Nearly everyone today has access to a computer at home, at work or at school and knows how to use it. Some of us can use a computer for very basic things, others for more challenging tasks,but there is no question about it; today’s children are growing up in a world where it will be essential to have advanced computer skills to find work or be part of the modern community.Already schools are preparing young people at earlier and earlier ages to use technology. Many schools use computers in the classroom and it is routine for students to do online research for projects and even submit homework online.
However, experts say that schools need to do more. Using a computer is not the same as
understanding how it works. And educationalists want all children to have classes in computer programming, or coding, as it is called. In the past, the youngsters who coded were often male and had the reputation for being obsessed with computers. This earned them the nickname of ‘nerd’ or ‘geek.’ Today coding is becoming more popular and teenagers no longer care about such labels.
The main problem of giving coding lessons to every child is obviously related to having enough of the right equipment. Eben Upton wanted to solve this problem. He realized that the number of students who were applying to study IT at college was dropping and it was important to change this. So, he co-designed and developed an amazing little computer called the Raspberry Pi for use in schools. This is a tiny computer, the same size as a credit card. It can be connected to a computer monitor or TV screen and works with a normal keyboard and mouse. The Pi is small,cheap and effective. It allows students in classrooms to find out more about computers and how to code. Eben started selling the Pis in 2012 and now, there are more than two million in use worldwide.In spite of this progress, there are still not enough computers in classrooms. Amy Mathers is a very clever fourteen-year-old from Manchester and she recently won first prize in the ‘Digital Girl of the Year’ award. This award highlights the achievements of girls in Europe and hopes to encourage more girls to become coders. However, Amy could not use a Raspberry Pi at school. She had to buy one (or rather her mother did!) and she learned what she could do on it by herself and from organized free events such as ‘Manchester Girl Geeks’ workshops and ‘Codecademy’.Amy thinks more students should have the opportunities that she did. When asked at what age children should start to learn coding, Amy said that anyone who could read and type could learn to code! So, maybe we’ll soon see baby Raspberry Pis in toyshops?
Exercise 1 Read the article and choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D).
| 1 | What opinion does the writer express in the first paragraph? |
| A | Everyone should develop advanced computer skills. |
| B | Learning computer skills is very challenging. |
| C | Students can learn computer skills when they are very young. |
| D | Computer classes need to be a routine part of the school day. |
| 2 | Experts think that students __________. |
| A | should learn to make computers. |
| B | needn’t worry about nicknames. |
| C | require more instruction on writing computer programs. |
| D | have more chance of success with computers if they are male. |
| 3 | Eben Upton developed a computer __________. |
| A | to make it easier for school children to learn to code. |
| B | to increase the number of students going to his university. |
| C | to replace existing computers in schools. |
| D | to build a business and make money. |
4 Amy Mathers is well-known because __________
| A | she started a series of popular computer workshops. |
| B | she won an international competition. |
| C | she developed a better computer than the Pi. |
| D | she gives advice to students who want to become coders. |
| 5 | Which sentence best summarizes the article? |
| A | The Raspberry Pi has solved the problem for schoolchildren learning to code. |
| B | Education needs more investment to enable students to use computers well. |
| C | Girls are progressing faster and faster with computing skills. |
| D | Students need to learn code and they need to learn young. |
