New South Wales high school students are learning from a computer science curriculum that was published before the foundation of Facebook.
Key points:
- It is estimated that 60,000 IT workers will be needed annually over the next five years to meet demand
- Educators and industry leaders say more resources, including funding, need to be spent on IT studies
- On July 27, some 250 schools will participate in The Day of AI program
The NSW Information Technology and Software Curriculum 7-10 was introduced in 2003.
It is the fastest growing educational field in the country, with data suggesting that to meet demand, Australia needs an additional 60,000 workers a year over the next five years, a massive increase from the 7,000 students who graduated with a degree. IT in 2019..
Although the state government has ordered a revision of the curriculum for all subjects, industry leaders say that without a rapid and significant investment in education around digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, Australia you will have problems.
“If we don’t invest right now and very well, we run the risk of falling behind here in Australia,” said Kylie Walker, director general of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering.
“We know there are nations around the world that are injecting a lot of resources to support the digital workforce of the future. [and] we have to be part of that in order to take advantage of these opportunities. “
Ms Walker says without proper investment in digital literacy, Australia runs the risk of falling behind. (ABC News: Harriet Tatham)
One school working to address the old curriculum is Plumpton High School in the western suburbs of Sydney, where technology is integrated into different thematic areas.
Students studying Italian learn to code robots to speak the language as well.
This month the school hosted a program designed in the United States to teach students the basics of artificial intelligence, as well as the social and ethical implications of technology.
They have been taught to recognize digitally altered videos called deepfakes, which have previously been used to alter events, such as making politicians look drunk.
“I think it will get to the point where people … don’t know what’s real, what’s false,” 8th grader Ewen Neoh said after training.
Student Ewen Neoh, on the left, says it’s getting harder and harder to say what’s real. (ABC News: Harriet Tatham)
Fellow student Anna Cemone Nashid said, “In the end, I think everything will end up supporting and fostering artificial intelligence.”
Some 250 schools are enrolled in the national program The Day of AI, scheduled for July 27.
While Plumpton High School is in the lead, computer science teacher Sudhir Jaswal said the state curriculum desperately needed an update.
“Technology after two years is getting old,” he said.
“It is in progress, but it is [been] in process for the last four years “.
Students are learning about digitally altered videos called deepfakes. (ABC News: Harriet Tatham)
In May 2018, the government announced a comprehensive revision of the school curriculum from kindergarten through year 12.
According to the schedule, K to 10 curricula will be delivered in 2024 and courses 11 to 12 in 2025.
NSW Education Standards Authority Executive Director Paul Martin said the 2003 IT curriculum incorporated aspects of artificial intelligence, but agreed that a greater approach was needed.
“The changes that have taken place over the last two decades mean that our curricula need to be able to respond appropriately,” he said.
“There’s contemporary content in these old shows, but it’s not enough in the foreground, it’s not prominent enough, [and] that is why the government has asked us to change them, to make sure they are current ”.
Educators and industry experts are united to call for more changes to the curriculum. (ABC News)
Posted 6 hours 6 hours ago From June 25, 2022 at 9:54 PM, updated 4 hours ago From June 25, 2022 at 11:28 PM