One of the significant shifts in the updated Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Technology Applications, or TA-TEKS, is a focus on teaching computer science skills. In fact, the revised TA-TEKS require foundational computational thinking skills to be taught as early as kindergarten.
This focus on computer science isn’t unique to us here in Texas. Already, 42 states have adopted computer science education standards, and 27 states, including Texas, require high schools to offer computer science to students.
“Across the country, there’s a growing movement to provide computer science education to every student, in every school, at every grade level,” says Keith Oelrich, CEO of Learning.com.
Focus on Computational Thinking and Coding
Within the revised TA-TEKS, Computational Thinking is a new strand. You may be left wondering, what exactly is computational thinking, and why is it important for students?
Computational thinking encompasses skills such as pattern recognition, decomposition, abstraction, and algorithmic thinking, all of which are powerful tools for real-world problem solving as well as foundational skills for coding.
Students can begin to develop essential computational thinking skills at the earliest grades in school, without even using a computer, and gradually build toward learning the coding and computer programming languages that allow them to create their own projects.
Programming with Python
Python is one of the most popular programming languages in the world, opening doors to in-demand careers in data analysis, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and app development. Hundreds of thousands of companies, including some of the most well-known brands of our era – Facebook, YouTube, Netflix, Etsy, Tesla – are powered by Python.
At Learning.com, we’re very excited about our recent acquisition of Codesters, after years of partnership with the company. With the acquisition, Learning.com can offer even more of Codesters’ popular interactive, web-based Python coding curriculum to schools through our existing comprehensive EasyTech digital literacy curriculum and EasyCode computer programming curriculum.
Codesters helps students learn key coding principles using Python. In each lesson, students complete a project through a series of activities that include coding challenges, debugging practice, and quizzes. Each lesson ends with an additional coding exercise in which students create their own project applying the skills learned.
Our high-school level offering includes advanced Python lessons and even prepares students for certifications that can directly lead to jobs.
Breaking Barriers with Python Webinar
Join us on April 6, 2023 for the TCEA webinar, Breaking Barriers with Python to learn more about this powerful coding language and how you can prepare your students for the new TA-TEKS, and equip them to excel in the digital world. Click here to register.
