The Tetris game developed by a Kentucky high school student using Code.org. (Twitter screen grab via @hadip)
In a Twitter thread on Tuesday, Hadi Partovi, the longtime Seattle entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Code.org, provided some insight into why he loves his job.
In 12 tweets, Partovi laid out the story of a Kentucky high school student, a video game, a teacher and Code.org’s place in the dynamic as a nonprofit dedicated to helping more kids gain access to a computer science education. (Partovi’s thread starts with this tweet, and the entire stream is embedded at bottom of story.)
Here's an amazing story and why I love my job… A few weeks ago, I saw a teacher tweet a video of a Tetris game a student named Spencer made on @codeorg.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Partovi first noticed a tweet from teacher Larry Correll of Glasgow High School, who shared a video of a Tetris game created by student Spencer Applegate using tools on Code.org. Partovi tried to play the game, but it didn’t work as well on his smartphone as it did on desktop, and he learned that Applegate didn’t have a phone of his own.
Glasgow was named the poorest community in Kentucky in a report by USA Today last year, and 70 percent of the high school’s 600 students receive free/reduced lunch and 14 percent are homeless, Correll told Partovi. But the teacher said the high school continues to rank in the top 10 percent of Kentucky schools and was ranked seventh best high school by US News.
So AMAZING using https://t.co/zlqGhYgKy7 ‘s app lab and skills developed in Computer Science Principles class a GHS student created Tetris @codeorg @AdvanceKentucky @GHSDrAllen @GHSEngineering_ @GlasgowCoding @MoniqueMRice @artimm2 pic.twitter.com/CwC9zJqiY6
— Larry Correll (@ghsteachlarry) April 19, 2019
WOW! We love this!
— Code.org (@codeorg) April 19, 2019
After hearing from Correll about Applegate’s potential as senior who is gifted in math and science, with a talent for programming, Partovi sent the student a new phone.
“We have seen so many students make amazing games and apps on Code.org,” Partovi told GeekWire on Wednesday. “In fact, just this week a student made their own re-make of Pac-Man. What stood out in this case was that this is a school in a very low income town in Kentucky. About one in six students in the school are homeless, and most will never afford college. The idea that a student in this school made such a great app yet didn’t have a phone to try it on is what inspired me to reach out.”
Tweets in Partovi’s thread show Applegate opening the gift in class and the Tetris game being played on a mobile device.
Correll told Partovi that with the help of Code.org, Glasgow High School offered students a computer science class, AP CS Principles, for the first time last year and that 22 of 24 students received a 3 or higher (passing score) on the AP exam. At the same time, computer science classes were introduced in local elementary schools and a middle school.
“The work we do at Code.org is a lot more than providing software and curriculum,” Partovi said. “We provide a year-round professional development and support program for teachers who want to begin teaching computer science, and that’s exactly the program Larry Correll was part of. Aside from the story of the student, what stands out is that this is a teacher that is teaching computer science for the first time, and his entire class is crushing it, in such an unexpected part of the country.
“Talent and genius is everywhere, opportunity is not,” Partovi added. “That’s part of what we’re trying to fix at Code.org.”
Check out Applegate’s game here, and read Partovi’s tweets below:
Here's an amazing story and why I love my job… A few weeks ago, I saw a teacher tweet a video of a Tetris game a student named Spencer made on @codeorg.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Spencer had worked on it for weeks. His teacher, Mr. Correll, had promised to take him out for breakfast at Hardee's if he could get it right.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
I tried Spencer’s game, but it didn’t work on my phone. His teacher, Mr. Correll wrote “It only works on a computer. Spencer doesn’t have a cell phone. I’m encouraging him to continue CS. I sure hope he gets a chance to go to college.”
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Hearing Mr. Correll talk about this kid’s potential, I decided to buy Spencer a phone, so he can finish his app.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Here is Spencer receiving his gift. From Mr. Correll: “When I told the class what was going on, one of the young women started crying.” pic.twitter.com/kMTHuqwymv
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
And here’s Spencer’s working game. https://t.co/oLpiTaRnY1 pic.twitter.com/XTCGzTQHRD
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Mr. Correll teaches in Glasgow, Kentucky, ranked the poorest community in the state. 70% of Glasgow students are on free lunch programs. 14% are homeless.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
With the help of @codeorg, the school began teaching computer science, and it has “rejuvenated the whole school”. 90% of Mr. Correll’s students have passed the AP computer science exam. (The national pass-rate is 70%)
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Spencer Applegate is graduating high school this year, he may never attend college, yet he recreated Tetris (a billion-$ game) in 500 lines of code.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Mr. Correll is one of 1.1M teachers on @codeorg, who are bringing opportunity to tens of millions of students in communities like Glasgow, Kentucky.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Nominate a teacher for a scholarship to take the same training the helped Mr. Correll begin teaching computer science. https://t.co/7ww6syj2xb. And consider supporting our work with a donation: https://t.co/DYJvbEiou9
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019
Thank you to Larry Correll @ghsteachlarry for the work you do each day in the classroom, you are changing the face of computer science; and to Dr. Amy Allen @GHSDrAllen for supporting computer science in your school.
— Hadi Partovi (@hadip) April 30, 2019