BIRMINGHAM, AL – Oct. 20, 2017 – At this year’s Alabama Association for Gifted Children (AAGC) conference, teachers were given a preview of CodeBot Labs’ new “Start Coding!” kit that focuses on introducing text-based code in the classroom. With increasing recognition of the importance of coding as a literacy, schools are looking for more effective ways to address the need. Like many other states, Alabama is rolling out a Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study as part of its statewide K-12 curriculum requirements. These requirements demand that students go beyond drag-and-drop introductory material and gain skills with text-based coding that can be applied to real-world problems.
“Text based coding can be very intimidating to both students and teachers.” Said Geri Ewing, CEO of CodeBot Labs. “Teachers want to step up to real code, and by 5th grade it’s getting hard to keep kids engaged with block-based programs and toys. What we’re doing differently is teaching real-world text based code, one step at a time, by building projects with actual maker hardware. The magic is a combination of tailored project-based curriculum and custom-built software that lets our CodeSpace website guide the learning experience.”
The software that powers CodeBot Labs products is the culmination of an intensive R&D effort by their Huntsville, Alabama based engineering team. A grant from the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (www.edpa.org) and an SBIR award from the National Science Foundation (www.nsf.gov) are helping propel this research forward.
The “Start Coding!” kits are in pilot testing at selected schools in early 2018, and will be available for purchase at http://codebotlabs.com in March.
