Personally, my barrier to entry was not time, but access to books, someone knowledgeable, software and hardware. Once I gained those, I made the time. You make those available and kids will make the time, I think.

I agree that access is also a barrier, and I think the proposal I made kills both birds with one stone. I also think that in 2013 the access to materials is increasing, almost everyone has some device that can get on Google/Wikipedia and in many cases that's all you need. However most people don't sit down and take time to learn for the sake of learning because it makes more sense to apply themselves to graded homework, which is said to pay off down the road, or get a job that pays in the short term but teaches almost nothing. If learning WAS the short term job, many more people might have the chance to discover their passions.

This is something I have been thinking about for a while, and I really want to know what people on HN think. If you agree with me, or if you disagree, please leave a comment as I'd love to discuss.