UAE schools need to become fluent in coding – the ‘language of the future’
Schools across the UAE must teach coding as a part of regular lessons if the country is to be internationally competitive, educators said.
Teachers warned that treating the subject as an extra-curricular activity risked ignoring how significant the speciality had become.
Last week, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said coding was “the language of the future”.
Coding is used to tell a computer what to do in various situations and forms the building blocks of information technology and artificial intelligence.
Omar Farooqui, founder of Coded Minds in Dubai – which describes itself as an alternative education company – said many schools in the Emirates were reluctant to accept the subject into the mainstream.
“This needs to change dramatically and quickly. It should become part of the national curriculum,” he said.
“Even the premium schools in the UAE – despite the fees they are charging – do not meet the international standards these subjects should be taught at.”
Last Monday, Sheikh Mohammed attended a graduation ceremony for 250 students who took part in an ongoing scheme to boost computer programming skills in the Gulf.
One Million Arab Coders aims to ensure people are taught virtual coding techniques during the next three years.
Mr Farooqui, whose company specialises in teaching coding to children, set out his vision for how learning the skill should be addressed.
Coded Minds – which is already teaching children as young as three – is working on a pilot project at a primary school where coding is incorporated into the class schedule. He is also giving lessons at 20 other schools across Dubai.
“For three-year-olds, coding teaches them critical thinking, logic and problem-solving skills,” he said.
“Even if they don’t want to be a software engineer, it can help them in other areas. Children can play, learn and introduce their parents to coding.”
Jim Stearns, deputy principal at the Victoria International School of Sharjah, which uses an Australian curriculum, said all schools had a duty to ensure lessons kept pace with modern technologies and practices.
He noted that in the UAE, government ministers were particularly focused on the importance of modernisation, even launching a national innovation strategy in 2014.
But Mr Stearns was unconvinced about whether schools needed to make coding lessons mandatory.
“The shift started happening about five years ago and the Australian curriculum was one of the first to incorporate it about two to three years ago,” he said.
“It’s being adopted by curriculums around the world, but do we need every child leaving school to be a coding expert?”
Simon Corns, headmaster at Brighton College Abu Dhabi, said he believed it was critical that children had the skills for the modern workplace.
He said his school taught logic structures – a simple form of coding – to its youngest year group, then gradually introduced more advanced ideas.
“Whether people learn to code or not, the holistic approach to education is important,” he said.
“A balance of approaches and stimuli is also crucial.”