The Key Role of Coding in Literacy Development

• 01/17/23

The actual languages of coding, combined with the affective uses of what is being coded, enhance conventional language development in logical thinking as well as newer skills in critical thinking and innovative critical and creative thinking. Not only is literacy becoming increasingly at the heart of learning again, but it is also broadening its scope and the actual uses of the languages being learned.

Additional Thinking Benefits of Coding

Kelly Bielefeld (2019) in an article for BoxLight suggests:

"There's value in computer coding that goes beyond the ability to write code. I believe it is similar to an understanding of any other foreign language. It's possible to become fluent in French or Mandarin if those aren't your primary language, but it is also possible to understand a few basics. This basic understanding helps to communicate through simple methods with others, and also helps to create a deeper understanding of language in general. Students are typically better at using the English language when they learn about other languages."

The article continues to suggest that when learning to code, there are additional skills that are being developed as a result, such as understanding logic and algorithms, staying focused, and using problem-solving skills. As these are being developed, students are able to apply these skills in other areas of life and learning, not only in coding. Similarly, as literacy skills provide a basic framework for processing and engaging in life, these newer coding languages are helping develop the kinds of skills that have wider significance.

Increasingly, studies have shown that just as language learning and foreign language learning can alter how a brain works, so coding can increase brain function and ability in general. An article written by Merle Huerta for EduTopia (2015) states:

"Researchers in Sweden observed visible brain changes in those children and teens who learned a foreign language. Over a three-month period, the brain structure in those who acquired a second language grew, specifically in the hippocampal area (which is involved in learning new material and spatial navigation), and in three areas in the cerebral cortex. Students who "had better language skills than other students, who put in more effort in learning, experienced greater growth." In another study, Mechelli found that children who acquired a second or third language, even a computer language, showed functional changes in the inferior parietal cortex."

The Challenge of Literacy Moving Forward

While we are struggling to address the literacy challenges in general here in the U.S., we have a growing new literacy development that can help benefit basic literacy development as well as new literacies that are required for current and future employment. The challenge of all of this is student access to the type of learning and resources that are required. Not every school has the same resources, nor the same access to technology that is required for this kind of learning. If students are only focused on conventional literacy development, which is needed, they still will not be prepared for future employment. EdSurge (2022) explains:

"Computer science has a wider footprint in schools than ever before, but there are differences when it comes to who has access to computer courses and who's enrolling.

"While more than half of high schools nationwide — 53 percent, to be precise — offer computer science, disparities in access and participation reveal themselves among traditionally underrepresented groups. Girls, for instance, make up just one-third of high school computer science students nationally."

While these kinds of issues are a reality across the U.S., it is important to realize that basic literacy does not have to be addressed prior to coding and digital literacy, but these challenges can all be addressed in a more integrative context of learning. Additionally, rather than see these as "subject exclusive," literacy of any kind is interdependent with all learning and is relevant to success in any field of study or work. In fact, it is more effective to provide an integrative approach to all literacies and encourage instructors to include conventional literacy as well as coding in any class they teach. A major challenge, too, is how learning is evaluated. A standardized approach to outcomes and evaluation does not provide a flexible enough scope nor does it adapt to the changes required moving forward. Learning outcomes must include customized results to various challenges and problems as students use their digital literacy skills to address them.

Ultimately, literacy development now refers to many more skills than conventional literacy, but the newer literacies can help develop conventional literacy skills as an integrated part of a wider-scoped development. Therefore, as educators, rather than look backward in the face of illiteracy here in the U.S., our challenge is to move forward and develop newer literacies within any and all disciplines and learning contexts.