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IT’S HARD TO deny the influence Coderdojo has had on encouraging Irish kids to learn coding.
The non-profit organisation has played a major role in bringing such skills to kids and teens, not only in creating an accessible way to learn it but also creating a wider community around it.
While there are plans to introduce programming and computer science to primary and secondary schools, the clubs have helped introduced thousands of kids to programming languages.
All of it started five years ago when the first CoderDojo class was set up, founded by James Whelton and Bill Liao in Cork. After setting up a lunchtime club in his school and realising he wouldn’t be able to continue it as he finished his Leaving Cert, Whelton looked for other ways to continue it.
It was when he approached Liao, an investor based in Cork, that things got moving. Liao realised it could help address two things: give kids in underprivileged areas the chance to learn how to code and help fill a talent gap for programmers.
“Most companies who come to me and don’t get it [funding] have a CEO or COO and say they’re going to outsource their coding. It’s like starting a gourmet restaurant and outsourcing your main dishes to McDonalds to produce,” said Liao.
After convincing the National Software Centre to let them use one of their rooms for free, they held their first class and realised they were onto something.
The main thing was ensuring it was free so that anyone could join and access it. While that is one factor to its success, the inspiration it took from the world of martial arts also played a role, extending beyond just using the term dojo.
“I came up with the name CoderDojo as I believe in martial arts as a kind of cool way to learn things for free or at a low cost,” explained Liao. “It wouldn’t have worked if it was called Saturday Morning Programming Club for Kids”.
At a dojo, once you reach a basic level of proficiency, the expectation of you as a student is to mentor other students and eventually become a master. The best dojos, the ones that are most sustainable, are the ones where the mentors have learnt at the dojo.
That format lends itself to a situation where students can become mentors, usually older kids helping out younger or newer members with languages like Scratch – a programming language designed around making games and animations – before moving onto more complex languages.
Having that format is something Timothy McGrath, a fourteen-year-old from Killorglin in Co. Kerry, enjoys about it.
Having been involved with his local club, both as a student and mentor since it started up four years ago, it’s allowed him to start other projects like setting up a coding competition in Kerry with two of his classmates and create a headset called Pi-Vision, which helps blind people find their way around.
Part of his knowledge comes from helping other kids learn how to code, something that has helped reinforce the knowledge he has.
“It’s great as you’re learning as you’re teaching so let’s say something that you haven’t done in ages like Scratch, and somebody beside you is stuck on it, you’re revisiting that and then learning again and reminding yourself [of the topic].
It’s brilliant that it’s free, some people wouldn’t have the money if you had to pay and also, it’s a big community all over the world, making contacts is easy.
Challenges
Part of the strength of CoderDojo is how it can be set up almost anywhere, provided you have computers and a working internet connection. For those in rural areas where a fast internet connection is rare, setting one up and running it is a greater challenge.
This was a challenge Iseult Mangan faced when setting up a club in Cloghans Hill National School in Galway. Based in a small rural area, the club faced the problem of limited internet access and limited access to laptops and computers when it first started up. Also, not having a background in coding meant she had to learn it from scratch.
However, the effort was more than worth it when she sees how much of an impact it has on kids.
You’re opening doors for them. It’s funny, I’m a teacher and I’m used to teaching kids things but… letting them explore it themselves, you’re facilitating a lot of it. You’re showing them things but you’re letting them search, engage and ask questions as well.
Another person who runs her own CoderDojo, also from Galway, is Éilis Treacy, a principal in Eyrecourt. It was originally set up three years ago as the nearest one in Birr was full so it made more sense to found one there.
“It’s been huge really… it’s really helped kids like that discover they have those talents and expand on it,” she said.
It’s a lovely environment where the kids, who mightn’t be seen as the coolest, excel at this and they always have something they can work on at home. It’s a talent they can show off to other kids… it’s so up to date and current and kids are into it.
In the first year, the club didn’t have internet access either, but that experience and running it helped Treacy with another different project: setting up the first ever club in Tanzania in August.
Speaking to those involved in running these clubs, a general theme began to emerge. Making it free is extremely important and the optional element means everyone participating is there by choice instead of obligation. The result is an enthusiasm shared by kids and adults, creating an environment that makes it easier to learn and grow.
