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Canon-McMillan leading the way in computer coding

EIGHTY-FOUR, Pa. — A fascinating new initiative in a Washington County school district is definitely a sign of the changing times.

It's called the “Code to the Future,” a comprehensive computer science immersion program.

Every day, every students in three of Canon-McMillan's elementary schools learn coding as part of their curriculum.

“Canon-McMillan has become the lighthouse school district in the state of PA for the Code to the Future program,” said superintendent Michael Daniels.

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The district will serve as a model for other districts when they eventually incorporate Code to the Future.

The concept of the program is to integrate computer science into all subjects, not just science and math,  in even the earliest grades.

“Every student, doesn't matter if they have a great interest in STEM- or STEAM-related kinds of activities, or what ... they're involved and they're exposed,” Daniels said.

The students have learned to program robots, and are now coding their own Minecraft games and learning Java, the most widely used programming language, to do so.

“This is only our first year, and it's amazing to think of what the kindergartners will be able to do when they're our age,” said one student.

“We want these students to master the skill sets necessary to be employable in the future for jobs that we're not even aware exist yet,” Daniels said.

Parents are thrilled.

“It's amazing to be able to have my kids in a district that cares about their future and where the future of the job opportunities are going within coding,” said Justin Heckman.