Why I teach the next generation how to code

A note from the author: I originally wrote this blog post in 2017 and it was originally published in Medium. I no longer teach young people how to code in my spare time - changing life circumstances, a deadly pandemic and shifting what was meant to be a social program online made this incredibly difficult. But I wouldn't rule it out for the future. Either way, I hope you enjoy this post.

If you're interested in teaching young people how to code, visit the Coderdojo website. Coderdojo was the organisation that I was involved in that allowed me this experience. For that I'm forever grateful.

My name is Rachel. I code for a living. Every Tuesday afternoon, after school, I teach tomorrow’s future engineers how to code.

This is why …

It's an opportunity to take coding beyond the classroom

These days, coding is now part of the school curriculum just as much as mathematics (in New South Wales, Australia at the very least). This was something that simply wasn’t available when I was going to school. Whatever you learn in school, you can always explore further at an after-school workshop, in a relaxed environment.

Start them young

There is a strong demand for competent programmers in the industry, but it’s a hard market to crack. That’s because software engineering is a very dynamic field that changes at the speed of light. Plant the seeds early and you equip future engineers with the tools and the smarts to keep up. The future looks bright for the industry.

Because I wish I had something like this when I was a kid

When I was a kid, I would be holed up in my bedroom after school every day, plugging away at the computer, building websites. I was secretly ashamed, because I thought no one else shared my quirky interest that would one day be my bread and butter. An after-school coding workshop would enable me to explore this ‘quirky interest’ in a welcoming environment, where I can develop friendships with other code monkeys.

Because the young people can learn something from me

I’m an industry professional. Not only will I have the background to facilitate their learning, but I can reassure them that if they have trouble debugging something they built, that’s okay — I too can spend days at a time bashing away trying to fix a bug. Frustration is a normal part of this job, but the instant satisfaction you get when you eventually debug your program is the best feeling ever.

Programming is building and problem solving at the end of the day, whether you’re trying your best to make your cartoon cat dance, or making yourself sick scrolling through the logs trying to figure out why your website crashed all of a sudden. It happens to the best of us.

It’s okay to not have the answers right away. Rome wasn’t built in a day after all. The important thing is you should never give up.

Also, I’m a resource. If ever they need work experience in the industry, I am a point of contact.

Because I can definitely learn something from them

Before I started assisting with these workshops, I knew very little about 3D printing. But these kids, always hot on the latest tech, had knowledge in spades. They most certainly showed me a thing or two.

Because it's always good to be curious

Even if no one in the workshop grows up to be the next Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg, it’s always good to learn something new. Curiosity is always good for the soul. Knowledge is power. Also, education is so valuable. Even if their newly acquired skills never get utilised in the future, education is never a waste.

Coding teaches you how to be creative, teaches you discipline, teaches you problem solving skills and teaches you patience — skills valuable in other aspects of life.

Because it's fun!

Need I say more?

I help coordinate Code the Gong, a coding workshop in Wollongong on Tuesday afternoons at the Wollongong Youth Centre, in conjunction with CoderDojo. CoderDojo is an international movement run by volunteers to teach young people how to code.