Apple Expands 'Everyone Can Code' Initiative to Students Around the World

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced that its "Everyone Can Code" initiative is being expanded to more than 20 colleges and universities outside of the United States. RMIT in Australia, Mercantec in Denmark, Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen in the Netherlands, Unitec Institute of Technology in New Zealand, and Plymouth University in the UK are some of the schools that will teach Apple coding classes.

All participating schools will offer Apple's App Development with Swift Curriculum, which is a full-year coding course designed by Apple engineers and educators. The course aims to teach students how to code and design apps for the App Store, and it is open to students of all levels and backgrounds.

"We launched the Everyone Can Code initiative less than a year ago with the ambitious goal of offering instruction in coding to as many people as possible. Our program has been incredibly popular among US schools and colleges, and today marks an important step forward as we expand internationally," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "We are proud to work with RMIT and many other schools around the world who share our vision of empowering students with tools that can help them change the world."

According to Apple, RMIT University in Australia will offer one of the broadest implementations of the App Development with Swift Curriculum, making the course available through both a vocational course taught on campus and RMIT Online. RMIT also plans to offer scholarships to school teachers who want to learn to code and a free summer school course at the RMIT City campus.

Apple introduced its App Development with Swift curriculum in early 2017, with the materials available as a free download from the iBooks Store. At the time the initiative was introduced, six community college systems serving 500,000 students across the United States agreed to offer the Apple-designed course. Later in the year, the course expanded to 30 more community college systems in the U.S. before becoming available internationally.

App Development with Swift is offered as part of the Everyone Can Code initiative. Under the program, Apple also offers coding curriculum to students in elementary school, middle school, and high school.

Article Link: Apple Expands 'Everyone Can Code' Initiative to Students Around the World

 

[HMFIC03]

Smart move on Apple implementing this effort. Wins win with benefits to all

 

[PickUrPoison]

Seems like a great opportunity for students to get SW dev education at low cost. At least in the US, where community colleges are the most affordable post-secondary option. Also called junior colleges, they typically offer 2 year associates degrees, and many students transfer to a four year institution to complete their bachelors.

 

[Mr Fusion]

Smart move on Apple implementing this effort. Wins win with benefits to all

While I agree, I think for tech companies their ulterior motive is to flood the job market with qualified personnel, allowing them to drive down wages and thus overall expenditures. It's been done before in many other disciplines.

Don't ever forget Apple's a business. It's their job to show a ROI to their shareholders.

 

[thadoggfather]

While I agree, I think for tech companies their ulterior motive is to flood the job market with qualified personnel, allowing them to drive down wages and thus overall expenditures. It's been done before in many other disciplines.

Don't ever forget Apple's a business. It's their job to show a ROI to their shareholders.

Yeah I think thats a convenient part of it too myself,

But thats a long term goal, and just teaching people to code for Apple platform, no matter how big the market share, will be a bad strategy for you as the programmer/skill set person.

Should learn everything not just Swift,

 

[coolbreeze]

Apple: please learn how to develop apps so we can make 30% off of your hard work in perpetuity.

Thanks!

 

[thadoggfather]

Apple: please learn how to develop apps so we can make 30% off of your hard work in perpetuity.

Thanks!

Lol! That’s a nice perk of it too

 

[scrapesleon]

He did say coding will be bigger than English

 

[fpsBeaTt]

Apple: please learn how to develop apps so we can make 30% off of your hard work in perpetuity.

Thanks!

Woah woah woah woah woah-woah---woah... where's all this cynicism coming from, buddy?

 

[thisisnotmyname]

Everyone can code... as long as you live in one of these 21 countries

 

[Markoth]

Step 1. Find a good idea. Really, this is the hard part of making an iOS app.

 

[alien3dx]

Smart move on Apple implementing this effort. Wins win with benefits to all

the worst ide xcode in my life.. pretty sad for them really

 

[fairuz]

Yeah I think thats a convenient part of it too myself,

But thats a long term goal, and just teaching people to code for Apple platform, no matter how big the market share, will be a bad strategy for you as the programmer/skill set person.

Should learn everything not just Swift,

Most people I know from high school started with only Java, a crappy language, for a few years. It doesn't really matter since the general programming skill set is the same.

 

[thadoggfather]

Most people I know from high school learned Java first, which is a crappy language. It doesn't really matter since the general programming skill set is the same.

JavaScript you mean, which is completely different from Java?

 

[fairuz]

JavaScript you mean, which is completely different from Java?

No, I meant Java.

 

[thadoggfather]

No, I meant Java.

Gotcha ,interesting

 

[fairuz]

While I agree, I think for tech companies their ulterior motive is to flood the job market with qualified personnel, allowing them to drive down wages and thus overall expenditures. It's been done before in many other disciplines.

Don't ever forget Apple's a business. It's their job to show a ROI to their shareholders.

Google kinda does this with Tensorflow. Release it to the public so people train themselves to use what Google's ML employees must use. Same with a lot of open source software. Nothing wrong with it, ofc.

