Earsketch, a program designed to merge programming with composing music, was recently featured in We Are DCSD, a magazine published by the Dekalb County School District. The article discusses how many computer science classes in the district are catching code fever in no small part thanks to the program.

Developed by Jason Freeman and Brian Magerko, Earsketch allows students to learn to code in either Python or Javascript while manipulating loops, composing beats, and applying sound effects.

Alicia Harvey, a teacher at Martin Luther King Jr. high school, explains the appeal of the program to students succinctly. “Music is a natural gateway to learning,” she says. “I think that’s true mainly because it just feels good. Music is a language we all speak, in many genres.”

The Dekalb county school district continues to partner with Earsketch, even going so far as to host their own competition for students to show off their Earsketch creations. Ralph Jones, one of the students from the winning school, Stephenson High School, explained how much the competition - and the program itself - means to him and his team.

“We won because we cared about what we were supposed to be learning,” Jones says.
“This was more than just another assignment.”

To learn more, you can request a copy of the We are DCSD magazine here.