What are the keyboards for children programmers made by fighting with educational researchers?

Did you know the word "the elephant in the room"?It's obviously a problem that everyone pretends to be.It is in any industry, but it is a problem that can be removed with a small deal of action.If so, it's boring to leave it alone.

Mr. Shimizu of Gilia Co., Ltd., which launched the national elementary and junior high school programming tournament (September 2 this year), a programming contest for children, has created a keyboard for children to use it.He decided to go to the company in Okachimachi and listen to the story.

It is important that there are few mistakes when reading the code in a programming classroom

――Why did you decide to make a keyboard?

It is a kick to interact with a Shimizu educational researcher.The person is BASIC and Scratch in elementary schools.That is the common sense of the education world.

――Is it so?

Shimizu: It was almost like a fight, but I think it's abusive to teach children about Basic.I'll put it here.If you ask why you are Basic, the keyboard you are using is only engraved "uppercase".

――The modern and easy -to -use language is “lowercase”, so it doesn't fit.

Shimizu: "Then you should change the keyboard."That's why I decided to make it.Both elementary school students who can touch the alphabet for the first time are a keyboard engraved with both "capital letters" and "lowercase letters".

――It says how to read "Earl" or "A"!This shift key is also good.It indicates which of the key top stamps will enter if you press this key properly.

If you press the "Shift" (shift) key, "Z" is replaced with "Z", which is the same character of ■.

Shimizu: Do you know what the Mac shift key is right now?Just "Upper Arrow" is engraved.It's not a familiar adult story, but when a child touches the keyboard for the first time.

――It's meaningless and feels like “Yanana”.In the first place, the "shift" key was a typewriter of the mechanical mechanism era, and the uppercase and lowercase letters were broken down by pushing down the entire type mechanism.That may probably not be about 70 % of those who live now.

I can immediately understand that the key of Shimizu "K" will be "K" if you press the shift key.

――This key top itself is a manual.Sounds good.

Shimizu: I don't know even if there are print screens or "PRTSC".

――It is translated as “PRNTSCRN” or not Print Screen.There are many keys on the keyboard that you don't know.

Shimizu: I still don't know what to use.

――Is it a tradition of terminals such as large computers that were active in the 1970s?"SYS RQ" or "BREAK" break.It seems to be rushed by a person who is familiar with the keyboard, but it's like a ghost.

If you are a Shimizu elementary school student, "Page Up" will also be "Page Ep".So, the special key is also written how to read.

――It seems that there are keys that adults do not know how to read.

Shimizu: I think it is very important to be able to read it aloud.The reading of "A" as "Eh" can be said to be able to study English first.

The special key is also an abbreviation, so it is difficult to distinguish it, so how to read kana is engraved.

――It's a special key, but in terms of programming, the mistake of a symbol is a typical bug.The reason for the launch failure of the US Venus Explaner in the United States is "," (comma) in the FORTRAN program..There is a legend that you made a mistake with (period).It is said that the tremendous national budget has disappeared with just one letter.

In the Shimizu classroom, "Push the comma" means "Hi, teacher, what key?"That effort is quite amazing.

-- I understand."0" (zero) and "O" (o) are stupid stories, but they feel the same.Even if you say, "Kimiki, you're hitting Ozero, not zero," he looks almost the same.In the first place, the old type typewriter also used "1" (Ichi of numbers) and "L" (lowercase el "or" zero "(zero number) as" O "(equal letters).hey.

In the case of my typewriter "Olivetti Valentine" (reprinted version), the left side of "2" is the key of the dummy, "L" (lowercase el), "1" (numbers.)Nothing is engraved on the shift key.

――By the way, “(” (parentheses) closed and parenthesis “)” is read as “cocka” (Note: In the world of programming languages, it is called cocka).

Shimizu: This is also quite lost, but it's easier to understand."Cool closed" is long, and "closed parentheses" are also strange.

――Wh you so, what is going on with “^” (Axans, Axans, Axans,?JIS (JIS X 201) or the like would be officially called that name.

Shimizu "Hat".

