Students growing up in a digital age must have a grounding in technology that informs their 21st century lives and careers. To meet this need, the Yeshivah of Flatbush Joel Braverman High School has offered electives in engineering, coding, and robotics, entrepreneurial clubs and internship opportunities. Student have visited a variety of tech companies in New York through our Pathfinders Program and have had three exciting STEM & Entrepreneurial trips to Israel over the last few years. This year, we established our first two Robotics teams; they have successfully competed in two city-wide competitions, with a third meet this Sunday.
Last Friday, we began an exciting new high school initiative, Freshman Coding Day, immersing all ninth graders in a one day technology boot-camp. Experienced coding teachers introduced them to the fundamentals of code. Students worked with iPads to program familiar games such as Minecraft with “drag & drop” block code on
Code.org and Tynker. They also learned about writing programs using the Make Schools website. The boot-camp expanded on understandings of the Internet, the background that led to today's technology, and insights into the big tech companies such as Google and Yahoo.
Jack Hidary (HS '86), Senior Advisor, Google X Labs and Chairman of the Hidary Foundation and Joe Tricot (HS '13), Program Director of the Hidary Foundation, helped organize and implement this unique educational event. Mr. Hidary spoke to the students about the critical importance of coding skills in their future education and careers. He also encouraged them to find tech internships and to register for summer programs, such as Code Academy boot-camps that he plans on establishing in Brooklyn and Deal.
The freshmen responded enthusiastically to their Coding Day. Both boys and girls were energized and inspired by what they learned. In fact, many of them noted that they are now considering careers in the field. Next Friday, we will have a Junior Coding day designed for novice and veteran coders in the 11th grade. This event is part of our continuing commitment to prepare our students for success in the ever advancing digital world.
Picture Gallery:
