MITA

Minister Mallia emphasizes about the need of having more of such events

While delivering words of encouragement to young coders who put his coding skills to the test, the Minister for Competitiveness and Digital, Maritime and Services Economy, Dr Emmanuel Mallia stressed that "The Hour of Code" should not be the only event held throughout the year. Minister Mallia emphasised about the importance of instilling an interest in coding from a young age in order to build the necessary capacity for future industries that are increasingly dependent on technology. 

Dr Mallia was participating in an event held by school children from St Clara Primary in Pembroke. During this event called "The Hour of Code" school children were programming cars and robots. A number of stations were also set up with plugged and unplugged coding activities for students aged between 8 and 10.

This event was a joint initiative between the Malta Communications Authority and the eLearning Department within the Ministry for Education and Employment. This was a nationwide initiative during which over 40 schools across Malta and Gozo participated in a number of activities where around 6,000 students immersed themselves into the basic principles of coding to mark the 'Hour of Code' - a global initiative that aims to demystify coding and raise awareness on the opportunities that computer science can present.

Close to 300 million children have participated in the event worldwide since it was rolled out in 2013. It is widely believed that that the benefits of learning programming at a young age helps children as young as five   gain advantages in thinking, processing and communicating.