Two Marietta students, Waylon McKinney and Caden Hicks, were featured during the national Hour of Code event.
Hour of Code is a national event that promotes computer coding by challenging students across the country. The annual event is coordinated by Code.org, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science in schools. The Hour of Code campaign encourages student across America to spend at least an hour coding.
In Oklahoma, the event was observed on December 10 in a statewide Zoom meeting hosted by the Oklahoma Public Resource Center. Hour of Code included several of the state’s organizations where computer coding is used, including members of the Oklahoma City Thunder’s IT department, who showed participating students how they used computer coding in their positions with the team.
During the event, McKinney and Hicks shared information about the projects they’re working on, then the OPSRC shared that on their live Twitter feed.
At Marietta, students in both primary and elementary schools participated in Hour of Code, along with middle school STEM classes, taught by Chris Dobbins.
“In the middle school we have a computer science class where we’ve done webpage and video game development,” Dobbins said. “Later we’ll be more hands-on, wiring a mother board for a computer and coding for robotics and drones. Computer coding is a transportable skill that’ll be necessary in almost any profession students might seek. For the new generation, coding will be as necessary as typing was years ago. It’s just where we’re headed.”
Statistically, across the country only 37 percent of schools teach computer coding.
"We are proud of our STEM program and all of our students who have taken an interest in coding,” said Superintendent Brandi Naylor. “The Hour of Code served as a great introduction to our elementary students as well, which is where we are looking to further grow our STEM program in the near future."