[PEG Results Report Event] The hall at the University of
Tokyo’s Hongo Campus, with a capacity of 200, was nearly full!
“It’s not just children who need to be creative—adults must be creative as well. Starting with everyone gathered here
today, many exciting initiatives are currently emerging in schools and communities alike.
I’m very much looking forward to today and to the future.”
The event, titled “Children and Programming—PEG’s Past and Future,” began with this passionate message of support from Mr. Toyoshima, Section Chief at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). During the
opening remarks, I presented the following report on the achievements of the past year.

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At CANVAS, we believe that the essential skill children need to thrive in the future is “the ability to collaborate through communication with children from different backgrounds and with diverse strengths to create new value.” With this in mind, we have been providing creative learning opportunities for children since 2002.
Specifically, we run creative workshops throughout the country. Our annual “Workshop Collection” has grown to the point where 100,000 children gather over two days, and we are seeing a growing interest among parents in these creative, communication-based activities.

As one example, we have long offered programming workshops, and they have consistently been our most popular workshops. However, recently, the popularity of programming workshops has been on the rise.
The background to this trend includes the fact that, based on the new curriculum guidelines, “measurement and control through programming” became a required subject in junior high school technology and home economics classes starting in 2012, and that the Growth Strategy approved by the Cabinet in June 2013 stated that the government would “promote IT education, including programming education, starting from the compulsory education stage.”

Furthermore, overseas, programming has become a required subject in several countries, including the United Kingdom, Estonia, South Korea, and Finland. Beyond the public education system, a movement to teach children programming is gaining momentum—for example, CoderDojo, an organization founded in Ireland to teach children programming, has expanded to 45 countries worldwide.In December 2013, President Obama released a video message stating, “Don’t just buy video games, download apps, and play—create them yourselves.I want everyone to learn to code,” has further fueled this movement. Based on
these social trends and our experience to date, CANVAS, with the support of Google, has launched PEG (Programming Education Gathering), a project aimed at fully expanding programming education nationwide.

Last October, Eric Schmidt, Chairman of Google, visited Japan, where he held a press conference to launch this project.Specifically, we launched this initiative targeting children ages 6 to 15, utilizing 5,000 palm-sized Raspberry Pi computers, with the goal of providing programming education to 25,000 children over the course of this fiscal year.Through partnerships with 90 elementary and junior high schools, universities, and education-related organizations nationwide, as well as local governments and boards of education in seven regions, we have
already provided these computers to 20,000 children.For example, at Kyoyo Elementary School in Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo, Raspberry Pi devices were presented to all approximately 350 students, and programming education has been incorporated into classes such as Japanese language, math, and science.
In addition to organizing workshops and classes, we provide support for their implementation through teacher training programs.We have
already trained 1,000 teachers. Furthermore, through the PEG website, we share ideas and lesson examples submitted from across the country, and we also collect and disseminate information related to programming education nationwide.

What PEG values most is “gathering.” We hope to build a movement where
schools, museums, NPOs, families, communities, businesses, and local governments all come together, join forces, and expand the reach of programming education.
In fact, “gatherings” have already begun in 12 regions, including the Aichi Gathering, Yokosuka Gathering, Kitakyushu Gathering, and Koriyama Gathering.
We plan to add one more location within this fiscal year.

What CANVAS aims to provide children is not a place for “education,” but a place for “learning.”
Through workshops, children are learning to “learn on their own.” What
we want to convey is not learning “about” programming, but learning “through” programming.
The skills children need to thrive in our digital society—creativity and communication skills—can never be replaced by computers. Programming is an extremely effective tool for developing
these skills. Through
this project, we hope children will cultivate the ability to think logically and solve problems, as well as the ability to collaborate with others and create new value.
Although this is a presentation of their achievements, we believe the real work begins now—this is just the start. We aim to provide children with ongoing opportunities for programming education through our
nationwide network, so we appreciate your continued support.
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After that, there was a discussion with Professor Abe, PEG’s supervisor, on “The Significance of Children Learning Programming.”
However, the main focus of the day was the presentations by six PEG partners and practitioners, as well as the children’s project presentations.

[PEG Partner Announcement]
・Teacher Shinmura, Kami-Itabashi Second Junior High School
; Teacher Asamizu, Miyagi University of Education Affiliated Junior High School


; Teacher Sasakura, Obirin Junior High School; Mr. Miyazaki, Sumida City Board of Education; Mr. Takahashi, Niiza Child-Rearing Network; Mr. Amanuma, codeMo.

School classes, club activities, homework, and community facilities such as children’s centers.
Over the past year, PEG has seen a variety of initiatives emerge in both school education and community education, from Hokkaido to Okinawa. While there are many other activities beyond those presented by the six speakers here
today, we look forward to continuing to work hand in hand with our partners to further expand our network of activities nationwide.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of our partners who took the stage today.

[Akasaka Kids Presentation!]
We also held a presentation showcase featuring the work of the children who have been attending the Programming Lab in Akasaka every month since April.I’m sure they were nervous performing in front of so many adults.
However, within the limited time they had, the children were able to effectively convey the appeal of their projects.
The audience seemed truly amazed by the children’s ideas and the quality of their work, and it was impressive to see so many people approaching the children to speak with them even after the presentation ended.

* The results of the “Everyone’s Raspberry Pi Contest” were also announced, and we’re pleased to report that Yuki Mizuno from Akasaka Kids won the Student Award, while Rino and Kano from Seya won the Rapiro Award!
Congratulations!
http://coin.nikkeibp.co.jp/coin/itpro-s/seminar/LIN/rpic15/