――Is “@” a “unit price symbol” in JIS?

It is Shimizu "At".

――I don't even know Japanese ON / OFF on the keyboard.

Shimizu: That's nothing.It is still "half -width / full -width".It depends on the OS and input software.Raspberry Pi and Windows are different.After that, the command key is Apple's old symbol before the computer.

――In that guy called Funyahunya's “propeller key”.

Shimizu: I don't know why, so I squeezed the UEI mark, the "Phoenix" key.

――It is a programmer's dream to make a keyboard.There is "Happy Hacking Keyboard" (PFU) devised by Eiichi Wada, an emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo, which is said to be the first hacker in Japan.

Shimizu: There is "＼" (backslash) instead of Shimizu "￥" (yen mark).It is like this because it is for programmers.Some people make mistakes between "` "(back quort) and" '"(single quotation).Back quotes are rarely used.Also, ":" (colon) and ";" (semicolon) are often mistaken.We have two characters identification so close to the DNA level, but children and beginners are indistinguishable.

The "＼" (backslash) instead of "￥" (yen symbol) is for programmers.

――A, “_” (Andas core) is indistinguishable from children and beginners with “-” (hyphen) and kanji “ー” (sound drawing).

Shimizu That's right.By the way, "-" is "hyphen" on the English character side, and the numeric keypad side is "minus".I was at a loss here, but the numeric keypad was on a plus, so it was "minus".The important thing is that in a programming classroom, it is important that there are few mistakes when reading the code aloud.

――I see.

BBQ sauce or Akihabara -type keyboard?

Shimizu: The keyboard is dad, mother, and grandparents to buy.So, I put my photos in a box of a certain BBQ sauce in the box without shyness.

――It is easier to buy.

Shimizu: That's right.

――When that, I wanted to be able to write “Nen, Kumi, Name” on the back.

Shimizu I see, Nen, Kumi, and Namai.

――Is it a product in such an area, right?

There is also a hole for draining water as a countermeasure when spilling the Shimizu juice on the keyboard.This is just based on such a keyboard.

―― Still it is suitable for this keyboard.

Shimizu By the way, at first, I made it with this sticker.I made a sticker for Mac, but it's really hard to put a sticker.

――Is it a good quest?

I'm going to study Shimizu.Macs are easy to handle because they have limited models, but children who can use Mac are children from rich homes.I wanted to deliver this to children using Raspberry Pi.

――If you have a Raspberry Pi, you can do everything from programming from a wordper with a very small budget.It's like a Jibun -only personal computer of "Children's Science".

Shimizu: That's right.I want you to use it in combination with Raspberry Pi.

――It is important to devise if it costs money, whether it's Windows or Mac.

As with Shimizu keyboard, it is important for adults to approach.Why didn't you do this simple thing so far?You can make it by hand on the seal sold at that strange.

――It is the status quo maintenance bias.Some people should have noticed and may have been done, but it makes sense to come out in this way.To be clear, I think it's no wonder that it's a contribution to mankind.The world changes with this kind of accumulation.By the way, when will it be released?

Shimizu will be released from Tsukumo at the end of this month.

What is important in AI education?

――In the “National Elementary and Junior High School Student Tournament” (JJPC), the number of bang -bang applicants is increasing every time.This year, September 2 (Monday) is the deadline (here is the detailed application guidelines).

Shimizu: At first, it was a story that the child had a paragraph after the summer vacation, and the teacher had to see it and applied, but the situation has changed.

―― Last year, the Grand Prix was especially described by Yoichiro Kawaguchi, the chairman of the Jury, as “it has become like divination for future programming education.”The process of thinking and making it was wonderful, not to mention the completed software.

The 4th National Elementary and Junior High School Programming Tournament currently being recruited for works by 9/2 deadline

When it comes to Shimizu programming education, the important thing is AI education.With the Cabinet AI strategy, I decided to do AI education for all grades.I think the Ministry of Education is a big confusion.I think it's as confused as the start of programming education five years ago in 2020.

――What are you doing specifically?

