This week, for the 1%, I want you to click on the link and read the article and watch the associated video. The article deals with Raspberry Pi, a stripped-down computer that will enable children to learn to code.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-34922561
The device runs an open source operating system and is based on the Python programming language that is growing in popularity, particularly in the GI industry. After reading the article please post your comments. Comments may be based on the following guidelines:
- Is it a good idea or a bad idea? Might the complexity of code put children off?
- Importance and relevance of programming at the level of children
- Reasons for making the Raspberry Pi open source
- Anything else you may want to add.
Please make sure you post your comments by Sunday of this week (26th).
Paul
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion is a great idea. Programing is each day more and more important. Provide tips or familiarize from early ages it is great idea. It is easier, when you are child to learn a language, so in this case, understanding the programing as a language I think it easier for the childs to learn and improve if they get habit with it from early age.
ReplyDeleteAvoiding the cost, everybody and every familly can face the cost, it makes easily accesible to the device and nobody is excluded.
Demand of programing skills are increasing day by day, and It will increase in the next years, until arrive to a period where without some program skills you will be almost a "illiterate". Start to prepare the childs is the more logical way of face of and prevent a future problem.
I can only see the introduction of cheap programmable devices to school children as a positive. The growth of child friendly programming tools such as scratch also help to reduce the complexity of the code and introduce a fun element to programming that will help with their understanding. As I come from an engineering background myself, I believe having the ability to program (or to at least understand it) would have been of huge benefit to me before I began to study it in college. Programming was the most difficult subject for me back then when I had no exposure to it previously. I know many adults, including myself, who have a fear with computers due to a lack of exposure. A child will have no fear in playing with a Raspberry Pi and by making the Raspberry Pi cheap and having various open source software and projects to play with, a teacher or parent has no fear of them breaking it either!
ReplyDeleteFearghal
I agree with the points made by Gabriel and Fearghal. I think it is a very good idea to introduce children to the concept of programming code. My experience is that even quite young children can learn and adapt to complex concepts when they are introduced early. Children often lack the 'fear' that adults have with new technologies, they are more willing to experiment and learn by doing.
ReplyDeleteComputers weren't really around when I was at school so there were no opportunities to learn. I feel there is now a gap in my knowledge as I have very little understanding of what makes computers function. To use Gabriel's word, I feel a bit 'illiterate' when it comes to computer code.
Relatively cheap hardware and open source software are fantastic, and provide a great deal of scope for children to explore the capabilities of computing.
I like the idea of the Raspberry pi being used to encourage children to become 'creators' of information technology rather than 'consumers' who passively interact but don't create. I still remember being in primary school and doing very basic DOS code. 10 Start 20 Print 'Shane' 30 Go to 20 and seeing my name display down along the screen. It was a simple thing but I still remember being amazed that I made the computer do that. Kids today (I feel old saying that) don't seem to interact beyond the features presented to them. The fact that they are cheap and open-source lessens the financial burden on schools and it isn't a big deal if a £4 computer gets broken.
ReplyDeleteI think that with the prevalence of computing technology in our society, and increasingly in the lives of children that it is important for children to get some exposure to how all these technologies work at their core. Similarly to us using GIS to better understand Geographic information, there is a need to understand what the GIS is actually doing in the background.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I feel that it is a positive thing, the focus does need to remain on introducing programming to children, rather than imposing it. Naturally, growing up in the early stages of the technology boom I am supportive of the benefits, however am sceptical of the dominant role it is playing within society (phones).
Children nowadays all have devices of some nature, be it iPods or DS’s that all function with software. So it’s no harm for them to have an idea how these devices work. Computers are used by practically everyone both at home and work, and the packages used on computers are all written in some programming language or other. I think that children will pick up a programming language quicker if they learn the fundamentals at an early age which is what they will do using Raspberry Pi.
ReplyDeleteRaspberry Pi is open source so that anyone can amend it as they use it and engineer it to meet their requirements.
Although, it is a good idea to introduce children to programming at an early age I feel that there is a push on from governments in particular to encourage children to gear themselves for a career in computing. This in my opinion is causing a detrimental effect on a lot of other school subjects which are needed for a rounded education of children.
I agree with you John, too much focus on one subject may cause others to suffer. The drive from the government can be based on perceived job opportunities, and might shift over time...
DeleteI can't see the associated video, did I miss something?
ReplyDeleteHi Mohammed,
DeleteTry to have a look at the Micro Bit video.
regards,
Khalid
Hi Mohammed - the video doesn't really matter but you can view a video about the Raspberry Pi here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17190334
DeleteHi Khalid, Hi Paul
DeleteThanks for your replies!
