Big Tech Told Kids to Code. The Jobs Didn't Follow.

theodp writes: "As a reporter who's spent more than a decade studying Silicon Valley's influence on American education," the NY Times' Natasha Singer tells The Daily podcast (audio + transcript), "I can say that the reduced job prospects for computer science grads this year represents a stunning breakdown in the promise that tech executives have made to millions of American school kids over the last decade. Silicon Valley’s promise to kids was if you just work hard and learn to code, computer programming will be your golden ticket to a high paying, high powered, high status tech job, and you will be more or less set for life."

But after a decade-long push for coding in the classroom that led to soaring CS enrollment, AI is The New New Thing and the times they are a-changin'. "I’m reporting on how some of the same tech companies that pushed for computer science are now pivoting from coding to pushing for AI education and AI tools in schools," Singer notes. "And we see Microsoft just announced an effort to provide $4 billion in AI technology and training to skill students in schools and community colleges with AI. Google just announced a $1 billion commitment for a similar AI education effort, and the crisis rhetoric is similar to the coding crusade. The country needs more skilled AI workers to stay competitive, and kids who learn to use AI will get better job opportunities."

"So, it’s 2010 all over again?" asks host Michael Barbaro. "Exactly," replies Singer. "So, I think we have the opportunity now to proceed more deliberately and think more clearly about what are the things that are most important for kids to learn, and not so much what’s best for tech companies."