The rationale for this rapid curricular renovation is economic. Teaching kids how to code will help them land good jobs, the argument goes. In an era of flat and falling incomes, programming provides a new path to the middle class – a skill so widely demanded that anyone who acquires it can command a livable, even lucrative, wage.
This narrative pervades policymaking at every level, from school boards to the government. Yet it rests on a fundamentally flawed premise. Contrary to public perception, the economy doesn't actually need that many more programmers. As a result, teaching millions of kids to code won't make them all middle-class. Rather, it will proletarianize the profession by flooding the market and forcing wages down – and that's precisely the point.
(Score: 0, Offtopic) by crafoo on Sunday September 24 2017, @09:04PM (1 child)
I'm an engineer in a weird, niche field but I love programming. I think I'd like to write some useful utility or opengl/math-heavy tool and sell support for a living instead of engineering. I like all aspects of it. Not sure why. It's always been that way. It just feels good solving little puzzles and building something at least semi-useful. I'd probably be a carpenter or metalsmith in a previous age.
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 25 2017, @09:20AM
Is that all? Pray won't you tell us the remainder of your life story?