CAN CODING LEAD TO EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY IN EDUCATION?
Coding, the new common language of the children of the Digital Age, can lead to equality of opportunity in education. Working on the most important language of today’s world can carry the future generations into a brighter future.
Our reading and writing adventure that starts with drawing lines, learning the 29 letters, and the decimal system, helps us interact with the systematic language made up of letters and numbers and get a head start in our working life. Today, these characters carry the potential of change for the future of individuals and society at large.
Software codes made up of simple letters and numbers comprise the basis of the most complex technological novelties. These days, as we fast advance towards a future which will more and more be predominated by technology, the number of people we expect to code in order to carry humanity to a brighter future is quite limited in comparison to the world population: only 2%! We are, now, in dire need of developers, and according to research, we will be hankering for tenfolds more in the next decade. Therefore, countries are investing in the future by spending time and money to train the individuals who will be laying the foundations of the new world. However, even that does not suffice.
In today’s world of education, language is more important than ever; not only in the sense of Turkish, French, and English, but it is crucial to work hard to have a basis to learn all sorts of software languages and develop the mindset thereto. The fact that this language does not belong to any country and when employed can lead to the opening of doors which may have a universal impact, increases the potential of any kind of software developed by a young person in any corner of the world to have a global
influence.
With the widespread use of the Internet, the point we have attained in accessing information is unbelievable. When you look at the preInternet era, in other words the recent past, we see that information was somehow trapped in the physical realm. Thanks to the Internet, access to information was democratized. Digitalized information removed the blockages set before this accessibility. However, to be realistic, we should keep in mind that there still are many countries where there is no access to the Internet, there are geographies where it is out of reach, limited, or very expensive. That is why, technology giants are spending a great effort to provide free Internet services. Then again, compared to the past, it would not be wrong to say that equality of opportunity in Internet access has made strides in leaps and bounds. However, this is not an impeding factor in spreading code-development to a wider base since first you need to work towards constructing the appropriate mindset.
After providing equality of opportunity in access to information, the next step is to ensure equality of opportunity in education. We must stop waiting on expert technicians to develop technology. In the digital world, in which cyber wars have replaced physical wars, and the world's most valuable companies are are those that develop technology or make the best use of it as borders are removed, we are at the right time to learn programming and coding to catch up with the development of the software world or even to get ahead of it.
Planting the seeds of this new culture which is based on letters and numbers, is not only possible for our country but also for schools in remote parts of the world. When we say coding, what comes to mind is an expensive
computer-supported training with Internet connection. Eventually, you may need those but first you need to lay the foundations of an analytic and algorithmic mindset. Technological hardware does not come first among the things one needs to achieve this. As a result of endeavors to develop skill sets, to endorse creative thinking, and to raise awareness, a wonderful idea can come from a place that you least expect, and can lead to the betterment of society and the development of means to ease living.
One of the best formulas for writing success stories in digital transformation and spreading this to all levels of society is encouraging diversity. With the new steps to be taken starting with children, software can be democratized and with a cooperative approach against technological challenges, the executives of today and tomorrow can pave the way for software development and the redistribution of power and opportunity. I discussed this issue with software developer Zafer Demirkol, the author of the book "Coding for Children," who works to shape the future of our country and to create value. He says that beyond coding and development, artificial intelligence will also provide equality of opportunity and from a pedagogical point of view, we can plant the seeds of coding in our children from the age of four with avocations that are amusing. He emphasizes that we need to find ways of doing so. This type of training that can be offered universally will unveil a huge potential which can bear great fruits for humanity in the near future without any discrimination based on gender or race.