That’s not to say there weren’t problems during its five years. Being a non-profit meant raising funds was always a concern – helped out by partnerships with tech startups and companies – but others like getting more girls involved was an initial challenge.
It turned out it was pretty simple: we just put the girls in charge. That’s not the first thing you think of when you think about learning coding.
And inclusion is at the heart of it. Any child can walk in and start learning and any parent can come along and get involved, even if they don’t know the first thing about programming. A level playing field opens up many opportunities and it’s those stories that Liao says makes this organisation worth it.
“The stories we get of inclusion are the ones I love the most,” says Liao. “Whether it’s the young traveller who won Coolest Projects (a competition ran by CoderDojo) or the note we got from a kid in a wheelchair saying the thing he loved most about CoderDojo is his chair is invisible”.
The ones that make me cry are the ones that I’m proud of.
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Walking
Someone make this man head of planning for dcc !
There’s be so much room for activities.
Make that man head of appropriate use of step brothers lines… Surely already a junior minister role!
A junkies paradise.
Hardly. If one has an addiction they want a safe place to use it. They anxiety for those with addictions is off the charts so unlikely they’ll appreciate being around hundreds of people
Complaining about the pedestrianisation
It does look much nicer in the image above. Most European cities have large open squares and we are playing catch up
Pedestrians?
Why do they congregate on O’Connell Street, the boardwalks and Temple Bar? They don’t strike me as shy and retiring type of people.
Can you imagine how bad the traffic is in the city at present. Now with this all bus routes and other traffic will be pushed onto the Quays.. Let the bedlam commence…
Chugging
@Bill O’Connor:
Begging from tourists.
Open space for dealers, can see in all directions.
Good off licences close by, beg a couple of Euro, buy a tinnie and stretch out on the new plaza.
@Bill – ah that’s the life, can’t wait!
Well maybe the DCC could use it to set up a decent, central Christmas market for once, and possibly a few markets throughout the year.
Late night street fights, homing the homeless, more pigeons, annoying trinners student demos and drug taking… Better off leave the buses, keep the place clean!
End the drug war. Allow nightclubs open 24/7 like the rest of Europe. Invest in social housing & more council multi use bins. Maybe the odd safe injection centre too. I’ve just solved all your problems except for the trinners, I’m afraid there is no remedy for that
@Brown Boots: basically like the boardwalk, except people have to pass through it sometimes.
Zac-tly! Ha! It’s fine when the bus gates up, maybe leave it at that.
@NO 2 (them) Is there a way we can build all of that in just such a small space? What of the squirrels and stag parties?
Build all of what? I’ve named multiple policy solutions that would be implemented nationwide
Build a place that would house homeless, a rehab for drug users, a safe needle clinic place, a 24/7 night club(which I find odd given many homeless people struggle with alcohol abuse), and at the same time as all that build it so fortified that will be able to withstand attacks in the drug war, we all know those drug dealers and their uzi machine guns etc. So yeah if you can build all that, go for it… The pigeons will find their own home.
Or walking back to my car because of this fiasco
The fact you think something individual needs to be build to allow 24 Hours night clubs goes to show you don’t even know what I’m talking about.
Does everything have to do with the homeless? Can that not be handled as a separate issue? This is about having a plaza in a city that needs one.
The fact you dont know I was ripping the pesh shows you haven’t a clue… Better just kock yourself inside
There is no tradition of civic spaces in Ireland, it’s typical when we even have to ask; “what do we DO with this space” as opposed to thinking it would be great to chill, people watch, have a coffee and just live, which is what towns and cities are supposed to be for. I partly blame the bad weather, but it doesn’t fully explain it if you compare it to say Scandinavian countries’ attitude
Have you ever actually been to a Scandinavian country? I can assure you they’re not “having a coffee” outside in freezing temperatures. A sauna would be a more common hangout area. As for Ireland not having a tradition of “civic spaces” what about Stephens Green and Phoenix Park among other city centre spaces? The Phoenix Park is one of the largest city parks in the world.
