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Texas counts code as a language. Almost nobody uses it properly.
The short answer
Texas permits two computer science credits to satisfy the Languages Other Than English graduation requirement, under 19 TAC 74.12, as a listed alternative rather than an exemption. Modern Age Coders teaches the qualifying courses live online to Texas learners aged 6 to 67, in batches of five to eight or privately. Fees run USD 100 and USD 150 a month. The first class costs nothing.
Texas made a decision most states never did. Under the Foundation High School Program a student can meet the two-credit foreign language requirement with two credits of computer programming instead. Not as a hardship exemption, as a listed alternative sitting directly beside Spanish and French in the rule. Thousands of Texas families have never been told this, and of those who have, many have been told a garbled version of it.
This page sets out what the rule actually says, what the revised Technology Applications TEKS now expect from Kindergarten upward, and where we fit. Texas is one of the states covered under coding classes in the United States.
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The courses that qualify, and the one beside them
The first three sit on the list that can satisfy the Languages Other Than English requirement. The fourth is the mathematics most Texas students need in the very same term.
AP Computer Science A
Java, the exam unit structure, and the free response questions that decide the grade.
See the syllabus
Java for teens
The language groundwork, so the AP course is computer science and not syntax panic.
See the syllabus
Python, complete
The language taught to real depth rather than to a demo. Our most requested course.
See the syllabus
SAT Math prep
Same student, same term, same teacher who already knows where the gaps are.
See the syllabusThat is four of more than a hundred. The rest, sorted by age and subject, sit on the course atlas, and the order we teach them in is on the coding roadmap.
The four we are known for
Python, AI, vibe coding and agentic coding
These run underneath everything above. Every one is live and online, placed by ability rather than by age, and the first class is free.
Vibe Coding for Teens
Python, web and AI projects where the learner still owns the thinking.
See the syllabus
AI and Machine Learning for Teens
Train a model, read what it learned, and be able to say why it is wrong.
See the syllabus
Codex and Claude Code
Run AI coding agents on real work without losing control of the codebase.
See the syllabusWhat the rule says, in the rule's own words
This is the provision, quoted rather than paraphrased, because the paraphrases circulating online are where families go wrong.
Languages Other Than English, two credits
"The credits may be selected from the following: (i) any two levels in the same language, including comparable AP or IB language courses that do not count toward another credit required for graduation; or (ii) two credits in computer programming languages, including computer coding, to be selected from Computer Science I, II, and III, AP Computer Science Principles, AP Computer Science A, IB Computer Science Standard Level, and IB Computer Science Higher Level."
Read clause (ii) carefully. It is an alternative of equal standing, listed alongside taking two levels of Spanish. A student who wants to satisfy the requirement with code is not asking for a favour and does not need a reason.
There is a second, separate provision that people routinely confuse with the first. It covers a student who has already started a language and cannot finish it. In that case the determination that the student is unlikely to complete the second credit "must be agreed to by the teacher of the first LOTE credit course or another LOTE teacher designated by the school district, the principal or designee, and the student's parent or person standing in parental relation", or by the student's admission, review and dismissal committee, or by their Section 504 committee.
Those are two different doors. The first needs no permission. The second is a support mechanism with a named approval process. A family told "you need the principal to sign off" has usually been quoted the second when they qualify under the first.
Check the current text before you plan around this
The version quoted above is the one published as effective until 1 August 2025, and the Texas Education Agency issued an update to the Chapter 74 Subchapter B graduation rules in August 2025. We are pointing you at the rule, not standing in for it. Ask your school counsellor for the text in force for your child's cohort, and ask them to show it to you.
The practical consequence is that Computer Science I, II and III, and the two AP computer science courses, are worth more in a Texas timetable than they look. A student taking them is not spending electives on an enrichment subject. They are clearing a required block while building something a university admissions reader can actually inspect.
AP Computer Science A
Java, the exam's unit structure, and the free response questions that decide the grade.
Open the syllabusJava for Teens
The language groundwork, so the AP course is about computer science rather than syntax panic.
Open the syllabusPython, complete
The usual first language in a Texas Computer Science I classroom, taught to depth rather than to a demo.
Open the syllabusSAT Math Prep
For the same student in the same term, with a teacher who already knows their gaps.
Open the syllabusFive strands, and what we teach against each
The State Board of Education adopted revised Technology Applications TEKS in 2022, implemented from the 2024 to 2025 school year. The revision added computational thinking, which is the largest departure from the 2011 standards, and gave every grade from Kindergarten to Grade 5 its own set of expectations instead of grade bands.
Computational thinking. The 2022 addition, broken into decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction and algorithms.
Taught as four separate habits rather than one slogan, because students can usually decompose long before they can abstract. See Problem Solving and Computational Thinking.
Data literacy, management and representation. Handling data and choosing how to show it.
Where the Texas student project further down this page lives, on a real state dataset with a real trap. See Data Science for Teens.