Shimizu: Not specifically.I only wrote about AI education.It seems that national universities are increasing their momentum because they include AI education in all departments, but AI education is said to be.Do you learn Google's Tensoeflow?Each one is weathered immediately.

――In addition, everyone doesn't need to do TensorFlow.

Shimizu In fact, AI education is more radical than programming education.At best, programming education was to learn elementary and junior high school students at best, but this story about AI education would re -educate people, including working people.This is a pretty ambitious goal.

――Oh, when you go to a large bookstore in China, you can see that working people are studying AI very much.So I feel like it's not strange at all.

How to teach the Shimizu problem, but the decisive difference between programming education and AI education is education that accumulates programming education.There is this part, this part is, you can do this.Let's think about what you can do next.

――If you think step by step, you will come to the answer.

Shimizu By the way, it is a more difficult story because AI education is education on how to teach and usage.I think AI and programming are both wheels, what is AI?How can I make my favorite AI?How to educate?How do you use it?So what can you do if you use it?For the first time, programming comes out.Is it a bit?I think it's good that AI is as good as it is, and if you study AI first and then use the program, you can use AI like this.

――I understand.

It is what happens now that you have to teach in Shimizu two stories.

Donchiker, which is attracting attention in communities such as DIY ROBOCARS in the United States

――I've been addicted to the “Don Kiker” (Note: a kit that automatically runs with AI with a Raspberry Pi on the RC car).

Shimizu That's right.

――In the program, if it was a program that was a few years ago, if you recognize the white line of the course, turn the handle to the left, or if it was an if / THEN program, I was running.I think.There were a lot of sensors with a lot of sensors and it was working with a super -complicated program.However, such a program cannot be used just by crossing the front for some reason.When it turns out that such a case can happen, you have to work on the program.In the case of a donchiker, it's just a vague recognition of the landscape, so if that happens, you can tell like a dog later, "I will stop."It is necessary to first learn the basic properties of AI.

Shimizu: That's right.

――The other day, President Shimizu came to our seminar and rented my donchiker and ran it.He was running a course with gum tape on the office floor, but if he taught the red cone to avoid about 10 laps, he would avoid it well.Most cars dodge as if they were driving by humans, but the Don Kiker taught by Shimizu happened to get caught on the cone and turned red in front of him.

I was so excited that I had a bright red view that I had never seen Shimizu (laughs).

――It looks like a bad example of machine learning, but maybe if you learn it once, it will solve it.In other words, learning was just too enough for about 15 laps.In conventional programming, the program was generally written by assuming all cases that could happen.However, it is hard and inflexible.However, Donchiker runs almost like humans in an incredibly simple program in the introductory edition.

Shimizu Donchiker should do a demonstration at the JJPC final screening and award ceremony.

―― That's right.

If you do Shimizu, it will be exciting.You can see what AI is.

――The way of learning is not just a piled up type as in programming.There are teaching materials that are artificial intelligence and gradually becoming smarter, but I feel that they have not escaped from programming educational ideas.Then there is an introduction to MNIST (handwritten numbers) and AI using images of dogs and cats.If you do the data created by those who do not know who you are on a sterile virtual state, and you can run a donchiker in a real space, the learning that can be obtained will be completely different.It is important to gain the sense of what you can do.

Shimizu That's right.

――I think that's a good way to teach AI.

I want to show the child directly to the child.Where do you do the final examination & award ceremony?

―― It is Sunday, October 20 at Dai Building in Akihabara.Or rather, I want to run Don Kiker in a pedestrian paradise in Akihabara.I think Akiba as the city of Akihabara's content is now good, but you can also rewind the tech feeling.For that reason, I wanted to run on a pedestrian heaven on Chuo -dori in Akihabara, or go to Kanda Myojin and return.

Can't you do Shimizu?

――It seems difficult to get the police permission.Or the first floor of Versal Akihabara.The current donchiker may be better to run indoors, so it may be better with a roof.I'm looking for a sponsor.

Donchiker seems to avoid corn on the course.Mr. Shimizu's donchiker, who had rented my donchiker automatically, appeared at the end, but finally appeared.

