I think this article misses the point that "fuel injection" and other vocational skills are nowhere near as prolific and impactful as code on daily life.
We shouldn't encourage everybody to become programmers, just like we shouldn't encourage everybody to become authors. We should encourage everybody to learn how to program, just like we encourage everybody to learn how to write well.
"The public already has a large misunderstanding regarding this point *(not to mention the difference between IT and CS)*"
(Maybe I misunderstood your point)
Of course there is a vague line between certain branches of applied computer science and theoretical information technology where the terms become nebulous. Wikipedia has decent definitions of both if you're so interested.
Agreed. Coding is a means to an end. Although I must say, 'coding' in Scratch is very helpful for my kids to better understand logic flow in their minds and think in a structured manner. It's means to an end of building something. At the end of the day, I still want them to get outside and experience the world rather that sitting in front of a computer all day. Moderation is key here.
In my country is the same thing: everytime an international study like PISA shows that we are very low in reading and math skills, politicians promise more hours of reading and math classes per week. Selling that it's easier than changing how these classes are teached.