Apple Wants To Teach Deaf And Blind Children To Code

Despite the existence of social support to cater to their needs, blind and deaf children are still some of the most disadvantaged groups in society. While many have gone on to do some amazing things, many others end up in depressed states. Apple aims to change that by basically trying to do what many believe is impossible. It wants to teach children suffering from these conditions to code.

In a recent Tweet, Apple CEO Tim Cook posted that the company wants absolutely everyone to have the opportunity to learn how to code. The Tweet also came with a link to a blog post showcasing exactly how the iPhone maker is accomplishing this.

“Apple is celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day by making coding more inclusive for students across the country. Because when we say Everyone Can Code, we mean everyone. #GAAD,” the Tweet reads.

By its nature, coding normally requires the coordination between sight, sound, and touch. The person doing it needs to see that they are actually creating the right commands that would play off of each other and thus produce the results that they are looking for. However, thanks to advancements in technology, there are actually ways now to bypass these obstacles as Apple explains with regards to what it calls “Everyone Can Code” curricula.

“Apple collaborated with engineers, educators, and programmers from various accessibility communities to make Everyone Can Code as accessible as possible and will work in close coordination with schools to augment the curricula as needed. This will include providing additional tools and resources such as tactile maps to enhance the understanding of coding environments for non-visual learners,” the blog post reads.

As USA Today reports, this new announcement comes on the heels of the Global Accessibility Awareness Day. The event is basically about recognizing the need to expand access to all kinds of opportunities to as many people as possible.