Should kids learn only mathematics and not coding?

Blog
Should kids learn only mathematics and not coding?

In today’s rapidly evolving world, there is a growing debate about whether kids and teenagers should focus solely on traditional academic subjects like mathematics or also embrace coding. While some argue that coding is unnecessary because mathematics is the ultimate tool for problem-solving,

others believe that integrating coding into education can enhance both mathematical understanding and logical thinking. On MyGirlyNames, The following sections explore these perspectives and illustrate how coding empowers young learners to apply mathematical concepts in practical, real-world scenarios.

Should-kids-learn-only-mathematics-and-not-coding-my-girlynames-blog.jpg.png

The Traditional View: Focus on Mathematics

One argument against kids and teenagers learning to coding these days is that they don’t need to learn to code; instead, they should focus solely on mathematics. After all, it’s not the syntax of a programming language that matters most, but rather a tool for solving problems. Mathematics, after all, is the foundation of all problem-solving in the world.

The Gap in Traditional Mathematics Education

Yes, this is true. However, there is a problem with this argument. It assumes that when children learn mathematics, they are taught in a way that allows them to readily apply it to real-world problems. In reality, most children are not learning mathematics as a tool for practical problem-solving. Instead, they are primarily focused on memorizing formulas and solving problems related to topics such as linear equations, trigonometry, geometry, algebra, and basic calculus. To tackle theoretical and applied mathematics problems using pure math, children often need to learn much more mathematical theory.

Coding as a Practical Extension of Mathematical Concepts

Therefore, coding comes to the rescue of learning mathematics and logical thinking! Learning coding helps to visualize and to apply mathematics as a tool to solve problems in a more “real and practical” manner. For example, when you learn logarithms and logarithmic equations in mathematics, children may learn how to solve the problems required to score well in the exam, but they may not learn how to use logarithms in a practical way to deal with large numbers.

Real-World Problem Solving Through Coding

While coding, children learn at a young age that if you want to work with very very large numbers then there are restrictions to store these very very large numbers in datatypes, and hence you work with logarithms and exponents as a way around to work with large numbers. Similarly, while learning calculus or geometry, learning coding helps apply these theoretical concepts in a more visual, practical, and applicable way to solve real-world problems.

Developing Critical Thinking and Organizational Skills

Even designing an application like a small number puzzle using coding involves the application of number theory and number lines to develop the application in the right way. So, coding indirectly and directly supports and enhances mathematical and logical thinking in children and more importantly, it develops children in “how to think” and to organize their thinking and approach to solve problems while applying the mathematical concepts they’re learning.

Fostering a Problem-Solving Mindset

This indirectly creates more curiosity among children to start thinking with a “mathematical” and “problem-solving” mindset, and it also enables the children to work more towards developing their mathematics to apply in practice.

UnicMinds: Integrating Coding and Academic Learning

At UnicMinds Coding for Kids, we provide a range of coding courses for kids, tweens, and teenagers. All the curriculum is integrated with subject knowledge that they’re learning in their academics and we involve children in exercises and programming tasks that require them to think and then apply the mathematical theory learnt in school. If required, we teach them and enhance their practical application of the mathematical theory required to solve a programming task.

Breaking the Barriers to Early Coding Education

Over this experience of teaching coding to thousands of kids at UnicMinds, I am genuinely convinced that coding is not being pushed on kids at a young age. We’ve achieved something remarkable by breaking the barrier that only grownups with significant mathematics exposure can learn to code. Coding can be learned and applied by kids.

The Evolution of Programming Languages

A substantial change also led to how we program today compared to 10-20 years ago. Earlier, many programming languages were terminal-based, complex syntax-oriented, and needed a significant understanding of the platform. Today, with the advent of simpler programming languages like Python and block-based coding, children can learn crucial logic-based programming by leaving the heavy-duty not so immediately relevant stuff such as syntax.

Empowering the Next Generation

This is like learning coding in a much simpler and more optimized way than how people used to learn 20 years ago. This is also one of the reasons why kids today can do stuff that only and only grownups used to do in their 20s a few years back.

Embracing the Revolution: The Future of Learning

Therefore, let’s not doubt this revolution anymore and let our kids freely learn and be highly literate in the process of building stuff via software and hardware. Because there are not many things in this world that give a person as much happiness and satisfaction as building things that make something better, it allows the wonder in the kid to be nurtured and brought to reality. It will enable kids to learn much more about “how things work” and be a part of the design and development of building things from a young age.

In conclusion, while mathematics remains a crucial tool for problem-solving, coding offers an engaging, practical extension to traditional education. By integrating coding into the curriculum, we empower children to apply mathematical concepts in real-world contexts, develop critical thinking, and foster a lifelong love of learning and innovation. At UnicMinds Coding for Kids, our mission is to break down traditional barriers and inspire the next generation to build a better, more technologically advanced future—one line of code at a time.

Scroll to top