It feels like with every passing day technology is finding new ways to incorporate itself into our lives. However, our understanding of such technology has been slow to catch up with the pace at which it is being produced. This is due in part to the ideas and feelings that most people have about coding. People often view coding as a mystifying art that is indecipherable. However, in reality, coding is just like riding a bike if we give ourselves the opportunity to learn it. Therefore, I believe humanities students should learn at least a little bit of coding to widen their horizons.
“Computers should not be black boxes but rather understood as engines for creating powerful and persuasive models of the world around us. “
Kirschenbaum, Matthew. “Hello Worlds (Why Humanities Students Should Learn to Program).” Matthew G. Kirschenbaum, 26 May 2010, mkirschenbaum.wordpress.com/2010/05/23/hello-worlds/.
As Kirschenbaum states in the quote above we shouldn’t be afraid of coding instead we should seek to understand it. This is especially true for humanities students because of the emphasis the field has on the exchange of ideas. Nowadays the best places were people exchange ideas are through the internet or some other form of technology. Knowing a little bit of coding could help humanities students get a better understanding of the increasingly modernizing world and its impact on humans.
Coming from a background where I had no previous coding experience, the idea of learning the basics of HTML, CSS, and Javascript seemed daunting. However, through the step by step tutorials provided by HTML Dog the process of learning to code became enjoyable. I enjoyed seeing how simple text on my Notepad could change the format of a page on my browser. Although I didn’t become a coding wizard (and I don’t plan to become one) learning a little bit of code gave me a new sense of appreciation for the websites I visit and the work that goes into making them.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<p> Coding is actually pretty fun! </p>
</body>
</html>
3 replies on “To Code Or Not To Code”
Glad to hear that the coding tutorials worked well for you. I also found them to be rather accessible and would have used them myself if I were learning HTML, CSS, and Javascript. I agree that coding should be understood as some complex or indecipherable art, but rather a tool to speak another language, an extension of a form of digital communication.
I agree with what you say about the importance of understanding a little bit of what goes into coding in today’s world. I’m also not here to become a coding wizard, but I am excited to learn a little bit more about digital structures!
I think that you bring up a really good point when you talked about the appreciation you gained for the difficulty of creating websites and coding. I agree that Humanities people should learn to code a little bit if only to gain and appreciation of how much work goes into what programmers do.