ST. PAUL - On Wednesday afternoons, when the bell rings at 3:17 p.m. to dismiss students from class, a group of Glen Avon students gather together, and opt for more learning. While some students find their way to the school’s gymnasium for extra curricular activities, these students make their way to the school’s computer lab.
The school is home to the division’s first ever coding club.
Leading the students are three staff members – Travis Eddingfield, IT Coordinator with St. Paul Education, Ryan Pashko, assistant principal at Glen Avon School, and Tannis Baerg, a success coach at Glen Avon. Last Wednesday, they were busy helping lead students, reviewing what they had learned the week before, and prepping to learn what Eddingfield noted would be much more fun.
When Pashko approached Eddingfield to help with the coding club, Eddingfield says he was excited to take part in the opportunity.
“I’ll teach anybody how to code,” said Eddingfield on Wednesday. So, a sign up sheet was posted at the school. It didn’t take very long for a group of over a dozen Grade 8 and 9 students to put their names down, with a fairly even split between girls and boys keen to take part.
On Jan. 29, it was the club’s third time getting together. The first two meetings were aimed at teaching the cornerstones, says Eddingfield. He noted that while they moved through the lessons, it was great to see students generate ideas and ask questions. Students were also willing to help each other out, with some grasping the concepts rather quickly.
“It’s nice to see they are helping each other,” says Eddingfield.
He explains that as an IT director, he has noticed a lack of people in the immediate area who understand coding concepts. Everyone has technology around them, yet most people can’t build anything with it, he says.
Teaching students coding allows them to create things that may not exist.
When asked what she thought about the coding club so far, Maggie Smith, a Grade 9 student at Glen Avon School, admits it wasn't not exactly what she expected.
“It’s a lot different than I thought it would be,” she says, as she makes her micro bit light up in a specific way using code. She notes that when she saw the opportunity to sign up for the club, she was happy to see something different offered as an extra curricular that wasn’t centered on sports. Smith adds that a career in technology is something she could see herself pursuing in the future.
And while students may be gathered in a typical classroom, the atmosphere at the coding club is relaxed as students joke with staff members, and learning is done in a somewhat non-traditional way. Students choose to be part of the learning, and are clearly excited to take in new concepts.
Baerg, who has a post graduate in Computer Science, says she's "just excited to share another skill with the students."
Pashko believes it’s important to expose students to technology. The province is moving toward technology industries more and more, he says, adding, he believes coding should be a course taught in school.
Despite the importance he places on teaching technology, Pashko admits he was surprised to see the interest that has been shown in the coding club.
Looking back on the first two weeks of the club, “the engagement was awesome,” says Pashko. He acknowledges that there is a lot of math involved in coding, so taking things slow will be key.
“Some students don’t even realize they’re doing math,” says Pashko, with a laugh.
While Glen Avon may be the first school in the division to have a coding club, it’s not something they want to keep to themselves. The goal is to offer the club in other schools throughout the division, and maybe one day hold competitions that would put students’ knowledge up against one another, in a friendly way.
The club has received support from the local business community, with MCSNet purchasing the micro bits used by the club.