Regards,
Children are increasingly being exposed to technology from an early age. It is not uncommon to see a child using a Smart/I Phone, playing with the latest tablet and/or owning their very own laptop. Technology has become prevalent in their up-bringing. I believe that the Raspberry PI is a fantastic idea but I do think that children might be put off by the complexity of coding. However, in saying that, one of the bloggers made an excellent point in saying that children do not have the fear that we adults have when it comes to technology ( especially if you do not have a background in computing), and they are more receptive to learning new things, and retaining new information.
ReplyDeleteGoing back to the point of technology being so prevalent to children from early age, I believe it is important that not only children, but adults learn or at least have an understanding of how their favourite technologies work/come to life, and how what is presented to them on their screens is mad possible. It could also spark an interest from an early age and help with future decisions in terms of careers. Technology is constantly progressing which is why I believe the Raspberry Pi is very much relevant.
Reasons for making it Open Source? As its key audience is young people, making it cheap or free and accessible will make it more attractive and encourage young people to use it.
I wish something like this was available to me when I was a child.
The idea of introducing programming to young children is a brilliant idea. Most children know how to use some sort of technology whether it's a tablet or a smartphone from a young age and they seem to teach themselves how to use technology. They have no fear when it comes to experimenting with buttons and devices and so if the method of teaching programming is fun and catches their attention, I think it's a great way of introducing programming to young kids especially when the IT industry is growing and become more prevalent in our everyday lives.
ReplyDeleteRaspberry Pi will be more attainable if it is OpenSource as the low cost will make it more attractive for schools as it can easily be replaced if it is broken and also it can be given to more children.
By creating a product at such a low price, it encourages use. I feel that its a great idea to provide such devices to schoolchildren, allowing them to gain a greater understanding of computing and programming. The level of code complexity might be seen as off putting for children, however if they are given sufficient training, their shouldn't be an issue.
ReplyDeleteEarly experience of programming is becoming increasingly important, as their is a growing requirement for such knowledge for a range of careers.
By making the Raspberry Pi open source, it encourages creatively with the device and allows it to be modified for uses that might not have been considered by its developers.
The main idea behind the project, as put by the author of the article is : "The challenge for those behind the project is to keep on remembering that the aim is to enthuse and inspire young people about computing, not to maximise profit".
ReplyDeleteIT education is as important and relevant as the environment of any individual demands. Nevertheless, this progress re-defined the size of such concepts like market, environment etc. bringing closer ,or together, or even merging them.
In the technologically evolving environment of the pace we lately experience, the necessity of cultivating technologically educated generations that can cope with the challenges of the future in this bigger world,is obvious. We can already point out the technological illiteracy especially regarding computers usage at first, and programming latterly, creating a gap between societies and states (culture-wise and country-wise) and generations(e.g. between a 60 year old and a 30 year old employee).
In order to confront this issue we have, once again, to turn to proper education tools and practices, for all ages, that will minimize it as low as possible.
Apparrently, the main focus should be the youth from the early childhood.
I will disagree that the complexity of the code can put children off.
As Dan Crow puts it in his article "Why every child should learn to code"
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/feb/07/year-of-code-dan-crow-songkick
"Anyone can learn to code. In a few hours you can pick up the basic skills and in a few weeks you will be able to build useful applications and websites.".
This applies to everyone so i would put my bets on the children, based on their amazing skill to absorb in their fresh minds new information that are vital for their survival and prosperity.
In the case of Raspberry Pi, such efforts, i think they contribute to the right direction, meaning that as a tool will expose the user to coding and hardware in a simple and relatively cheap manner, therefor allowing experimenting and mistakes of low cost.
The official firmware is closed source with an unofficial open source available.
An open source Raspberry Pi allows the modification and adaptation to the user needs, as well as, a continuous up-to-date evolution meaning better quality and less prone to bugs.
From the educational point of view, it provides an in depth involvement of the user, and of course it is free.
I will close with the following observation.
In "Diversity in Tech: Manifesto of London" by Tech London Advocates, Russ Shaw (founder) clearly states that "Vacancies remain unfilled despite the continued rise in demand for jobs. At the same time, huge swathes of the population remain uninspired to enter the tech industry – young people,women...."
A restructured, modern IT education process should also be taking in account, among other necessities, the tech diversity.
According to the article "Children's books must take the lead in promoting tech diversity" Published March 20, 2017 by Sophie Deen (http://www.thebookseller.com/futurebook/our-huge-tech-diversity-gap-needs-new-publishing-approach-511441)
there is a number presented regarding the women involved in UK tech industry, a number of 12% (or 14% according to The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/may/14/women-technology-inequality-10-years-female).