Practical technology concepts. Using the tools competently and understanding what sits underneath them.
Our whole objection to demo-driven teaching. A student who has only ever dragged blocks in one app has tool familiarity, not technology fluency. See Scratch, properly.
Creativity and innovation. Making something that did not exist before, under constraints.
Every course ends in a build rather than a quiz, and the constraint is that it has to work in front of somebody else. See Game Development for Kids.
Digital citizenship. Behaving well online, and understanding what technology does to other people.
Handled as argument rather than assembly, especially around AI tools, where the honest answer is sometimes that a thing should not be built. See AI Tools Mastery for Teens.
Credits, endorsements, and the ten percent question
The Foundation High School Program requires at least 22 credits. An endorsement adds four more, taking a student to 26. Every incoming freshman selects an endorsement, and there are five to choose from.
| Item | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Foundation High School Program | At least 22 credits |
| With an endorsement | 26 credits |
| Endorsement options | STEM, business and industry, public services, arts and humanities, multidisciplinary studies |
| Languages Other Than English | 2 credits, satisfiable by two computer programming credits |
| Distinguished Level of Achievement | 26 credits including Algebra II |
The Distinguished Level of Achievement is the one worth understanding early, because it is the level that keeps automatic top ten percent admission to Texas public universities available. It requires Algebra II among the four mathematics credits. A student who lets mathematics slide in Grade 9 and Grade 10 can quietly remove that option before anybody notices, which is why we treat coding and mathematics as one track rather than two products.
A STEM endorsement student choosing the computer science route through Languages Other Than English is stacking the deck sensibly: the same courses serve the endorsement, the language requirement and a portfolio. That only works if the courses are actually learned rather than survived, which is the part we are for.
Where a Texas student joins
Placement follows demonstrated ability, checked in the free first class rather than assumed from a grade level.
High school
Ages 14 to 18
College and adult
18 to 67
The whole catalogue sits on the course atlas, and how we teach describes the method in detail.
Is Texas getting more tornadoes, or are we just seeing more of them?
The Texas project is about a trend that is not there. It runs on the national tornado record, which Texas dominates, and the mistake inside it survives into published journalism most years.
Texas records more tornadoes than any other state, and the national database goes back to 1950. A student plots tornado counts per year, sees the line climbing, and reaches the obvious conclusion. It is the wrong one, and finding out why is the entire lesson.
The count is not measuring tornadoes. It is measuring tornadoes that somebody noticed and reported. Three things changed over those decades and none of them was the weather. Population spread into places where a tornado would previously have touched down unseen. Doppler radar was deployed nationally through the 1990s. And in 2007 the Fujita scale was replaced by the Enhanced Fujita scale, which produced a large jump in reports of the weakest tornadoes.
The trap, and how the data gives it away
NOAA's own assessment is that removing the weakest category, F and EF0, from the database nearly eliminates the annual frequency trend. The apparent rise is concentrated almost entirely in the tornadoes that are hardest to spot and easiest to miss before radar. Strong tornadoes, the ones nobody in 1955 could have failed to notice, show no comparable climb.
That last sentence is the method, and it generalises far beyond weather. When you suspect a trend is an artefact of how data was collected, look for a subset where the collection method did not change. If the trend disappears in that subset, the trend was about the observer. If it survives, you have something real. A student who internalises this at fourteen is protected against a whole category of adult mistake.
| Step | What the student does | What it teaches |
|---|---|---|
| Plot | Chart all Texas tornado reports by year since 1950 and state the obvious reading | The obvious reading is the one to be suspicious of |
| Split | Separate the weakest category from the rest and plot them apart | An aggregate can hide two different stories |
| Date | Mark the radar rollout and the 2007 scale change on the timeline | Changes in measurement leave fingerprints |
| Control | Argue why strong tornadoes make a fair comparison group | Finding the invariant subset is the real skill |
| Report | Write the conclusion the data supports, including the uncertainty | Saying "we cannot tell from this" is a valid finding |
Older students go further into why this makes long-term tornado climatology genuinely hard, and why serious researchers say so openly rather than pretending otherwise. Students pull the current records themselves; nothing is reproduced here that would be stale in a season.
The same discipline runs through our statistics and probability course, and for students who want to build models rather than audit them, AI and machine learning in the USA. Completed student work is in the student labs.
What a Texas family is actually buying
A teacher, present
Live video for the whole hour. Your child writes code while somebody watches, so a misunderstanding is caught in the minute it appears rather than the term it compounds.
Five to eight, and the same face
Group classes stay small and keep one teacher. A teacher who remembers last week's sticking point is worth more than any platform feature.
Eight classes a month
Two a week. Enough contact for a skill to survive between sessions without becoming a second homework load on a Texas school week.
Coding and maths together
One track, one provider. Most competitors sell one or the other, which is why a strong coder with weak algebra so often stalls at exactly the wrong moment.
Placement before payment
The free first class is a real class and an honest assessment. If a level is wrong we say so, including when the answer is to wait a year.
