Apple is offering free coding sessions in stores across Europe as part of efforts to help people of all ages develop necessary skills for a digital future.
The tech giant said it will offer over 2,000 classes over EU Code Week, which runs from this Friday, October 6 to October 21, with at least one free class in every single Apple Store in the continent per day.
“Coding is a critical skill that gives people of all ages the chance to create and share their ideas with the world,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “Apple has long believed coding is the language of the future, and we’ve created a range of tools that make it fun and accessible for everyone.”
Today at Apple is listing all the sessions available, as will the EU Code Week website, Apple told CBR, as the event starts. UK sessions can be viewed at Apple’s UK site.
Apple Coding Classes: “Sphero Maze Challenge”
Session have been dubbed “How To: Get Started With Coding”, “Teacher Tuesdays: App Design & Coding Basics”, and “Kids Hour: Sphero Maze Challenge”.
Schools and coding organisations in Europe will then be able to offer their own workshops on Apple’s Swift programming language, which lets creators see what they’re creating through a split-screen interface.
Hundreds of institutions in Europe are currently teaching Apple’s Everyone Can Code curriculum with its Swift programming language. The program is designed to make coding easy to understand and includes teachers’ guides and apps for coding lessons in the classroom.
App Development with Swift, for colleges and vocational programs will offer older students the chance to create their own apps and learn skills applicable to software jobs. Students will also be able to validate their skills on a new Swift academic certification.
For younger coders, Apple has designed “Incredible Code Machine” on Swift Playgrounds, the iPad app with in-built coding lessons, including puzzles and animated characters.
Apple also offer year-round coding sessions as part of the Today at Apple coding program. Apple said there have been more than 75,000 attendants at more than 14,000 coding sessions at European Apple stores in the past year.
Apple cited data from the European Commission, which is behind EU Code Week, that nine out of 10 future jobs will require digital skills. At the same time, 44 percent of Europeans between 16 and 74 years do not have even the basic digital skills.
Read more: Mind the Gap: How Brexit will Affect Britain’s Mainframe Skills Shortage
