Why Everyone Should Learn to Code
Language is the most fundamental tool that our intellect can utilize to express itself. However, being a tool, language is merely the medium for what is being expressed, and not the thing itself. For this reason Wittgenstein declared, “The limits of my language means the limits of my world.”
Without the proper tools, how can one be expected to build an enduring structure? Great things are made with great tools. Learning a new language is like opening up a box of never before seen tools. An examination of these tools can yield insight as to what purpose these tools serve, how they are meant to be used in conjunction with one another, and how they might be more effective than those previously used. Similarly, the study of a new language can grant insight into the culture of the people who speak it. Because of this, it is a fairly common expectation amongst competitive colleges in the U.S. for high school students to have some level of experience with a foreign language when applying.
Learning to code yields many of the benefits of learning a foreign language -though admittedly, not all - but a host many more of its own. Depending on the programming language, different features and functionality are bundled and layered together in various ways, similar to how spoken languages have their own rules of grammar: Does a noun come before a verb, or vice versa? How are sentences structured? Does a word even exist for a particular idea?
These same questions exist when learning any new coding language. Just exactly how does one “talk” to a computer? Does it understand sentences? Some technologies, like Apple’s Siri, can understand complete sentences and accomplish simple tasks, like creating an appointment on your calendar or sending a text message. But if your coding goals run larger than delegating simple iPhone tasks to a virtual assistant, you’re going to have to learn some more powerful methods of technological communication.
Every coding language serves a particular purpose, operates within a certain framework, and is comprised of its own syntax. Higher-level languages are filtered through more layers of abstraction — away from the electronic pulse of binary — whereas lower-level languages speak more directly to the computer’s hardware. The capabilities and impact of modern computing needs no elaboration. If there exists a problem of a computational nature, then there is a computer powerful enough to solve it.
When one learns to code, every bit of logic and functionality is merely a small glimpse of the unbelievable power and application that these tools are capable of. If learning a spoken language serves as a doorway to understanding its hosts’ culture, then learning a programming language can serve as a vantage point into understanding the most sophisticated and history-changing domain of human endeavor, computers.
This experience should not be underrated. By and large, people who learn to code report of its improvements to their thinking, long after they’ve left the screen. The increased ability to problem-solve and think more clearly are among the many reports of its positive effects. Most beginners (and even experts) often dream in code. What other new skills can be said to offer this level of intellectual development and immersion?
If the major educational institutions in the U.S recognize the value of learning a foreign language, then similar regard should be placed on learning to write code. As demonstrated, its benefits far exceed its mere output. At a point in history where our technology is our most defining enterprise, we surely owe it to ourselves to understand its workings, and reap the benefits for doing so.
