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Contents
The Importance of Programming: A Hot Topic in the New Educational Field
The most highlighted topic today revolves around programming in the new educational field. On a prominent Japanese learning website (keikotomanabu.net), in a ranking of “subjects parents want their children to learn,” computer-related topics and programming consistently land within the top ten. Furthermore, in primary and middle school educational settings, there is a fervent discussion on “ICT (Information and Communication Technology) education,” with a growing trend of incorporating digital tools such as tablets and electronic blackboards into teaching.
Digital Natives and Programming
Have you heard the term “Digital Natives”? This phrase refers to the generation that has grown up surrounded by IT and computers. For this generation, “programming” is becoming an essential skill needed to navigate through society.
The Challenge and Value of Programming
However, mastering programming does not happen overnight. To understand why programming is receiving such attention, it’s essential to recognize the skills required in our future society – uncovering problems, utilizing information, collaborating with others to find solutions. These skills are often referred to as “21st-century skills.”
The Role of Programming in Compulsory Education
In Japan’s compulsory education, programming was included as a required subject starting from 2012. By 2017, programming education was formally recognized as a part of “Information Utilization Skills”. This policy reflects the Japanese government’s emphasis on enhancing the IT skills of its citizens.
The Value of Honing Programming Skills
While programming presents a certain level of challenge, it offers significant advantages such as solving complex issues, simulating images or graphics, and facilitating visual communication – tasks that may be challenging for humans but easily solvable with a computer. For those interested, I genuinely encourage you to learn programming. The value it brings is beyond imagination.
