Coding should be part of basic education for Chinese kids?
Pupils have computer class at the Jinzhai County primary school in Jinzhai, east China's Anhui Province, Sept. 3, 2019. (Xinhua/Zhang Duan)
Member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and CEO of Chinese gaming giant NetEase, Ding Lei, proposed to include computer programming into the academic test of young children and make it an important criterion to evaluate children's comprehensive competence, sparking criticism online as netizens expressed concerns that it will be unfair for children from poverty-stricken families.
Ding's proposal calls for adding programming education into China's basic education system and cultivating digital talents.
At what age can a child start coding? What is the right age for kids to learn computer programming?
Ding Lei, founder and CEO of NetEase attends the World Internet
Conference (WIC) in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, China, October 20, 2019.
Photo: Reuters
While ambitious parents in China are already registering kids as young as four for coding classes, the CEO of a major Chinese online gaming and entertainment company proposes that the playing field be levelled by including computer programming in China’s compulsory basic education curriculum.
William Ding Lei, the founder and chief executive of Hangzhou-based NetEase, said in a proposal for the Two Sessions that the country should have a continuous curriculum for coding from primary school to senior high school and build a resource library to help young learners pick up the skill.
The
proposal led to fiery discussions online, with the hashtag "Ding Lei
proposes to include computer programming into the academic test of
children" garnering 200 million views, as of press time.
Some
hailed the proposal by claiming programming can help cultivate logical
thinking, and that computer skills are seen as an essential ability, as
AI and big data technologies are becoming a new trend in the internet
age.
A Weibo user commented if programming is included in the
compulsory academic test, it will help narrow down the educational gap
as many families in big cities have been encouraging their children to
learn coding from a very young age, and it is costly to learn in private
institutions.
Some; however, questioned the practicality of the
proposal and cautioned that businessmen would draw advantage from this.
"It is better to focus on relevant vocational education to cultivate
more competent technical talents," one Sina Weibo user commented.
Many
users also expressed their concerns as such practice will increase
children's academic burden. It is not fair for children from
poverty-stricken families with limited access to computers and internet,
noted netizens.
"I think it is would be better to include it as
an optional course so that children can choose based on their own
interests," one Sina Weibo user commented.
Sophie Li, a resident
in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province, whose 10-year-old son recently
won a national level programming contest, believes it would be better
to introduce such a course for middle school or above students, instead
of primary school students.
"My son loves programming. But there
would be too much burden for kids if programming is added as academic
tests," she told the Global Times.
"Programming makes children
feel like the master of the internet world when they create something,
as I observed. And it helps to motivate children to create and exercise
their thinking," Ran Naiyan, a research fellow at the Beijing Academy of
Educational Sciences, told Global Times Friday.
Ran noted that
it is necessary to add a programming curriculum in China's basic
education system as Ding proposed, which will help standardize
programming teaching.
However, Ran noted it would be better to do
so gradually, and decide whether to include it as an academic test,
later, depending on future practice. "Otherwise, it would become a
burden for students," Ran added.
Computer programming has gone
viral across China as the country is encouraging schools to experiment
with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education, which
includes coding. A 2018 report by iResearch predicts that the scale
computer programming industry in China will reach 30 billion yuan ($4.21
billion) within 5 years.
Source: Global Times;https://www.scmp.com
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