Computer Science in High Schools by Cassie

Computer Science in High Schools by Cassie - January 2020 Scholarship Essay

My sophomore year of high school was the first year I chose to take a computer science course. I didn’t know what to expect; I had very little coding experience and I will admit that I was a bit intimidated. The first day of computer science, we were introduced to the language we would be coding in. Our assignment that day was to write a print statement. A simple task- but a lot of us were pleasantly surprised to find out we could make the computer print out anything we wanted, myself included. About a month after that first day of class we were drawing shapes and making small animations. On open house night, I showed my mom the program I was invested in. It was a drawing of a car driving on the road. There were no animations or anything- just a still image. But the fact that I drew that image using shape commands fascinated me, and it was in the car ride home that night that I decided I wanted to pursue a career in computer science. So, I continued my programming journey onwards through high school. Right now, I am enrolled in the second highest level of computer science, and we are about to develop artificial intelligence that will play against one another in a game of four by four tic tac toe.

In conclusion, without technology in our classrooms, students would not have the option to enroll in computer science and other related courses. I believe that all schools should let students explore the various technology fields in preparation for college and the future.