Programming which became available to all high school students

«The Code of the Future» is now widely heard in every family with schoolchildren. So what is it, why is there a lot of interest in this project? Explanations are given by Tanzilya Makhieva, Director of the Project Support Department of the National Technological Initiative and Lifelong Education, Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after H.M. Berbekov. – These are programming courses for schoolchildren in grades 8-11. The program is being implemented as part of the event of the federal project «Personnel for the Digital Economy» of the national program «Digital Economy of the Russian Federation»:

«Implementation of additional education programs for various groups of the population in order to develop the competencies of the digital economy» together with ANO «University of the National Technology Initiative 2035» Kabardino- Balkar State University named after Kh. M. Berbekova successfully took part in the competition for the implementation of two programs: «Algorithmization and programming (basic course)» and «Data mining (advanced course)». In addition to joy, it is also a great responsibility to conduct classes and teach schoolchildren from different regions of the country.

– Is the training program the same for all subjects of Russia or is it adapted to our region?

– Both the basic course and the advanced course were developed by the teachers of our university. Python was chosen as the programming language because, firstly, it is accessible: a simple and understandable language for schoolchildren and students to start learning. Secondly, it is found in the USE: the successful passing of the USE exam in computer science requires knowledge of the Python programming language. Thirdly, Python is a popular program, it was used in well-known projects, such as VKontakte, Minecraft.

— What will the participation in the project «Code of the Future» and the study of the basics of programming give students in grades 8-10?

– Taking a course will help you find yourself in one of the most promising areas of the Internet technology industry, teach you how to create websites, parsers (programs for collecting and organizing information posted on various sites) and chat bots (a virtual interlocutor, a program that finds out the needs of users and then helps to satisfy them), work in a team and create their own projects. Also, studying at the courses will allow you to improve your computer science grades and prepare for exams, and, of course, students will receive certificates at the end of each module and a diploma at the end of the course.

– You said that there are two training programs. How many teaching hours are these, how long does the course last?

— In each training program — both in the basic and in the advanced, there are four modules, each module has 36 academic hours. Those. each program is designed for 144 academic hours. The training course lasts two years. Those. two years — a basic course for beginners and two years — an advanced course for those who are already familiar with the Python programming language.

— Who are the teachers?

— The most experienced and qualified teachers of the Department of Computer Technologies and Information Security of the KBSU, who have the appropriate basic education and improve their skills every year, will teach schoolchildren in grades 8–11. The teachers of the department have experience of working not only with students, but also with schoolchildren, because they hold school conferences, olympiads, quests, hackathons, which are popular with schoolchildren in Kabardino-Balkaria.

— Isn’t it too early to start learning programming from school?

– No, course teachers believe that early immersion in programming allows you to develop critical thinking, the ability to analyze, build a clear model of behavior, and find solutions in non-standard situations. All these skills will be useful for children not only in education, but also in life outside the walls of schools and universities.

– Are the courses too long in time? Two years.

— We think not. And this is due to the fact that schoolchildren receive a full-fledged additional education, i.e. they study the theoretical material, perform practical tasks, and the final stage is the work on the project. Intensive study of the course implies the development of a large amount of material, it becomes necessary to comprehend it for a certain time in order to obtain the necessary competencies.

— So, programming has become available to all students in grades 8-11 thanks to the federal project «Code of the Future». Is training paid?

— Education is completely free, funded by the federal budget. The course format is online. Registration is carried out through the public services portal, and at KBSU the project is being implemented by the Department for Supporting Projects of the National Technology Initiative and Lifelong Education.