I believe this is a compass pointing to the direction of the IT education we need, in order to meet the present and future demands on skilled professionals of the industry.
Although never having used or seen one (!) I think the Raspberry Pi is a great idea. There is definitely too much passivity in the use of tablets and phones and other devices where children are concerned. Coding may be complex but like so many things, if it is taught correctly then hopefully it would spark the interest of a number of pupils. And if a Pi Zero or a Microbit is being given out free, then a little bit of encouragement may go a long way. Learning a little bit of coding now could stand them in good stead for the years to come.
ReplyDeleteOn a similar note, for Christmas I bought “Coding for Beginners using Scratch” for my 8 yr old daughter in the hope of sparking her interest early. Admittedly not an unqualified success, but I will try to make it fun for the both of us, and maybe it will get her off Minecraft for an hour or two!
Hi Paul, Re "teaching your 8 year old", I introduced KS2 children to Kodu (I mention it in my post below) it is similar to Scratch but I personally think it is a bit easier for KS2 to learn and give great immediate visual results, it helps them learn via play. It may possibly be worth introducing Kodu first then moving to Scratch later?
DeleteI cannot but agree with some of the previous comments on this forum. It will be fascinating idea introducing school children to simple programming language for kids and catching them young. Kids are more curious than adult and they tend to ask a lot of questions. They are more open and flexible to new ideas. The article enumerated success Raspberry Pi has recorded since it was launched. Apart from the success of Raspberry Pi in the open market, it will be interesting to get a feedback from various computer club for kids and evaluate impact of early introduction of Raspberry Pi to school children as these school children grow up to choose career. In addition it is gratifying to know that despite commercial success of Raspberry Pi in the market the inventor has not abandoned the primary objective of launching project: To put Raspberry Pi Zero (mini-computer) in the hand of every school children making it opensource and accessible.
ReplyDeleteIn our modern day society, it has become a social norm for children to be interacting with technology. This pattern doesn’t look like it’s going to change any time soon. Providing children with the opportunity to gain an insight into programming in a safe environment such as schools can be beneficial. Children can be inquisitive at such a young age and increasing their knowledge of computer science can only benefit them in the future. Whilst we can’t predict the future we can certainly agree that IT technology will be at the heart of everything in the future. Making such a device OpenSource would allow more children with a chance to learn about computer science. If we plan on making computers, the heart of our society should we not provide children with a cost effective chance to learn about these systems that will become dominant around them?
ReplyDeleteThis Rasberry Pi is a great idea, I don’t think the complexity of code would put children off as they love to experiment with new things. From doing some more research on the raspberry Pi I found that children have carried out many different and fun projects by using this device. Also children are starting to use technology at a very young age, so bringing this into schools as a way of education will boost their interests even further and most jobs in today’s society requires you to have some sort skills and knowledge using IT. So overall it is a great way of introducing programming.
ReplyDeleteAgreed Emma, some fab projects out there, even gets me excited! ;)
DeleteI definitely think Raspberry Pi is a good idea as children these days are using technology more and more so why not introduce them to coding at a young age? It could be something that they will using for the rest of their lives in their future jobs and is a difficult skill to pick up. So letting them learn this skill when they are able to absorb significant amount of information is smart. Personally I don't think the complexity of coding will put them off as most children love a challenge.
ReplyDeleteMaking the software opensource will enable a vast majority of children to gain experience using code as schools will be able to afford it.
Lets hope they can continue to stick to their aim of enthusing and inspiring young people about computing and not concentrate on maximising their profit.
A few years ago I ran an after school club for KS2 children teaching (in some cases letting the children play with) Kodu and they all loved it.
ReplyDelete"Kodu lets kids create games on the PC and Xbox via a simple visual programming language. Kodu can be used to teach creativity, problem solving, storytelling, as well as programming." from Kodu website.
For me, at the time it was a case of finding something that the kids can quickly pick up and get instant results with. Kodu certainly provided this and some of the results were very impressive indeed. In addition to this, many of the children asked questions about more advanced computing topics which obviously stirred their imagination whilst one or two, had started programming at home using Kodu.
The Raspberry Pi is a wonderful project as it is the next step for some of these budding programmers and the price allows access by all.
I noted some of the comments about the BBC microbit and how this was planned for KS3 use but was limited as to the functionality it offered. It would appear that the Raspberry Pi would have been a much better option.
That said, we now live in a technical age and introducing this kind of technology to children at an appropriate level helps lay the foundation for bigger and more advance topics.
As for it being Open Source, this is again a positive aspect. It allows everyone to share there skills, knowledge and experience and brings together like minded people to create some wonderful projects which I am sure will help those interested to bigger and better things.
