Putting math on the same level as programming doesn't make sense if you take into account the fact that it is only an elective in high school (not sure if its the same thing in your country, but in Canada it really doesn't get much attention). I haven't seen good programming teachers in high schools either (quite a few good math teachers in comparison), and I don't see this changing any time soon.
Fair point about the current state of math vs programming. But on whether this changes any time soon:
Where I'm from (Australia) and where I've lived (Germany and USA) there are consistent an well supported pushes to adjust curriculums to include software skills/programming as core subjects through K-12 schooling.
A lot of what I'm saying is based on a reality that exists after these changes have been made.
All things staying as they are now, the situation will likely look very different.
Most engineering subjects get incorporated into different classes (math, physics, chemistry, etc). From a logistical point of view you'd probably need to have a class dedicated to computing which is something that I just don't see happening. If you look at how advanced GUI-based "programming" (e.g., SaaS products such as Jira) has become learning how to write code isn't essential enough to justify this.
To your first point: I had core computing classes throughout high-school. In those days they were there to help you get proficient with Word, Excel etc. (they were the big "you have to know these to get a good job" tools at the time). In my last couple of years the curriculum was expanded to include a number of Python programming modules. So I wouldn't say having a dedicated computing class is all that far fetched.
I think delving into a conversation about whether learning to code will be essential going forward might be a bit too tangental for this thread.
Good chat, though. It's always interesting to see a different perspective 👍
Putting math on the same level as programming doesn't make sense if you take into account the fact that it is only an elective in high school (not sure if its the same thing in your country, but in Canada it really doesn't get much attention). I haven't seen good programming teachers in high schools either (quite a few good math teachers in comparison), and I don't see this changing any time soon.
Fair point about the current state of math vs programming. But on whether this changes any time soon:
Where I'm from (Australia) and where I've lived (Germany and USA) there are consistent an well supported pushes to adjust curriculums to include software skills/programming as core subjects through K-12 schooling.
A lot of what I'm saying is based on a reality that exists after these changes have been made.
All things staying as they are now, the situation will likely look very different.
Most engineering subjects get incorporated into different classes (math, physics, chemistry, etc). From a logistical point of view you'd probably need to have a class dedicated to computing which is something that I just don't see happening. If you look at how advanced GUI-based "programming" (e.g., SaaS products such as Jira) has become learning how to write code isn't essential enough to justify this.
To your first point: I had core computing classes throughout high-school. In those days they were there to help you get proficient with Word, Excel etc. (they were the big "you have to know these to get a good job" tools at the time). In my last couple of years the curriculum was expanded to include a number of Python programming modules. So I wouldn't say having a dedicated computing class is all that far fetched.
I think delving into a conversation about whether learning to code will be essential going forward might be a bit too tangental for this thread.
Good chat, though. It's always interesting to see a different perspective 👍
Yea, maybe my country is just a bit behind on this.