In this article, we will look into the 12 best programming languages for high school students. If you want to skip our detailed analysis, you can go directly to 5 Best Programming Languages for High School Students.

Coding: A Core Skill

With a wide range of applications in almost every industry, programming has become one of the most important skills to have. Learning programming languages and coding can be a rewarding experience for high schoolers. The must-have skill can be utilized to create innovative solutions, fun interactive applications, and much more. According to a research survey by a leading software development and vector analytics company, KX, over 45% of US students from age 16 to 23, can code or are learning how to code. 35% of students believe that coding is an important life skill. Moreover, 30% of US students plan to or have already taken a course in computational intelligence.

ChatGPT: A Learning Tool

With the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, the use of generative AI became widespread among students. Initially, many education institutes banned ChatGPT with the concern that it would be used as a means of cheating. However, a deeper understanding of the tool and its potential applications, as a training and education tool for both teachers and students can shift this narrative. ChatGPT can be a useful learning tool to help students, for instance, it can help you with your coding problems by answering your questions regarding syntax, algorithms, data structures, code examples, and coding concepts. The rising adoption of these modern technologies in the education system is paving the way for a better educational experience for students.

Education Technology: A Market Analysis

According to a report by Grand View Research, the global education technology market size was worth $123.40 billion in 2022. The market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 13.6% and reach $348.41 billion in 2030. The growth can be attributed to the increased use of EdTech solutions as a learning medium, and the advances in the latest technologies, including AI, IoT, and AR/VR. The COVID-19 pandemic also spurred growth in the market with the adoption of distance learning mediums.

Integration of advanced technologies in EdTech solutions is a rising trend in the market. Companies are launching advanced interactive technologies to increase student engagement and understanding. The report cites an example of zSpace, a US-based company that launched an AR/VR learning device in 2022. It enables students to have an immersive learning environment in a virtual space without glasses.

In 2022, YouTube launched a product, YouTube Player for Education, designed to improve the way YouTube videos appear in popular education tools. EdTech companies have integrated the product into their learning tools which provides ad-free access to educational videos. For instance, Edpuzzle, a teaching tool has integrated YouTube Player for Education to add relevant YouTube videos to their study materials. Similarly, Edulastic, an online assessment tool is utilizing the new product to convert Youtube videos into a quiz.

Regionally, the market was dominated by North America with a market share of over 36%. The growth is characterized by the large investments in the US Edtech market by venture capitalists and private investors. For instance, in 2021, Class Technologies Inc. managed to raise $105 million of investment in Series B funding to support virtual learning during the pandemic. Asia Pacific is expected to grow at the highest CAGR over the forecasted period. The growth is driven by the high prevalence of computing devices and smartphones among the masses.

Major Players in the Industry

Some of the major companies in the education technology market include Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG), Udemy, Inc. (NASDAQ:UDMY),  and Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR).

Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG) is a global educational technology company leading the market. As of November 2, it reports a market cap of $868.6 million. On October 30, Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG) reported earnings for the fiscal third quarter of 2023. The company reported an EPS of $0.18 and outperformed estimated by $0.01. Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG) generated a revenue of $157.85 million for the quarter and outperformed consensus by $5.72 million.

Here are some of the comments from Chegg, Inc.’s (NYSE:CHGG) Q3 2023 earnings call:

“Total revenue was $158 million, driven by Subscription Services Revenue of $140 million, where we had 4.4 million subscribers during the quarter. Skills and Other Revenue was $18 million, driven by strong growth in Skills, offset primarily by the change in the required materials model, which is now a revenue share, as well as some advertising softness. We remain disciplined on the expense side, aligning investments with our AI-focused strategy, which supported another adjusted EBITDA beat this quarter versus guidance, coming in at $39 million or 25% margin.”

“In addition to our academic services, we continue to invest in skills where we are seeing very strong growth, all of which is good for the future of Chegg. Six months ago, leveraging the breakthroughs of artificial intelligence, we began to completely reinvent what we offer, how we offer it and to whom we offer it. New technology platforms create a lot of hype and noise. But as the hype gives way to facts, we believe Chegg is in a great position to build the most impactful, scalable, AI-enabled personal learning assistant, which will expand our opportunities to serve more students in more ways and at a lower cost per customer.”

Udemy, Inc. (NASDAQ:UDMY) is a leading online learning platform company. On October 4, the company announced its partnership with Docker, Inc., an American technology company. The collaboration will provide developers with access to Docker’s skill training tools. With a focus on over 20 million aspiring and active Docker developers, the partnership aims to provide them with easier and improved education and skills necessary to adapt to the latest technology via 350 skills training courses on demand.

Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR) is a leading US-based online learning platform. As of November 2, it boasts a market cap of $2.76 billion. On October 31, Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR) announced the launch of Generative AI for Everyone, a course that focuses on the use of generative AI in the workplace and daily life. The course is a joint effort by Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR) and DeepLearning.AI. The course will cover the impact of AI, its responsible use, and its applications.

Here are some of the comments from Coursera, Inc.’s (NYSE:COUR) earnings call:

“The first trend is digital transformation. For many years, the combined forces of technology, globalization and automation have been accelerating the transformation of every institution in our society. More recently, the explosive adoption of generative AI is beginning to demonstrate how profoundly this new general-purpose technology will reshape how we live, learn and work. A McKinsey global survey on AI published in August showed that nearly 80% of respondents, which included participants from all regions, industries and seniority levels, reportedly some exposure to generative AI, either for work or outside of work. Ultimately, we believe increased demand for education will be driven by an unprecedented rate of change as every facet of our society, including businesses, governments and academic institutions, grapples with the need to improve their productivity and human capital in this new world of generative AI.”

On October 26, Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR) reported earnings for the fiscal third quarter of 2023. The company reported a revenue of $165.54 million for the quarter and outperformed consensus by $6.43 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter grew 21.37% on a year-over-year basis.

Now that we have discussed the market trends in the education technology industry and discussed the major players, let’s look at the 12 best programming languages for high school students.

Methodology

We compiled our list of 12 best programming languages for high school students by reviewing similar publications from sources including, GeeksforGeeks, Scalar, Simplilearn, Medium, CodeCamp, and Forbes. Then we tabulated our initial list of 35 programming languages listed in our sources. After that, we used the IEEE Ranking of Programming Languages to further narrow down our list. The IEEE ranking is a comprehensive ranking that utilizes 11 indicators to rank programming languages in three categories; preference of IEEE members, job demand, and popularity. The IEEE ranks the programming languages on a scale of 0 to 1 for each category. To determine the best programming languages, we calculated an average rating by considering all three categories. This resulted in a score out of 1 for each language. Finally, we ranked the 12 best languages based on their calculated score in ascending order.

12 Best Programming Languages for High School Students

12. R

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.1 out of 1

R is ranked among the 12 best programming languages for high school students. R is an open-source programming language used for data analytics. It is an easy-to-learn language with a variety of applications in research, statistics, and data visualization. It is ranked 12th on our list with a score of 0.1 out of 1.

Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG), Udemy, Inc. (NASDAQ:UDMY),  and Coursera, Inc (NYSE:COUR) are some of the leading companies in the education technology market.

11. PHP

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.1 out of 1

PHP is a general-purpose scripting language that serves as a tool to develop interactive web pages and applications. PHP is a dynamic language with applications including generating page content, working with databases, creating sessions, sending and receiving cookies, and sending emails. It is ranked 11th on our list with a score of 0.1 out of 1.

10. Go

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.16 out of 1

Go is a simple and easy-to-learn programming language designed for creating software.  It has applications in microservices, distributed systems, and web applications. It is ranked 10th on our list with a score of 0.16 out of 1.

9. TypeScript

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.18 out of 1

TypeScript is an extension of JavaScript and is ranked 9th on our list. It adds a number of features to JavaScript making it easier to write and therefore, easy to learn as well.  It has a score of 0.18 out of 1.

8. HTML

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.21 out of 1

HTML, short for HyperText Markup Language is ranked 8th on our list. HTML is a key language used for the development of web pages. It is an open-source and free-to-use language. It works with other languages like CSS and JavaScript to control how web pages look and operate. It has a rating of 0.21 out of 1.

7. C#

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.37 out of 1

C# is a versatile language that can be used in the development of web, mobile, and desktop applications. It supports multiple programming paradigms and can be used to generate codes in various styles. It is ranked among the best programming languages for high school students.

6. C

Insider Monkey Rating: 0.37 out of 1

C is a general-purpose language, developed in the early 1970s. It is one of the most popular languages and is used to create software applications, operating systems, and computing applications among others. It is ranked 6th on our list.

Investors who want to increase their exposure to the edtech industry can look up stocks including Chegg, Inc. (NYSE:CHGG), Udemy, Inc. (NASDAQ:UDMY),  and Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR).

Click to continue reading and see 5 Best Programming Languages for High School Students.

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Disclosure: None. 12 Best Programming Languages for High School Students is originally published on Insider Monkey.