Tokyo Institute of Technology: traP brings together middle and high school students at first in-person coding class in three years
Digital Creators Club traP, an official Tokyo Tech Student Club, organized the first in-person coding class for middle and high school students in three years on August 28. This was the twelfth workshop of its kind after traP began introducing youngsters with no prior programming experience to the basics of code in 2016.
The summer 2022 event, organized once again in collaboration with Supporterz Inc., a Tokyo-based recruitment and event planning company, attracted thirteen middle and high school students to join in the fun.
The goal was to create a classic invader game played directly on the participants’ browsers using original instructional material created by traP and the JavaScript programming language. The participants drew shapes, used variables, and implemented conditional branching using if statements to execute basic game functions such as firing bullets and defeating enemies.
After six hours of coding with breaks in between to help participants recharge, all groups were able to complete their invader games. Once the basic game had been completed, the youngster worked on more advanced content such as additional game music and sound effects, and created shapes using iterative processing.
To provide further inspiration to participants who want to expand their world through coding, a round of five-minute lightning talks was also held after lunch time. During this session, participants were given access to a real-time commenting system created by one of the traP members which they could use to share feedback and questions while they listened to a talk on programming.
In the post-event survey, feedback from all participants was once again very positive.
Members of Digital Creation Club traP are already actively preparing for their next event, and look forward to opening the doors of coding to more participants.
Comments from programming class moderator
Kenta Tsuji
3rd year, Earth and Planetary Sciences
I am pleased to be able to hold this in-person class for the first time in three years, and to convey to middle and high school students the joys of coding. I first became interested in coding when I was a middle school student. I got hooked after a friend of mine taught me how to build an environment using a simple programming language.
I sincerely hope that, through the experience of this coding class, participants were able to feel that coding is more accessible.
What is Digital Creators Club traP?
Digital Creators Club traP, an official Tokyo Tech Student Club, was established in April 2015 with the aim of producing digital content in teams and sharing techniques and technology with others. The club focuses on various activities including app and game creation, digital and audio content creation, 2D illustrations, 3D modeling, pixel graphics, video creation, competitive programming, and cybersecurity capture the flag competitions. traP shares its knowledge through various public engagement activities, including game creation exchange events and programming classes for middle and high school students.