Do your job as a parent. Prepare your student for a future dominated by a technology cycle that is faster and faster. Prepare them for a world where the ability to learn is a key differentiator, a world where the speed of learning is critical.
Your Student Lives in a Digital World
Your child lives in a digital world, where speed is everything and change is the only constant. If speed and change are the world your child will be facing what are the skills that will allow him or her to prosper? It is a question that we often discuss. The answer? Problem-solving skills are vital. In your student’s lifetime they will be confronting problems that we have never encountered before. They will be tasked with solving new problems that we do not even know exist. Some of these problems may be existential, like global warming. Other problems may take us to new horizons, like space travel, while technologies like generative AI may change how we live. The key point is that it is their generation that will need to address these problems.
Your Student Lives in a Digital World
Your child lives in a digital world, where speed is everything and change is the only constant. If speed and change are the world your child will be facing what are the skills that will allow him or her to prosper? It is a question that we often discuss. The answer? Problem-solving skills are vital. In your student’s lifetime they will be confronting problems that we have never encountered before. They will be tasked with solving new problems that we do not even know exist. Some of these problems may be existential, like global warming. Other problems may take us to new horizons, like space travel, while technologies like generative AI may change how we live. The key point is that it is their generation that will need to address these problems.
If we talk about the best ways to develop these future skills, programming sits at the very top. Regardless of the skill level, problem-solving is a core concept of programming as coders are constantly looking for ways to find workarounds and fix problems that in new and innovative ways. Programming forces a student to analyze a problem, think about the solution, and approach it through an iterative process to implement the solution. The better your child gets at solving problems, the better they will fare in life. Seems obvious no?
Some Parents Are Not Doing Their Job
Your Need To Explain The Future
Some Parents Are Not Doing Their Job
Occasionally, we will speak with a parent and the conversation turns to their students schedule and that their child has no time for coding. You see they play competitive tennis or basketball or a musical instrument. “They do not have the time”, Mom says. I ask them if they want their child to grow up to be a tennis coach? Or are they truly a prodigy on the cello? The answer is always “No”.
These parents are not doing their job. These parents are not giving their kids the skills they will need as adults to be successful. Sixty players a year are drafted by the NBA each year. If your your son is the next Kobe or LeBron James, put this book down and go shoot some baskets with them. Still reading?
These parents are not doing their job. These parents are not giving their kids the skills they will need as adults to be successful. Sixty players a year are drafted by the NBA each year. If your your son is the next Kobe or LeBron James, put this book down and go shoot some baskets with them. Still reading?
Your Need To Explain The Future
Please recognize that you need to explain the future to your student. They don't understand what it will look like in 20 years. “Need” is a strong word, but you need to articulate how these skills will allow them a broad set of opportunities in the academic world and post graduation. You need to sell them and this post gives you the arguments you need.
Do your job as a parent. Prepare your student for a future dominated by a technology cycle that is faster and faster. Prepare them for a world where the ability to learn is a key differentiator, a world where the speed of learning is critical. “But I didn’t learn to code and I did fine in my life.” You grew up in a different world. You grew up in an analog world. Your child lives in a digital world, where speed is everything and change is the only constant.
Do your job as a parent. Prepare your student for a future dominated by a technology cycle that is faster and faster. Prepare them for a world where the ability to learn is a key differentiator, a world where the speed of learning is critical. “But I didn’t learn to code and I did fine in my life.” You grew up in a different world. You grew up in an analog world. Your child lives in a digital world, where speed is everything and change is the only constant.
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