It utilizes a number of programming blocks that can interpret console commands in the Basic language. It's an admirable feat by a gamer with some keen knowledge on computer science.

However, one class in seventh grade has become very important to me, as I use the skills I learned in that class every day of my life: That class was my typing class. I can still envision that ...

BASIC brought coding out of the ivory towers, and thereby tilted the world on its axis. It’s hard to overstate how abstruse, before BASIC, most coding was.

Learning to code is about a lot more than just programming basics, OpenAI researcher Szymon Sidor said.

Using a space-themed app, kids write if-then rules, learning the syntax of basic coding. An example: if you drop a ball, then it turns red. Or if the ball hits something, then it will make a noise.

Hufnell said that getting into AI has less to do with AI-specific technologies and more about being a strong engineer in general. That means being proficient in programming languages.

The world's getting more technological, and coding skills become increasingly sought-after skills. But basic coding classes won't do all students much good in the long-run.