Nothing to install
Everything runs in the browser. A laptop or desktop, a microphone and a decent connection is the whole equipment list.
What it costs
Monthly, in US dollars, with no enrolment fee and no annual contract.
Five to eight students, one consistent teacher. The default, and where most Texas families stay.
Chosen most often for AP preparation and for students who need either markedly more speed or markedly more patience than a group can give.
Pauses, plan switches and missed classes are covered on the pricing page.
What families say
Rated 4.9 across 547 Google reviews. These are real reviews, reproduced as written.
★★★★★
"The one step solution for my son. Modern Age Coders make learning coding so simple that kids love it. The teachers explain complex concepts clearly with practical exercises and interactive content."
Ria Mukherjee
Parent
★★★★★
"Modern Age Coders has been a game-changer for me. I struggled to grasp IT concepts and coding before joining, but their classes transformed everything. I can now confidently write complex programs with ease."
Samriddha Mondal
Student
★★★★★
"One of the most wonderful education centres out there. Education is not limited to school syllabus but focuses on skill development."
Vansh Agarwal
Student
★★★★★
"My child Dhairya is really enjoying the Modern Age Coders classes. This is his first online class and he eagerly looks forward to it. I can already see his improvement, and the teachers are very cooperative."
Sonam Oswal
Parent of Dhairya
★★★★★
"Modern Age Coders have wonderful teachers who teach in a clear, easy and practical way. The teacher boosts students' confidence and inspires them to learn without hesitation."
Sonu Goyal
Parent
★★★★★
"I highly recommend this computer coding class! The teachers are incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about coding."
Ritu Kedia
Parent
More, with photographs and student work, on the wall of love.
Texas questions, answered plainly
Can computer science really replace foreign language in Texas?
Under 19 TAC 74.12, the two Languages Other Than English credits may be selected from either two levels in the same language, or two credits in computer programming languages including computer coding, taken from Computer Science I, II and III, AP Computer Science Principles, AP Computer Science A, IB Computer Science Standard Level and IB Computer Science Higher Level. It is a listed alternative, not a special exemption. Confirm the current text with your counsellor, because the rule was updated in 2025.
What are the Technology Applications TEKS and when did they change?
They are the Texas standards for technology and computing, revised by the State Board of Education in 2022 and implemented from the 2024 to 2025 school year. They run on five strands: computational thinking, creativity and innovation, data literacy management and representation, digital citizenship, and practical technology concepts. The 2022 revision also gave every grade from Kindergarten through Grade 5 its own standards instead of grade bands.
How many credits does a Texas student need to graduate?
The Foundation High School Program requires at least 22 credits. Adding an endorsement takes it to 26. Every incoming freshman chooses an endorsement, and the five options are STEM, business and industry, public services, arts and humanities, and multidisciplinary studies. The Distinguished Level of Achievement needs 26 credits including Algebra II, and it is the route that keeps automatic top ten percent admission in play.
Do you teach students anywhere in Texas?
Yes. Classes are live over video, so Houston, Dallas, Frisco, Plano, Austin, San Antonio, Katy and El Paso are all the same to us. A student needs a laptop or desktop, a microphone and a connection that carries video. Nothing is installed, nothing is posted to you, and nothing needs a licence.
What time do classes run on Central Time?
We build the timetable around your family rather than asking you to fit ours. Weekend slots are the simplest to arrange for Central Time, and weekday slots are handled case by case. Exact times are agreed on the demo call before any payment, so nobody commits to a slot that does not survive contact with a school week.
What does it cost for a Texas family?
Small group classes are USD 100 a month. One to one is USD 150 a month. Both run two classes a week, which is eight a month. No enrolment fee, no textbooks to buy, no annual contract, and you can stop at the end of any month. The first class is free and doubles as a placement check.
What ages do you teach?
Ages 6 to 67. Elementary students start in blocks, middle school moves to Python, high school works toward AP Computer Science A or Computer Science I to III, and college students and working adults are taught as adults. Placement follows demonstrated ability, not the grade printed on a report card.
How many students share a class?
Five to eight in a small group, with the same teacher every week, or one student and one teacher if the pace needs to belong to one person. Teachers do not rotate between weeks. Continuity is most of what keeps a hesitant learner turning up, and it is the first thing large providers give away.
Is the class live or a recording?
Live, every time. A teacher watches the student write code and corrects a wrong turn while it is still one line rather than one project. We keep recorded material you can look through before you book so the teaching style is not a surprise, but a class is never a video played at a child.
How do we begin?
Book the free first class. A teacher runs a real lesson, sets problems to find the actual starting point, and recommends a level. If the honest answer is that a student should wait, or that we are not the right fit, that is what you will be told on the call.
A real class, not a sales call
Tell us the student's grade and what they have tried. A teacher runs a genuine first lesson, works out where they actually are, and recommends a level. If we are not right for your child, that is what you will hear on the call.
You can also use the contact page, or read about us first.