Molly Limaye ’21, Madison Hanssens ’21, Kristen Weil ’21:
One semester of computer science should be mandatory for Upper School students because it is not only a challenging and stimulating skill, but computer programming is the future of our world. While technology is improving at a faster rate than ever, many students have never been exposed to computer programming. This lack of experience consequently hinders them from properly utilizing all of today’s technology.
Ben Prusky ‘92, a technology entrepreneur and now CEO of Freedom Merchants, notes, “As I have learned from experience, dealing with how computer-software works is something that every adult in the working-world will need to have familiarity with in order to succeed in almost any career they’re in. Having at least one mandatory class in high school ensures that when the students go on to college and beyond, they will at least have a working vocabulary and a general sense of the language of computers.”
If a semester of computer science was a graduation requirement at Episcopal, more students would not only have more experience with technology, but also have the chance to develop new passions that could potentially lead to more career options.
Another reason computer science should be mandatory is that it would help students in other classes and daily life. Matt Memmo, Upper School Technology Coordinator and Teacher, states, “When you learn to code, you learn to solve problems in a certain way that benefits you in all of your classes, along with everything that you do in life.” He continues, “In many computer science classes, you learn digital literacy skills, which aside from learning how to program, are useful…knowing how to use Excel spreadsheets, knowing how to analyze data, learning about cyber security and how to navigate social media safely.” Computer programming is an extremely valuable skill, and giving EA students exposure to it would benefit every student, teaching them to become stronger critical thinkers, analyzers, and problem-solvers both inside and outside the classroom.