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Bill Would Allow Students To Take Computer Coding As A Language
December 4, 2015
Move over Spanish, French and Latin. Computer coding could be on the way.
A Senate committee Thursday approved a bill aimed at allowing high-school students to take computer-coding classes as an alternative to learning more-traditional foreign languages.
Bill sponsor Jeremy Ring, a Margate Democrat who is a former Yahoo executive, said the proposal would give Florida students a “true leg up” in the increasingly tech-driven world.
“We’re not replacing foreign language,” Ring told members of the Senate Education Pre-K-12 Committee. “We’re saying computer language should be in the language initiatives, in the language disciplines.”
The committee voted 8-2 to approve the bill (SB 468), which is filed for the annual legislative session that starts in January. But some committee members, including at least two who voted for the bill, expressed skepticism about making the change. Opposing the bill were Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, and Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth.
Sen. Bill Montford, a Tallahassee Democrat who doubles as CEO of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents, said he was concerned that adding computer coding would lead to schools dropping other programs. He pointed, in part, to limited amount of time in the school day.
“If you add something, something’s going to fall out,” said Montford, a former Leon County schools superintendent.
Sen. Nancy Detert, a Venice Republican and former member of the Sarasota County School Board, called the proposal “forward thinking.” She said, however, she is afraid the state would not fully pay for it, which could force costs onto local school districts.
“I think this just screams unfunded mandate (to the local districts),” she said.
The bill would require school districts to develop plans for computer-coding curriculums and submit them to the state by Jan. 1, 2017. Ultimately, it seeks to allow high-school students to learn computer coding to satisfy two credits of foreign-language instruction.
It remains unclear whether the bill will pass during the upcoming legislative session. A House version (HB 887) was filed Thursday by House K-12 Chairwoman Janet Adkins, R-Fernandina Beach, and Ring’s measure would have to be approved by two more committees before it could reach the Senate floor.
But supporters argued, in part, that allowing students to take computer coding would help prepare them for jobs.
“We should be preparing kids to be successful in the world in which they live,” Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers, said.
Ring also was adamant that the proposal would not replace traditional foreign-language courses.
“It is not a replacement. It is optional,” he said. “You can take French, and you can take Spanish.”
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Comments
6 Responses to “Bill Would Allow Students To Take Computer Coding As A Language”
REGARDING:
“Computer programming is pure logical thinking; a language is memorizing and practice. They aren’t even close. Whoever is promoting this travesty has no clue about language, computers or education.”
The practice works in all three.
Memorization is part of all three.
Logical thinking is part of all three.
The more you know and apply what you know, the better off you are.
David for a better world
Will politicians please quit ruining what is left of our precious education system?
Computer programming is pure logical thinking; a language is memorizing and practice. They aren’t even close. Whoever is promoting this travesty has no clue about language, computers or education.
REGARDING:
” Taking computer coding is more akin to taking shop and it will not lead to a more rounded individual.”
I’m fairly round, but shop class would’ve made me even rounder.
David for broader range
As a one-time computer systems engineer, I can attest that computer coding systems are not languages, despite what this Yahoo says. Computer code cannot be used to communicate ideas, experiences, or emotions. I think we shouldn’t forget English proficiency as the foundation of communication in this country. When I see some of the abyssmal usage every day in all sorts of written and spoken communication, I am flabbergasted. Most would be hilarious if not so sad.
I’d have to disagree with Chris on this one. As a programming instructor for the past ten years, I think it is a great idea. Programming teaches logic and structure, as well as following the rules of the language. When was the last time a student that took 2 years of high school foreign language was able to “converse” with someone that speaks the language natively? 1 out of 10, maybe. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing a students face the first time they get the computer to do what they want it to do in the computer’s language.
Apparently these people don’t know what they’re talking about and what they’re doing. As a software engineer, I can tell you that coders from different countries DO NOT get together and converse in a common programming language. The idea of taking a foreign language is to help the student to be better rounded academically. Taking computer coding is more akin to taking shop and it will not lead to a more rounded individual.