Yle Uutiset Suora linja is a Finnish TV magazine in which
the reporters are talking about actual topics. The discussion is open for all
audience via internet, and comments can be sent beforehand in the Yle Uutiset
www-platform. In November 2013 Yle Uutiset Suora linja opened the discussion about the idea that programming should be taught in the Finnish comprehensive school. An
argument was presented that for example in the Great Britain the Prime Minister
Michael Cove has been standing up to get programming in the British National Core Curriculum.
http://yle.fi/uutiset/pitaisiko_ohjelmointia_opettaa_myos_suomen_peruskouluissa/6950743
Comments to Yle Uutiset were sent both on behalf of and
against of the argument. Many commentators suggested programming as an optional
subject. Bad and negative experiences about the own school years were reported.
More all-round ICT education was suggested. I see that the challenge is to find
a reasonable contest for programming as a content of education. The teachers’
knowledge about content and reasonable pedagogical competencies, as well as hardware
and stuff for building and practice are requirements for success.
In our university Derpartment of Teacher Education, Rauma
Unit we have continued to study programming related to our students’ Arduino
microcontroller projects. We started our projects in October last year in the guidance of the visitig teacher Jussi Romppanen. On the 11th to 13th February this year we had the next active intensive period leaded by Mr Romppanen. The
time between has been controlled mostly via the course wiki, but also some of
the supervision and guiding has been hold in our campus. The world of programming has been like learning to speak a new language. In the early stages students have been unsure about their abilities, and the familiarization
to the programming has been challenging. The very basics are easy to understand, but
the appliance and combining the control of different sensors and actuators for
functional and sophisticated code has been the challenge. Our students have designed
very fine projects, but much work has to be done before the happy end. Now it is also the time to consider, how do our students could use and exploit their
experiences later in their work in the comprehensive school context. The
functional pedagogical models for working with young children has to be found
out.
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| The alarm clock project |
