Computer Coding for Young People

A high school girl in the United States is being hailed an inspiration for teaching other students how to write computer programs. Swetha Prabakan from Virginia has already received a prestigious White House award. She has now set up a non-profit organization to pass on her knowledge of computer coding. Andrea Arenas has more.

IN: "Its an ordinary..."

OUT: SOC

DUR:2'47

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Script

 

VO 1

It's an ordinary day for students here at Thomas Jefferson High School in Virginia. 

 

But what these teenagers do, is anything but ordinary.

And it's all thanks to a fellow pupil Swetha Prabakan, who has taught hundreds of them how to write computer code.  

Filled with enthusiasm she walks into one of the school's computer labs, where she is ready to explain other computer savvy teenagers how to tell a computer what to do. 

 

SOT

SUPER: Swetha Prabakan, EVERYBODY CODE NOW CEO

"I see computer science as another way for me to express myself, the same way I might with a drawing or a painting, or a story that I might write, but it's in a way that I can share it with the world within hours of making it if I wanted to, and I could impact dozens or thousands or millions of other people, through these simple lines of code that I write."

 

VO 

Between 2010 and 2020 the number of computer and mathematical jobs in the US is expected to grow by one million.

And people working in those jobs can expect to make 40% more than the average college leaver.

But only 29 states allow students to count computer science courses towards high school graduation.

And only one in every four schools in the United States teaches computer science, Thomas Jefferson is one of them, the School's Principal, Mr. Evan Glazer says the purpose is to help shape  students for a competitive job market.

 

SOT

SUPER: Evan Glazer, Thomas Jefferson High School Principal 

"We want students to work on projects, we want them to be able to be generative, creative in their thinking, so the work is not only advanced, but our students are creating original ideas, in teams and individually, and that spans from 14 different research areas including computer systems, mobile app and web development, astronomy, quantum physics and optics, bio technology and much, much more." 

 

VO. 

Swetha has led the way by ceating her own non profit organization, called EVERYBODY CODE NOW,  she says the aim of it is to inspire others to get involved in computer coding. 

 SOT

SUPER: Swetha Prabakan, EVERYBODY CODE NOW CEO

"Everybody Code Now is an organization hoping to show the entire world the power of the devices that they hold in their hands, and use every single day and show them that through computer science and technology they too can make a mark on the world bigger than what anyone could have imagined even a few years back."

 

VO 

Last year Swetha received the prestigious CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE award at The White House. 

And now her focus now is on getting the grades she needs to get into a good university... 

...where she hopes to study... Computer Science.