![Rupert Ward]()
Dr Rupert Ward, a Higher Education Academy National Teaching Fellow, is responsible for the teaching and learning strategy within the School of Computing and Engineering. Here he comments on the recent efforts by the Government, professional bodies and industry to encourage children to engage with computing in a fun and social way.
Make it fun and sociable!
Recently there has been significant efforts made by Government, professional bodies and industry to increase the level of computing skills within the education system. Voluntary initiatives such as Code Club and CoderDojo are encouraging children to engage with computing in a fun and social way from a young age and, combined with revisions to the secondary school curriculum and the Computing in Schools initiative, they are set to significantly influence both the aspirations and career choices of the next generation.
The iDEA scheme
Beyond sixteen there are further initiatives looking to inspire digital entrepreneurship using these skills such as the iDEA scheme, where again industry is working closely with education to develop the potential of students, and of course there are apprenticeships and student placement/internship opportunities, which are becoming ever more popular.
A note of caution
Within this context, greater involvement of the tech industry within education, both in resource development and teaching is, in principle, to be applauded. A note of caution though should accompany this generally positive development. The history of technology use in education is littered with examples of technology being introduced without careful consideration of the educational ramifications of their introduction and primary education, like all sectors of education, consists of practitioners with a depth and breadth of expertise in delivering education. Teachers should therefore be actively involved with any new initiative, rather than the recipients of it, in order that the results and benefits are maximised.
Another common mistake, indeed one that is rarely addressed in the introduction of new education initiatives, is the careful consideration of cohort progression and long term sustainable educational structures. Too often something is introduced in isolation with little understanding of how this fits with the surrounding education landscape and the pupils’ educational journeys. In terms of this initiative the questions that naturally arise are – what is being done for pupils before they are exposed to the inspiring teaching of Google and O2? How are teachers able to support this? How long and how much is the commitment? And finally assuming this inspires and encourages primary school children, are the supporting structures in secondary education and in the local communities in place such that continuity and continued growth can occur? If not, somewhat depressingly it may all just fade away, or even worse, lead to disillusionment amongst pupils and teachers.
Exciting times!
Given this, it is critically important that Government looks to support joined up and carefully considered initiatives, and to resource them at a level that enables them to succeed. I hope that this initiative fits into this category, and I’m excited by the potential for this initiative to build on the other developments in computing education outlined above. It’s an exciting time to be a pupil, and indeed a teacher!
Read the full story on the BBC News website.
