Context
The mastery of computer science from an early age is undoubtedly an asset for the emergence of many talents in adolescents. And even more, immersion in the world of computer programming (a logical continuation of the mastery of computer tools) guarantees among the youngest a taste for tech and viable business projects in this promising sector. The most striking example is the large fringe of young billionaires, especially Americans, who built their fortunes at a young age thanks to computer coding, the development of video games or applications that have become public utilities. Beyond the efforts made in our country to improve access to and mastery of IT tools from primary schools, such significant challenges remain.
Objective of the project
• Develop a passion for computer programming early on in adolescents.
Project implementation
In collaboration with our partner Africa Tech Hub, we organized a discovery and initiation workshop in computer coding for young people aged 7 to 17 for 20 hours spread over eight weeks (between October 17 and December 05).
During this period, more than 70 schoolchildren and pupils of Lokossa were introduced to the use of the Scratch software for the creation of video games and the acquisition of basic knowledge on making cartoons.
During this workshop, the participants showed their enormous interest and ingenuity by creating their own fun animations. The main lesson drawn from this initiative lies in the immensity of the potentialities of adolescents who lie dormant for lack of a mechanism of awakening and technological reinforcement. Youth for Challenge and its partners will very soon initiate a series of advanced training courses on computer programming languages for schoolchildren, pupils and students of Mono, and will lead with them practical projects allowing them to create the start-ups of the future. .
Funding and partner
The preparation and conduct of this activity cost us around twenty-five thousand CFA francs (25,000 CFA francs). We carried out this project with the support of two partners. This is the Africa Tech Hub digital community which has given us its expertise and the regional Mono branch of the Benin Educational Activities Council which has made its computer room available to us in order to facilitate learning and implementation. application of acquired knowledge.
Results obtained and quantified impact
• Seventy (70) schoolchildren and pupils of Lokossa were introduced to the use of the Scratch software for the creation of online video games and the acquisition of basic knowledge on the making of cartoons;
• Some students have created their email addresses on Gmail.
Difficulties encountered and solution approaches
Within the framework of this project, we had a major difficulty. The lack of computers (5 computers for more than 70 learners) was a major obstacle. We had to organize several waves with groups of 5 learners per computer. We therefore plan to set up a well-equipped computer room for the next programming activities.
