems we were having is that they were coming to it too late.” As word of Gibson’s classes spread, primary schools in the Dublin area sought his services too.

continue reading: Forget Foreign Languages and Music. Teach Our Kids to Code | Wired Opinion | Wired.com.

We know that there is what is called a ‘gender divide’ (or gender gap) in STEM. In short, there are more men than women in STEM careers. More young men pursue STEM fields in college than young women. So why don’t more girls pursue technology careers, become scientists, or become computer scientists? Girls get the same education in K-12 that boys do. So do they simply dislike computer science? Are they not good enough at it to pursue it as a career?

The handy infographic below takes a look at some statistics from a few different sources to show that  it is mainly girls’ perceptions that prevent them from pursuing careers in computer science. Basically, girls are just as good at computer science as boys are, but they begin to perform differently once they begin to think that boys are better at it. Interesting, right? Keep reading to learn more.

via Why Are Girls Not Pursuing Computer Science Degrees? – Edudemic – Edudemic.