How does the brain interpret computer languages?

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In the US, a 2016 Gallup poll found that the majority of schools want to start teaching code, with 66 percent of K-12 school principals thinking that computer science learning should be incorporated into other subjects. Most countries in Europe have added coding classes and computer science to their school curricula, with France and Spain introducing theirs in 2015. This new generation of coders is expected to boost the worldwide developer population from 23.9 million in 2019 to 28.7 million in 2024.

Despite all this effort, there's still some confusion on how to teach coding. Is it more like a language, or more like math? Some new research may have settled this question by watching the brain's activity while subjects read Python code.

Two schools on schooling

Right now, there are two schools of thought. The prevailing one is that coding is a type of language, with its own grammar rules and syntax that must be followed. After all, they're called coding languages for a reason, right? This idea even has its own snazzy acronym: Coding as Another Language, or CAL.

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