Kodu can be found at https://www.kodugamelab.com/
Raspberry Pi reads to me like it is a great idea, I wouldn’t be worried about the perceived complexity as children are natural learners, much better than adults! The low price point pf Raspberry Pi is one of its best features, ensuring it delivers equitably available opportunity. Currently technology is rooting itself in all aspects of daily life, this pervasiveness and the growth of the internet of things ensure that the relevance of programming for children today is a no brainer. I also agree with what Paul F. said that children’s relationship with technology can tend to be passive or consumption based, while Raspberry Pi seems to offer an engaging alternative. A very interesting endeavour altogether!
ReplyDeleteI believe that introducing and encouraging children to learn basic computer programming skills is a good idea especially at this early age because children already have the ability to adapt and learn new information quickly. It also promotes challenge and creativity among pupils in schools. similarly, as stated in the article, the key aim of the Raspberry Pi project is to involve as much people into coding by providing cheap microcomputers with Open Source software.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, we live in a world where the rapid growth of technology exceeded innovation. In my opinion, what is important is that we want to see young scientists to fill this gap and come up with innovation in order to match the pace of technology and not just basic ideas here and there for fun.
Big organisations already started to realise this by providing funding and support to Raspberry Pi project.
Hi Paul,
ReplyDeleteI think it's a good idea to have a new cheap technology like the Raspberry Pi available in the market for people especially for children. New generations of children are living in different era full of new hardware and software, which make them eager to learn new technology and to get the chance to learn programming in such early age will inspire them, because kids like adventures and games.
I think it's a good idea to have the Raspberry Pi open source, that will make popular and accessible to children.
Regards,
Khalid Kheyre
In my opinion, teaching coding to children is a good idea as it teaches them creativity as well as problem solving. programming does not only teach them about computers, it also helps them develop a methodical approach to everyday tasks.
ReplyDeleteChildren are fast learners so its a good time for them to learn coding, and in that way, understanding how the technology available to them works. There are also games and apps to help them learn the basics of computer coding in a more fun way to keep them interested.
Raspberry Pi is a great way of providing children with the opportunity to develop programming skills at a relatively low cost. Seems to be very important that this approach is about developing skills along with the necessary online support and user community rather than just encouraging consumption of the internet of things.
ReplyDeleteThere are other alternatives out there as well (see an article from pc world http://www.pcworld.com/article/2147420/raspberry-pi-alternatives-emerge-to-fill-need-for-speed.html). These however look a bit more expensive.
Code complexity could be a problem but computing and computer technology and apps are now so ubiquitous that the whole rationale behind using programming languages seems obvious and useful. Python programming has also grown in popularity and is seen as a programming language which is easy to learn and use. These developments seem extremely powerful when you also throw into the mix (in addition to the cheap hardware) the growing availability of open source programmes.
I think this is a great idea as many have said already. It's great to have children get into programming etc. In a safe way.
ReplyDeleteIt will also give them valuable skills that they can use in later life as nearly all jobs require good It skills (and programming skills)
It's something that children can pick up and develop in their own way- and it will help them in other aspects of their lives!
Children have bigger imaginations than adults so if they get particularly good they could be rich before they're teens (wishful thinking maybe- but it probably will happen!)
Initiatives such as the Raspberry Pi are a great idea. I think as everyone seems to agree there are many benefits to introducing children to coding at a young age, by allowing them to begin with simple coding they can certainly gain skills which they can not only develop but also apply to other areas as well!
ReplyDeleteIt seems as though there are many applications or projects where the Raspberry Pi could be utilised and can be combined with other areas of learning. One example seems to be combining the Raspberry Pi with sensors to create weather stations.
With so many jobs now where IT skills are crucial, it can only help children as they grow to embrace IT from a young age and ensure that they are familiar and comfortable with it!
I feel that the introduction of products such as the Raspberry Pi Zero can only be seen as beneficial. With a low cost, the device will allow a larger proportion of people to experiment and learn about coding and programming.
ReplyDeleteWhile the concept and practice of coding my be seen as too complicated and difficult for children, i agree with a number of comments on this blog. Learning early will allow children to gain an good insight into the field allowing them to adapt quickly.
I think the idea of children learning coding is a great idea. initiatives like Raspberry pi are really useful. I know that in my old secondary school, coding and computing skills are a compulsory part of the curriculum for first to third year pupils.
ReplyDeleteI feel that my computer skills were very lacking and the IT course in secondary school wasn't all that great while I was there!
there seems to be a wide range of activities that can be carried out using things like this and I think thats great as it would mean that there are a lot of different things for different people.
Children learning these skills at a young age is really important now as GI and IT are becoming more popular and more important.