Jonathan Robichaud recently completed a private tutorial on writing computer code with Java-Script, and he can’t wait to move on to Python.

In his Java-Script course, he received a full day of lessons from Connor Bell, a Dalhousie computer science student and co-founder of Execute Technologies Inc. But Java-Script is used mainly for designing websites, and he really wants to sink his teeth into Python because that’s the language used in designing games. Eventually, he and his friends want to move on to larger engineering projects.

 “We’d like to build an airplane,” he said as he enjoyed a hot chocolate at a Halifax coffee shop. “We’re probably going to make that when we’re in our twenties. We’re probably too young to do it now.”

Jonathan, you see, is only eight, yet he already possesses an enthusiasm for computers that is breathtaking. And the sad thing is, according to the official curriculum of the Nova Scotia Education Department, he should more than double his age to enrol in a programming course at a Nova Scotia school. Computer programming is taught as a single optional program in Grade 12.

I’m more familiar with Nova Scotia than the other Atlantic provinces, but the tech community across the region is pleading for computer science in schools, not just in high schools, but to younger kids as well. Kids like Jonathan.

In the absence of formalized education, the private sector is introducing initiatives to teach people coding. Jonathan took his course from Ladies Learning Code, a national initiative that was recently brought into Nova Scotia. As its name suggests, it wants to encourage females to move into the technology world, but it’s open to all genders, all ages.

Jonathan was one of four people attending its most recent session who were too young to drive themselves to it. This summer, Jonathan will attend CompCamp, a Halifax-based summer camp for computer enthusiasts. CompCamp is expanding in its second summer, and its founders organized the Girls Tech League over the winter.

The New Brunswick Information Technology Council has just launched its Class of 2013 program, in which several companies guarantee to give 25 high school grads a job as long as they promise to complete a degree all parties agree on. In St. John’s, the Newfoundland and Labrador chapter of the Canadian Information Processing Society, holds Women in IT events targeting Grade 9 girls, and almost 500 people attended last year.

These are just a few of the initiatives going on outside the public education system to encourage young people and others to train for jobs in the fastest-growing segment of the economy. The point is the initiative is coming from outside of the education departments, and it’s time for governments to respond.

It’s not an easy fix. Computer science must be taught by teachers fluent in computer languages and coding. And if the curriculum is increased at a provincial level, there would have to be teachers in all schools able to teach the courses.

What’s more, if the governments mandate more computer science, then some other courses will have to be dropped.

But the overall economy is demanding stronger education in technical subjects. Each week, I talk to tech entrepreneurs who can’t find programmers. The economy needs these people and our schools should do more to educate them.