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Stephen Wolfram Reveals Ambitious Plan to Teach Computational Thinking (stephenwolfram.com)
Can we teach future generations how to solve their problems with computers? Slashdot reader mirandakatz writes:
Doctors, lawyers, teachers, farmers -- whatever the profession, it'll soon be full of computational thinking. Mathematica and Wolfram Alpha creator Stephen Wolfram argues on Backchannel that it's essential we start teaching kids to talk to computers today to ensure their success in the future -- and he's got a comprehensive lesson plan.
Arguing that Wikipedia popularized "a more direct style of presenting information," Wolfram writes that computer-assisted education continues the trend, "taking things which could only be talked around, and turning them into things that can be shown through computation directly and explicitly." Wolfram's 11,000-word essay adds that "with all the knowledge and automation that we've built into the Wolfram Language we're finally now to the point where we have the technology to be able to directly teach broad computational thinking, even to kids.." (And without having to start off with loops and conditionals...)
Arguing that Wikipedia popularized "a more direct style of presenting information," Wolfram writes that computer-assisted education continues the trend, "taking things which could only be talked around, and turning them into things that can be shown through computation directly and explicitly." Wolfram's 11,000-word essay adds that "with all the knowledge and automation that we've built into the Wolfram Language we're finally now to the point where we have the technology to be able to directly teach broad computational thinking, even to kids.." (And without having to start off with loops and conditionals...)
This were how learning occurrs. Sigh. The tech sector just will never get it. Computational thinking is actually the *problem* we are currently having, it is absolutely the wrong way to teach. I would put the energy and money into tech literacy, instead. It is astonishing to me how people like this miss the mark again, and again, and again. We are already starting to reap what we've sown with a generation that is incapable of critical and abstract thinking. We are not robots, and life is not an algorithm. Disappointing.