When it comes to Shimizu Children's programming, there are many teaching materials in the world because the base has spread, but it has been narrowed down.My parents are getting a lot of fertile eyes, and I want to go to the place properly.

-- I see.

Shimizu Children's programming can be seen compared to English.English is difficult to understand.That's what I did and read.I read aloud.However, there is no chance to use it practically after that.

――There is to happen to meet foreigners in sightseeing spots and teach the way.

Shimizu: I can't speak at all.So in the case of English, you can self -drive if you have a certain degree of programming, even though there is not much feeling.You can study self -study.You can check it in the form of the program.That's why you get into it.

―― JJPC also wants to remember the concept of “making what you want to make”.The contest just needs to be the trigger.If you have a goal to make something, you will learn English for English and mathematics for mathematics.It is important to make something moving anyway.That goal will move yourself.

Shimizu: I remembered that in the past, I remember in the ASCII game article.

――Is an article that has ever rushed to me before?Where was the issue of "Monthly ASCII", such as rotating images?

It was Shimizu's February issue, the game special feature of "Monthly ASCII".

――Is so?(Note: February issue for the fourth consecutive year from 1992)

Shimizu This was not the case.In the story of a CG like a MSX pocketbook, the late racing was 8 bits, so it was very slow, so when I drew a sphere, I wrote, "There is no particular reason, but it is good to ask for cosine."It looks like a cosine.I just wrote it in a way that no one knows why this is good.I thought it was amazing.I will never write in academic magazines.You can be allowed because it is a computer book.

――It's honest.

Shimizu: In the world of computers, I confess that much, but in a general studying world, it's like saying that.

――We's AI book written by President Shimizu said, "Deep learning is difficult.

Shimizu, it's the same story (laughs).

――It's a very important part.

Shimizu: In the past few years, Thai Himuler theory in space is also a mathematician confession.In fact, the relationship between addition and multiplication is not well understood.I think it's a fierce confession.When it comes to, I'm not hiding that I don't know well.So, on the contrary, what we think is right because we are mathematics may be completely out of place.If you don't use mathematics, humans can't understand science.Isn't there a science paper that doesn't come out at all?But it seems like I use it without knowing it.

――It's ambiguous in words, so it's a mathematical expression.

When I returned to the AI education of Shimizu, I think that AI education is okay to use it without knowing it.Programming education was the same.Isn't the guy who doesn't know the problem of mathematical education is a bad message?Instead, I don't have to know, I want to tell you that it is important to be able to use it as you want, even if you do not know.I think the points of programming education and AI education are there.

Last but not least, I think that the educational and researcher teachers probably conveyed the current state of programming education in school seriously and probably correctly.And I think Japanese manufacturers should imitate such a keyboard without getting cool (I'm sorry if Tsukumo is scheduled to be released).Tsukumo's page is here.

In fields such as computer science and AI, we have begun to post papers on sites such as ARXIV, not academic journals and academic conferences.Because there is no time for peer -review, you can study the speed in the era.It is likely that the mechanism required for schools will be re -questioned.

Mr. Shimizu has previously been a dialogue article entitled "Programming should be done by elementary school students," and Mr. Ryo Shimizu and Mr. Endo, about their children's programming.

Regarding donchikers, I think it's a good idea to refer to "Technology's big wave comes from something like" toys "."At the Maker Faire Tokyo 2019 held on August 3rd and 4th, we had a running event and race with the cooperation of friends of the Facebook group "Let's run an RC car!"Among them, "Child V.s.AI was a radio control car operated by the child and a donquisher racing using the learned AI.AI with children was a good game.

Mr. Endo

President of Kadokawa ASCII Research Institute Co., Ltd.He has been an incumbent in 2013 after working as an editor -in -chief of the monthly ASCII.He also works on books, such as Murphy's Law, which became a million seller, while editing magazines.Kadokawa ASCII Research Institute is conducting and consulting about the lifestyle of people in smartphones and the Internet era.His books include "Modern Programmers Evening" (Haotens S. Pow, ASCII), and "Computer Store Fighting".