There's a new way to learn IT skills, and the young and the jobless are welcome to sign up. The website borntocode.co.za asks: "Love solving problems?" If you answer "yes", it offers an intriguing proposition: "You might have the potential to become a world-class software engineer."All you have to do is prove that you have an aptitude for solving problems by passing a series of tests - the first of which is on the site. Once you have accomplished that, the door is opened to free tuition on your way to becoming a coding "rock star".Other than passing the aptitude test, there are only two requirements: you must be unemployed and between 17 and 35."Our course is one of the best in the world. You will learn all the skills you need to thrive as an excellent programmer. We teach you the full stack, front-end and back-end," the organisation claims on its website.mini_story_image_vleft1What is this? A fly-by-night business college? An internet scam? It seems too good to be true.The site is the public face of We Think Code, an ambitious initiative to bridge a chasm in South Africa between the growing demand for software coding skills and the absence of proper training in coding.At the initiative's launch on Constitution Hill in Johannesburg, co-founder Arlene Mulder spelt it out: "We are trying to take a completely different approach to education." She wants "to revolutionise education, to democratise education".Behind her, a screen displayed an ambitious message: "Source and develop 100000 coders in Africa."Only 10% of South Africans get to study after high school, she says. We Think Code aims to reach out to young people who do not make it into tertiary institutions but who have the smarts to become coders.Mulder's co-founder, Camille Agon, says there will be no teachers and no classes. Instead, students will learn by completing tasks on their own and discussing problem-solving with their peers.The method has its origins in a French programme called École 42, which has been training coders since 2013. "It's the education model of the future," says Agon.Those attending the launch were in for a surprise. iPads were handed out and attendees were asked to complete the basic aptitude test which is used to select students for coding training.The test involves remembering the sequence in which blocks light up, becoming more and more complicated as the number of blocks and the length of the sequence grow.Agon explains that the target group is young, unemployed South Africans. "We need to work a little harder sourcing that hidden talent."High marks in mathematics - the traditional filter used to select computer science students - is not a requirement.Before she joined We Think Code, Agon worked on a project to distribute iPads to disadvantaged schools. It was an eye-opener. "You would find that the learner with the lowest maths marks was the best problem-solver."The aptitude tests seek to identify those with the resilience to search for solutions to problems.Once empowered with coding skills, employment opportunities would follow. The initiative has the corporate support of FNB, Didata, BBD and Derivco.At the launch, Didata's Derek Wilcox described the South African IT industry as "really two industries". The first resold other people's stuff and the second created new stuff. What was needed was a little ambition when it came to the latter."There are opportunities for us to build an industry here. We just don't have the skills."mini_story_image_vright2What is missing, says Agon, are "coders who can actually code". Typical university computer science degrees had a 20% focus on coding. "It's not good enough. When they're in front of a line of code, they don't have the patience to go through [it]. You've got to learn to think like a coder. You need to learn how to learn."Wilcox referred to the new buzz phrase, "industry 4.0", which originated in a German government project to promote the digitisation of manufacturing. Its ground-breaking paper, "Plattform Industrie 4.0" talks about the "cyber-physical production systems" of the future.The Boston Consulting Group describes it as the successor to the first three waves of industrialisation: 19th-century steam power, 20th-century electrification and the automation of the 1970s. "We are in the midst of a fourth wave of technological advance: the rise of new digital industrial technology," it says.This brings together big data, autonomous robots, high-speed internet connectivity and the cloud - among other things - to usher in a new age of super-efficient, highly adaptable manufacturing. Think 3-D printing.Says Agon: "It's a very exciting time. It's not like factory jobs that are going to die in the next few years."hartleyr@sundaytimes.co.zaWeThinkCode online applications are open on borntocode.co.za..