Coding is the most effective/engaging way to teach problem solving (better than math), since it tracks more directly with how we actually think (stops & starts, iteration, muddling with unknowns). In other words, teaching coding = teaching thinking. Naysayers are just plain wrong.

Coding absolutely teaches skills kids need to stay competitive in the marketplace of tomorrow, for the jobs that don't exist yet. Nearly all creative disciplines (that make real money) involve some form of coding. Better careers can be had by artists and writers and film-makers and musicians and managers than their non-coding counterparts.