On the evening of Thursday, December 12, from 5:45 – 7:15 pm in the Methow Valley Elementary library, students, parents, and staff are invited to participate in an “Hour of Code.” By doing so, participants will be joining dozens of schools located throughout North Central Washington who are taking part in an “Hour of Code” during the month of December to raise awareness about the investment being made by school districts in computer science education.
There are many reasons why school districts across the nation are making Computer Science (CS) education a priority for students and families. For some, the need for CS education is a reflection of the economic opportunity and the development of essential workforce skills. That certainly rings true in North Central Washington, where CS skills can be seen in our energy production, agriculture, manufacturing, or data center operations, just to name a few, but there are many more reasons for schools to offer CS education.
CS education incorporates technology with computational thinking, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving skills. CS education can be meaningfully integrated into traditional primary disciplines like language arts, mathematics and science to enhance student development. It can also promote systems thinking, or the ability to understand and intervene in complex systems. And finally, CS education offers students another way to express themselves creatively and students learn that they can have a voice through the creation of new technologies, robotics, or other applications.
If you have questions about this event, please contact Drew Simmons, MVSD Director of Technology Integration and Information Systems at dsimmons@methow.org or Catie Barber, MVE Integration Media Specialist at cbarber@methow.org.
Please plan on joining us!