Students, teachers and parents can now access a free virtual coding programme – thanks to Amazon Future Engineer and FireTech.
The virtual coding programme will provide learning resources for students while schools are closed, with minimal to zero impact on teachers, to support students and build their interest in computer science.
Students can sign up today to access 20 hours of content which includes flying drones, designing smart cities and creating chat bots. The free resources use a Python Programming Platform, exploring ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’ themes, plus a moderated forum and handy FAQs. Students can also earn experience points for completing the work and earn badges when they unlock skills
Amazon Future Engineer’s virtual coding programme will be available for two months from 3 April to 3 June 2020, and the resources cater for students aged 12 to 17, covering computer programming aspects in line with Key Stage 3 and 4 of the English National Curriculum. By the end of the course students will have solved problems of an equivalent level to GCSE Computer Science courses. Teachers interested in using this with their class remotely can also request special access to a teacher dashboard, allowing them to track their students’ progress.
These new free resources for secondary aged pupils add to the existing online Amazon Future Engineer programme which includes a collaboration with non-profit organisation Code.org. Hour of Code: Dance Party is an interactive dance-themed online coding tutorial giving primary aged children the opportunity to code characters to dance songs from leading artists.
Our Amazon Future Engineer programme also includes Hour of Code - a global movement in over 180 countries that aims to introduce tens of millions of students worldwide to computer science, inspiring them to learn. Just 60 minutes of learning through Hour of Code is proven to have a positive impact on students and it’s easy to get started. By visiting code.org/dance, anyone can try coding and everyone who completes the program will get an online certificate, as well as their very own mini dance video to download and share. You don’t even need a computer to take part, there is an ‘unplugged’ (offline) version of Dance Party.
About Amazon Future Engineer
Amazon Future Engineer is a comprehensive childhood-to-career programme aiming to inspire, educate and enable children and young adults from lower-income backgrounds to try computer science.
Research shows that the UK needs 21,000 more computer science graduates on average, every year, to meet the demands of the digital economy. By making computer science skills such as coding more widely accessible to young people, we hope to inspire many more young people to take up careers in computer science.
Having better access to computer science skills and the chance to be taught by highly trained teachers who have experience in a digital environment can be a transformative opportunity for young people – especially those from poorer backgrounds who might not otherwise have access to these opportunities.
Amazon’s response to COVID-19
As a global company, we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19. In addition to those who are affected by the illness, many more are indirectly dealing with changes in their work, school, and community environments.
To find out more, please see our roundup of Amazon’s actions to help employees, communities and customers who have been directly or indirectly impacted by COVID-19.
To access the virtual coding programme, sign up for free today.
