Apple updates coding programs and resources for educators and students

The “Everyone Can Code Adventures” student and teacher guides are now available for free in Apple Books.

The Computer Science Teachers Association notes that fewer than 50 percent of all American high schools offer computer science classes and many college students aren’t able to get into the computer science courses needed to graduate, partly due to an ongoing shortage of educators available to instruct them. In an effort to help, Apple will begin offering a new, free online professional learning course for educators. Taught by Apple experts, the course will help instructors with all levels of ability acquire the skills they need to teach Swift and Xcode, making this an ideal introductory course for teaching the Develop in Swift curriculum. Interested educators can sign up today to participate in the course, which will be available July 13 through the Canvas Learning Management System.

To support parents with kids learning to code at home, Apple is adding a new guide to its set of remote learning resources. “A Quick Start to Code” is now available and features 10 coding challenges designed for learners ages 10 and up, on iPad or Mac. Additional resources are available on Apple’s new Learning from Home website, launched this spring, where educators and parents can access on-demand videos and virtual conferences on remote learning, and schedule free one-on-one virtual coaching sessions, all hosted by educators at Apple. New videos are being added all the time as part of the Apple Education Learning Series — including videos about using Apple’s industry-leading accessibility features.