It's a global movement: Young students being introduced to the world of computer science through one-hour coding tutorials.
Volunteers from the Orlando Tech Associated descended upon four Orange County middle schools Monday sharing their knowledge with eager students.
"I didn't know this existed, " said Skyla Stelly, a sixth-grader at Howard Middle School who spent an hour Monday learning what it takes to be a coder. "I think that would be cool for women to do, since they think that men are all that."
(Joh Ficurilli, Staff)
More than 180 schools globally are reaching students with tutorials this week, and for the volunteers —young business leaders and designers who work in technology in Orlando — spending the afternoon with students was also about challenging the perception of what working in tech is like.
"The problem with programming today is there's a social idea that people think that programmers aren't cool, or they aren't advanced or technical enough, but we're kind of like the tech leaders in the world right now," said Rodrigo Groppa of PowerDMS, a document management software startup based in Orlando. "I'm passionate about programming. I was since middle school. Hopefully I can inspire others."
(Julie Gargotta, Staff)
The volunteers guided students through a block-based system inspired by their favorite characters and scenarios from "Star Wars," Disney's "Frozen" and the popular video game Minecraft.
"I'm involved today to help kids explore what coding is and what programmers do, and hopefully find some fun in doing it," explained Cassandra Wilcox, from Orlando-based Code Hangar Inc. "It helps you kind of think of logic in a fun way, which is the base of getting started with programming."
For leaders like Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, showcasing the city's burgeoning tech scene is important, and the crux of the city's branding campaign, "You Don't Know the Half of It."
Indeed, many still don't know more than 80,000 tech jobs are based in Central Florida, according to the latest figures from the Orlando Economic Development Commission.
(Julie Gargotta, Staff)
"They probably don't know that Madden Football is made right here in Orlando," said Dyer, referring to the EA Sports Tiburon studio behind the successful series of football video games. "We're going to have the jobs of the future right here in Orlando, so it's great for these middle school-age kids to learn that they have a future in these jobs."
For some students who had never thought about tech, Monday's session opened the door to new opportunities.
"I think that's really inspirational," Skyla said.
(Joh Ficurilli, Staff)