 

[thadoggfather]

Google kinda does this with Tensorflow. Release it to the public so people train themselves to use what Google's ML employees must use. Same with a lot of open source software. Nothing wrong with it, ofc.

For offering free* Services of course they have something in mind they'd be getting in return

And it's a bit of a globalist agenda at play too (IMO), drive down wages and marginalize specialized skills

Tim is openly a globalist, he's talked about it in speeches in china

And (IMO) his staunch views of DACA/dreamers isn't so much cus he cares, it's so he can keep wages down

Ymmv

https://www.macrumors.com/2017/03/18/apple-tim-cook-globalization-china-speech/

 

[Markoth]

Most people I know from high school started with only Java, a crappy language, for a few years. It doesn't really matter since the general programming skill set is the same.

It's much easier to learn a second language, after you've learned your first, but learning the second language well, takes time. If you try to write Swift code like Java, it's going to be written poorly.

 

[fairuz]

It's much easier to learn a second language, after you've learned your first, but learning the second language well, takes time. If you try to write Swift code like Java, it's going to be written poorly.

If you write Swift code well, it's going to be written poorly in 2 minor versions of Xcode, after they've change the language some more. I don't even care at this point. I've used more languages than I can even remember, getting the syntactical sugar right to varying degrees in each, and I'm not loyal to anything.
[doublepost=1510196941][/doublepost]

For offering free* Services of course they have something in mind they'd be getting in return

And it's a bit of a globalist agenda at play too (IMO), drive down wages and marginalize specialized skills

Tim is openly a globalist, he's talked about it in speeches in china

And (IMO) his staunch views of DACA/dreamers isn't so much cus he cares, it's so he can keep wages down

Ymmv

https://www.macrumors.com/2017/03/18/apple-tim-cook-globalization-china-speech/

Well, keeping supply small to increase wages isn't such a great strategy either. Sounds rather discriminatory.

 

[Markoth]

If you write Swift code well, it's going to be written poorly in 2 minor versions of Xcode, after they've change the language some more. I don't even care at this point.

Swift will settle down at some point. It has been turbulent these past few years, though. At that point, there will be an accepted "best practice" for Swift code, which will typically produce the best results. All languages have a best practice.

 

[thadoggfather]

If you write Swift code well, it's going to be written poorly in 2 minor versions of Xcode, after they've change the language some more. I don't even care at this point.
[doublepost=1510196941][/doublepost]
Well, keeping supply small to increase wages isn't such a great strategy either. Sounds rather discriminatory.

It's not "keeping" supply intentionally withheld and small it's economics

Surgeons get paid a lot because they have to go to medical school and pass tough exams

Same w lawyers and the bar

If any bum off the street could do surgeries or litigate, wages would be driven way down instead of through the roof


Being a programmer unless u hit it big isn't as lucrative as the aforementioned I would
Imagine but it's still a good take home pay because not every one can do it

Even w free education not everyone can do this either. It's a different way of thinking but..

Hope that makes some sense

It's not like coding is gonna be an unspecialized
Commoditized, or reverse from being currently high demand low supply industry but ..

Again long term plan, and having people stockpile money for Apple
Platform specifically

 

[i.mac]

Apple: please learn how to develop apps so we can make 30% off of your hard work in perpetuity.

Thanks!

Take what’s positive and make it negative.

Any learning is positive, and working as a software engineer or designer is both positive and dignified.

I see only positive in all of this.

 

[fairuz]

It's not keeping supply small it's economics

Surgeons get paid a lot because they have to go to medical school and pass tough exams

Same w lawyers and the bar

If any bum off the street could do surgeries or litigate, wages would be driven way down instead of through the roof


Being a programmer unless u hit it big isn't as lucrative as the aforementioned I would
Imagine but it's still a good take home pay because not every one can do it

Even w free education not everyone can do this either. It's a different way of thinking but

Hope that makes some sense

I don't see how "keeping supply small" and "economics" are mutually exclusive. Also, if everyone could be a surgeon, medical care would cost a lot less, and life would be better. It's never a good policy to artificially exclude people from jobs, and it's never a bad thing to provide (edit: honest*) education.

* As a college graduate, I've experienced dishonest education a few times.

 

[JappleUser25]

While it might be easy to jab at Apple for an alterior motive (i.e. learn how to code in thier language for future App Store inputs) one might want to consider the dismal academic performance of the average US student. I believe the average reading level in the US is still 3rd or 5th grade. Either way it’s abysmal.

Current public curriculums seem to focus on a STEM outline. So to include coding, or other computer languages, into early learning is the best place for such an effort, and useful skills sets for the future.

I learned to read music when I was six. The main instrument I learned on was the piano. But I can read for other instruments from having learned a basic music language. So if kids learn Swift to any point of proficiency, it will only help in their absorption of other programming platforms, not hinder it, nor make them slaves to writing Apple Apps.