Microsoft’s Code Jumper helps visually impaired children learn coding.
Microsoft’s Code Jumper is a tethered hardware device, designed to aid visually impaired and blind children learn how to code. A team at Microsoft first began work on this project over four years ago, then titled Project Torino. Microsoft recently announced that all research and technology for the project would be transferred to the American Printing House for the Blind.
The Problem
Scratch is a block-based visual programming language used in hundreds of primary schools to teach children basic coding concepts. However, blind and visually impaired children face major challenges in learning to code on Scratch as it involves dragging coloured blocks of code around a screen and then watching an animation.
The Visionary
Microsoft researcher and computer scientist Cecily Morrison started exploring options for her blind son to learn coding, which is where the drive for Code Jumper first began. Morrison was shocked to discover the limitations on code learning technology for visually impaired children. Microsoft’s Code Jumper is a physical programming language developed to make the computing curriculum accessible to visually impaired children aged seven to eleven years. Cecily Morrison said in an interview, “Our hope is that we inspire all blind and low vision children to code regardless of where they are.”
The Solution
This project consists of a series of pods, which children can touch and manipulate, creating a physical programming environment. Each pod serves as one line of code in a program. Children can put the pods together in different sequences to create different lines of code in the program. This project creates a learning environment that will work for any student who is a tactile learner. Programming is an ideal potential job opportunity for visually impaired people. Visually impaired people makeup for approximately one percent of the global programming community.
