Skyline College will begin offering Apple’s newly announced app development curriculum as part of its computer science and technology pathways this fall. “App Development with Swift” is a series of curriculum modules and resources designed for students who want to pursue careers in the fast-growing app economy. Skyline College is one of six community colleges—and the only one in California—to offer the curriculum.
App Development with Swift is curriculum designed by Apple to teach students elements of app design using Swift, which is a popular programming language for building apps for Apple devices. Skyline College will begin integration of the curriculum into courses as part of its Computer Science pathway, which is a focused series of courses intended to prepare students for a career in computer programming. Students will learn to code and design fully functional apps, gaining critical job skills in software and app development, information technology and object-oriented program design.
“Swift is an important and timely addition to our computer science curriculum,” said Skyline College President Regina Stanback Stroud. “This gives Skyline College students the advantage of having the latest, most relevant training in a hot and growing job sector. And with our location in the Bay Area, this will be a great benefit to local tech employers.”
Skyline College is launching new technology career pathways in the high-demand fields of DevOps, UX design and mobile app development. These career pathways begin in fall 2017 as part of Skyline College’s Strong Workforce Initiative, which matches classroom curriculum and academic planning with the needs of employers in order to prepare highly trained and valuable workers in tech, healthcare and other fields.
The College will also explore ways to use the new Apple curriculum as part of dual enrollment partnerships and bridge programming that build stronger connections and transitions to Skyline College for high school and adult school students.
Skyline College has agreed to pilot the new curriculum and provide feedback to Apple. Only six community colleges in the United States will offer App Development with Swift this fall: the Alabama Community College System, Columbus State Community College, Harrisburg Area Community College, Houston Community College, Mesa Community College and Skyline College. The San Mateo Community College District plans to expand the partnership to other colleges in the district.
Skyline College faculty and career education leadership are optimistic the Apple curriculum will attract students who might not otherwise be drawn to computer science courses. The popularity and familiarity of Apple apps and their devices can help to address the reluctance students may feel when looking into careers in the high-power technology industry. One of Skyline College’s goals is to increase equity and diversity for students enrolled in these programs.
Apple’s curriculum includes a comprehensive student guide with playground exercises, mini projects and quizzes, as well as a teacher’s guide with grading rubrics, solutions code and Keynote presentations.
App Development with Swift is an extension of Apple’s existing K-12 Everyone Can Code curricula which offer everyone the power to learn, write and teach coding. Swift is Apple’s powerful and intuitive programming language that gives developers the freedom and capabilities they need to create the next generation of cutting-edge software. Popular apps including Airbnb, KAYAK, TripAdvisor, Venmo and Yelp are all created with Swift.
Article by Richard Rojo