Liam I’m on about civic plazas that are actually used, Stephens green is a park that is closed at night and the Phoenix park is well a park. You go to a European city and you have plazas with benches for older people and cafes surrounding them, here you just have thoroughfares to funnel consumers from one shop to the other
Liam you’ve evidently never been to one yourself. Plazas are commonplace are used daily
@An_Beal_Bocht:
The idea of a “plaza” is actually a very socialist, trade union inspired idea. No wonder the Sinn Fein dominated Dublin City council are in favour.
Dublin doesn’t have open plazas because it was not historically a socialist city.
Thousands of piazzas all over Italy and they’ve never had a socialist tradition
Socialist idea my boll*x, central plazas go back to Roman times where they were the trading heart of the city, the forum. Since most trading and economic activity in cities has moved indoors, the obvious progression was for them to become simple public squares and the idea spread from there.
They exist across a range of countries and date from a various points in history just look at St Marks Square in Venice, Dam Square in Amsterdam or the main Square of Krakow, they existed long before the word socialism was even coined.
Jays your some dose, so the the first Italian piazzas in the middle ages were commi socialist constructs
Never mind Fred….. still seeing “reds under the bed” from the US McCarthy era…..
@An_Beal_Bocht:
Coffee kiosks? They tried that on parliament bridge and the boardwalk. Only 1 left. The drug low life’s forced citizens to move on and they had to close. What makes you think it will be any different?
The drug problem needs to be addressed not civic plazas, they come later.
And warm weather to go with with your cup of coffee.
I was in a town square in the UK it had huge tv at the time they where showing a current sports event, they had ping pong tables permanently bring your balls/rackets , and a few market stalls selling home made style foods and drinks. Was very nice.
Boom. Lovely idea
Hence why it’ll never happen
Ping pong in college Green… Would ya go on out of that with your fancy Dan ideas! A few bags of turf and a stall selling pints of plain and that’ll do you and quit complaining, this bad enough we can’t graze it and have to bow down to be more European, what next a golden dragon too. Cop onto yerself!!!
Sounds like a fanzine of sorts. Imagine being there for the next ‘Robbie Brady scoring against Italy’ moment
@emeralds they could do that already if they wanted, as per new years and American presidents we like. There needs to be a willingness by the corpo to do things like that, and as pie in the sky as this plan described here my seem, changing the corpo is just outrageously ridiculous they would contemplate such a thing… Be realistic man!
You need something that works for Irish weather.
- Large canopy umbrellas in the centre (that look nice) which serve coffee prepared by coffee shops on the perimeter of the square. The seating here needs outdoor heaters.
- A weekly farmers market – probably on a Sunday
- A quarterly live event – music, comedy etc, playing monthly during the summer
- Conversion of coffee shop space and associated seating to restaurants at night – restaurants around the world do this frequently to get the best use from the space. Again, outdoor heating and cover needed.
- strict policing in the area, removing knackers and with fines on cyclists not dismounting (I’m a cyclist but flying by on a plaza is not on)
- removal of all heroin / methodone clinics within a 4km radius. Seriously – how is this not done already?!
- Christmas markets
It needs to be used regularly to prevent the knackers taking it over. Plus it needs adequate greenery, benches and cover. People always complain about what a great country it would be if we could only roof it…..well bloody put some kinda roof or cover on it!
@Mike F we’ve been on about that roof for ages! OK OK your comment was too long so I didn’t read it all, and that’s coming from me, nothing but long comments but I have a limit!
…rhwy do have something that works for Irish weather : St Stephens Green Centre, Jervis Street Shopping Centre, ILAC Centre, Dundrum Shopping Centre, Liffey Valley. ….The list is endless. This project is for the bird’s.
A good start would be to keep all McDs, BKs and all other fast food outlets a million miles from the place.
Temporary stages for culture festivals (who remembers B.B. King’s concert at that spot?), art exhibitions, innovative spaces for sitting down and doing a bit of people watching, underground bike parking.
The relevant question is how will the local zombie population make use of the college green plaza…
It will be nothing but a nuisance and is a bad idea. The likes of AAA / socialist parties will be there every day of the week shouting into a mike…something about worker solidarity or human rights abuse in the Sudan.
Close off all open public spaces in the city.
@Fred Johnson: or what will happen is it will cost huge monies and then double in price and we the punter will get something nobody asked for, including a super bill, nothing to do with aaa or pbp.
