How Code.org leveraged an hour of computer science into a global phenomenon

A Conversation with Min Yoo, Director of Marketing and Development at Code.Org

Code.org is a nonprofit organization aiming to support and encourage young people around the world to learn to code. Endless supports Code.org as it aims to serve more students through its annual Hour of Code global initiative.

What started out in 2013 as a simple one-hour introduction to computer science, spearheaded by Code.org has since served 910,905,104, by their estimation. The movement is global with 140,000+ events registered in more than 180 countries in 2019 alone, supported by over 400 partners and engaging with over 200,000 educators worldwide. Endless supports Code.Org in their effort to grow the Hour of Code footprint even more. We interviewed Min Yoo for this behind the scenes look at the ideas and mission behind Hour of Code. 

Q. What's the Hour of Code backstory? 

Min: The Hour of Code campaign began as a one-hour coding challenge. The idea was to give students a fun and engaging first introduction to computer science. The primary goal of the Hour of Code is to leave students feeling empowered, with the thought that “Hey, I can do this!”  It  has since become a global learning event, celebration, and awareness vehicle. 

The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. The 2019 Computer Science Education Week will be December 9-15, but you can host an Hour of Code all year-round. Computer Science Education Week is held annually in recognition of the birthday of computing pioneer Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906).

Q. Why an hour? 

An hour is obviously not enough to teach coding in general, but an hour tutorial or activity is just enough to introduce a concept, get through a task, delight students, and begin to reduce the intimidation factor that prevents so many of them from considering computer science.

 The goal of the Hour of Code is not to teach anybody to become an expert computer scientist in one hour. One hour is only enough to learn that computer science is fun and creative, that it is accessible at all ages, for all students, regardless of background. The measure of success of this campaign is not in how much CS students learn - the success is reflected in broad participation across gender and ethnic and socioeconomic groups, and the resulting increase in enrollment and participation we see in CS courses at all grade levels. Millions of the participating teachers and students have decided to go beyond one hour - to learn for a whole day or a whole week or longer, and many students have decided to enroll in a whole course (or even a college major) as a result.

Besides the students, another "learner" is the educator who gains the confidence after one hour that they can teach computer science even though they may not have a college degree as a computer scientist. Tens of thousands of teachers decide to pursue computer science further, either attending PD or offering follow-on online courses, or both. And this applies to school administrators too, who realize that computer science is something their students want and their teachers are capable of.

Above all, what all participants can learn in an hour is that we can do this.

Q. What barriers does this kind of event help either educators or students overcome in terms of getting introduced to coding? 

 Lack of access, stereotypes, and intimidation are significant barriers that prevent students from studying computer science. The Hour of Code is a no cost, low commitment, low effort way of educators to take a first look at how students interact with coding, how accessible it is and how it engages and delights students. Many times, this campaign is the first step for educators and schools to begin their efforts to bring computer science courses into their curriculum.

For students, the Hour of Code makes coding - something they may consider hard or scary - fun. There are hundreds of coding activities, many with recognizable characters and world-renowned brands, and carefully designed lesson progressions that are achievable by students even with no coding background. Far from intimidating, the activities draw students in and they are coding and learning before they know it.

Q. What made the 2019 event special? 

During the Hour of Code 2019, we introduced the theme of #CSforGood. Inspired by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we wanted to highlight during the Hour of Code how we can all use computer science to make a positive impact on our world, from writing apps to solve a local problem, to using innovative ideas in data science to address global challenges.

Whether that means building affordable technology to help farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, programming white blood cells to fight cancer, or revolutionizing the packaged foods industry with artificial intelligence, people are using CS in creative ways to solve problems and provide opportunities for others.

Large, systemic challenges such as poverty, discrimination, and environmental sustainability will require attitude shifts, wide-scale cooperation, and in some cases, personal or collective sacrifice. But technology can help jumpstart efforts, detect problems, and ease barriers to solving these enormous and pressing issues.

We also understand that with great power comes great responsibility. Computer science can be a source of positive change — or create new challenges. By recognizing that, like any tool, CS requires thoughtfulness and ethical responsibility, we can empower students to think critically and work on solving problems holistically. You can learn more here.

In 2019, Code.org made its first foray into AI/ML with the AI for Oceans tutorial, and updated our wildly popular Dance Party tutorial. 

Q. From Code.Org’s perspective, what does a successful Hour of Code look like?

As the Hour of Code has gained a life of its own and is now celebrated worldwide by an extended community, accurate metrics are difficult to gauge. However, we do track some. We can see how many people shared that they are holding an event through the hourofcode.com website, we can measure how many times students engaged with Hour of Code activities beginning on the hourofcode.com website, and how many times students engaged in one of our tutorials from the Code.org website. We also send out a survey to organizers afterwards. Those metrics begin to give the general sense of success, but what truly paints a picture of success is the impact stories - the thousands of reactions posted on social media, the testimonials from teachers, and the photos of fully engrossed or ecstatic students. Examples coming

Q. How do people participate in the Hour of Code?

You can organize an Hour of Code event at a school or in your community — like in an extracurricular club, non-profit or at work, and Code.Org offers planning materials to help you get started. Or, just try it yourself when Dec. 9 arrives. Activities are self-guided so all you have to do is try our current tutorials, pick the tutorial you want, and pick an hour. We also have options for every age and experience-level, from kindergarten and up. 

Plus, anyone can host an Hour of Code at any time. The tutorials stay up year-round. You can expect all our tutorials and curriculum to be available on our site in perpetuity. Please go to our resources for event how-to guides and other resources to help make your Hour of Code event a success.