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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/1513481
Apple’s Swift Student Challenge to open in February 2024 with new Distinguished Winners category Introducing new Everyone Can Code resources to support educators in bringing app design and development to students Apple’s Swift Student Challenge has given thousands of students around the world the opportunity to showcase their creativity and build real-world skills to take into their careers and beyond. Since 2020, students participating in the challenge have joined a worldwide community of developers using Swift — the same programming language used by professionals — to create the next wave of groundbreaking apps. The next challenge will open in February 2024, and will include a new category recognizing 50 Distinguished Winners, who will be named for standout submissions. Interest among students who wish to learn coding and app development is widespread, and these skills are seen as highly desirable, whether students intend to work in the technology sector or not. In an independent survey of more than 1,000 students in the United States in September, researchers from YPulse found that 92 percent of students believe it is important to learn how to code and 94 percent believe coding is an important skill for the future job market. In addition, students recognize multiple benefits of knowing how to code and build apps, including boosting creativity, solving local and global problems, and ultimately making the world a better place. Awareness of and access to coding and app development resources are critical for learners — while the survey found that 85 percent of students have not yet taken steps but would like to learn to code, 48 percent don’t know where to start. Apple’s Swift Playgrounds app was designed to take learners from their first line of code to building their first app in Swift. It’s a great tool for beginners to explore, learn, discover, and experiment with coding and app development on iPad and Mac. “At Apple, we believe that everyone can learn to code and build apps, and we’re proud to support and recognize aspiring student developers with the Swift Student Challenge each year,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations and Education & Enterprise Marketing. “We know that students are eager to learn coding skills to solve challenges they care about — whether it’s building an app to help peers identify mental health resources or supporting sustainability efforts on campus — and want