These comments are an example of why ireland can’t have nice things… moaners don’t appear to want nice things
DCC might want to a study of the traffic lights around the city. There is at least 20 sets of lights at major junctions that are out of sequence. Gardiner St lower, Five Lamps, Fitzwilliam place,,Baggot st and Mespil Rd. Ballsbridge turning on to Shelbourne Rd. Etc etc.
@gerard carey: bushey park bus lane lights, complete annoying, no bus, no traffic, no green light
Mass…
On the plane to knock with you
Bare knuckle Gypsy fights
be careful head of dcc owen keegan has history when it comes to public money and white elephants
Make cyclists and those horror rickshaws walk with their bikes … pedestrian only!
Cyclists think they own the road, footpath, grass, and that trafic signals, stop and yield signs don’t apply to them!
Other cities have banned them and actively issue fines!
Serious amount of negativity and cynicism in most of the comments on this article. Bit sad really. I think it’s actually good the council are asking for citizen input..democracy at work. Hopefully they’ll get some decent suggestions from people with a positive vision for the space.
Water protest after water protest after water protest……
i’d use it for cycling
Cycle tracks will feature on all sides of the space. It’s what to do with the middle plaza, leaving it open with a few trees and benches be grand
@NO 2 FF/FG/LAB: more cycle tracks, like a maze
@NO 2 FF/FG/LAB:
No trees….”they” can hide under trees and congregate there. Leave it very open and exposed with cctv cameras everywhere.
Who the hell is they? You mean irish citizens?
@NO 2 FF/FG/LAB:
You know exactly who tends to congregate in open spaces in the centre of Dublin.
And maybe a guard or two otherwise it will be a free for all just like o’connell street.
Sounds great. Craft stalls, outdoor cafes in the summer, lots of trees. Sign me up!
No! No more trees! They obscure the lovely architecture. They should cut down the trees that are there already. Trees can go in other places
Most large cities and capitals have a plaza, Dublin needs one.
It’s a great idea to pedestrianise the area but unfortunately the powers that be will surely screw this up. The junkies and aggressive beggars that are a law unto themselves will take over it drinking and roaring and pi$$ing as we can see from other areas in the city centre. Why can’t the methodone clinics be moved away from the centre the junkies have free travel passes anyway. Such a blight in the city centre. Until the junkballs are shifted there’s not much point with this as we see from the boardwalk which was promised all Dubliners and visitors alike will enjoy.
Great idea….on paper. Where is all the traffic going to go? I saw a proposal recently where there would be a huge increase of traffic on Parliament St which is it wont be able to handle,its too small. Also what about businesses in the area and hotels how will they be serviced if a traffic ban is imposed? Its a silly idea and bad for the city
How about you get your smelly cars out if the city centre. Dublin air quality is historically bad enough as is
Shooting up and pickpocketing
i have no idea!. sounds like another daft Corpo. idea.
I would hope it would be a little more on the ‘Green’ side that what’s displayed in that mockup.
Driving. There’d be no other cars so it should be fast !!!!
Ireland is not an outdoors country…we’re more barstool culture looking outside. It’s mainly down to our depressing weather. Imagine October is our driest month of the year
What a sad existence you have. Get off your arse
Eh,for driving my car on it?
i an not apposed to the idea but i think they should have pedestrianised O’Connell street instead of running that stupid bloody Luas up it, the Luas could have been sent along Marlboro street and the busses put to one side of O’Connell street, i am worried about the traffic problems closing College Green will cause, non of these plans should have been put in place until a proper integrated traffic management plan had been put in place, they put the cart before the horse and when the traffic chaos ensues the whole college green plaza idea will unravel, and sadly i suspect this is just property speculation taken priority over what the city really needs
More space for the Junkie’s to hang out ? the broadwalk and temple bar is already littered with rhem
Shootin up.only joking decriminalise drugs
Cars
Looks like the trees on college green will get the chop, not a good thing.
Avoiding junkies.
So the poor junkies have somewhere to hang around
Well me and Decko and his burd will be hanging out down dere all day after pickin up de welfare and shooting up. It’ll be a deadly place to hang out and cause trouble for de laffs!
Free heroin hq with clean needle exchange . Goof out area
Nothing against junkies or homeless people but that’s who is going to be using this space primarily.
have your say