IT teaching is about to be overhauled, but will it attract more children, both girls and boys, to a career in coding?
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Changes in the curriculum mean computer coding will soon become part of primary education Photograph: Peter Cade/Getty Images
Next September, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) will be replaced by a flexible curriculum in computing, designed with the help of universities and industry. But will teachers – particularly those working in primary schools – have the necessary skills and expertise to deliver the new subject? What role should industry play in the implementation of the new curriculum? And how can we ensure young people have the right skills for the jobs of the future?
These were some of the questions raised at a recent debate hosted by the Guardian, in association with Microsoft, ahead of the introduction of the new computing curriculum in schools.
In the opening part of the discussion, participants were asked to explain why having computing on the curriculum is important. "The old ICT curriculum was about digital use," said Ian Livingstone, cofounder of Games Workshop. "In terms of the games industry, it's like someone being able to play the video game Angry Birds, but having no idea how to make Angry Birds. So the old ICT [curriculum] was, effectively, teaching kids how to read, but not how to write."
Paul Curzon – professor of computer science at the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science at Queen Mary, University of London – agreed, adding: "It's like a toddler being able to jump and land. He can do it without knowing any physics. But actually understanding why when you jump, you land – that's learning the physics. And computing is the equivalent."
Hugh Milward, director of corporate affairs at Microsoft, added: "We want to make sure that we've got the workforce of the future for ourselves, but, most importantly, the skills needed in every part of society. Whether that's in retail, banking or engineering, it's going to require a level of computational thinking in the future that is way beyond what we currently have. And if we are going to succeed as a business in the future, we are going to need to make sure we are part of the solution to that."
There was agreement around the table that understanding how computers work – and not just how to use them – is crucial, and not just for young people who might go into jobs in computing or technology in the future.
"There is a bigger question here about what it is we are asking our schools to do.Is it just to pass exams, is it so kids understand how to learn or is it actually so kids are ready for the world of work … ? I think it's probably all of the above," said Rob Wall, head of education and employment policy at the Confederation of British Industry.
Better learners
Dr Andy Sievewright, headteacher at Acton high school, added that although they are under pressure to get exam results, ultimately, most school leaders want their pupils to become better learners. "We are really pushing the idea that our students, if they take on computing and they do it well, will be better learners. They will be more resilient, they will develop their computational thinking and deconstruction and reconstruction skills, which will help them in lots of different subject areas."
But participants expressed concerns about whether teachers feel ready to deliver the new curriculum next September. Alan Mycroft, professor of computing at the Computer Laboratory, Cambridge University and cofounder and trustee of the Raspberry Pi Foundation (a charity which promotes the study of computer science in schools), said he felt the language of the new draft computing curriculum for key stage 1, which includes phrases like "understand what algorithms are, how they are implemented as programs on digital devices" and "use logical reasoning to predict the behaviour of simple programs" could be intimidating for primary school teachers.
Other participants pointed out that some secondary ICT teachers – many of whom do not have a background in computing – are also nervous about the changes. But there is great enthusiasm about the new curriculum as well, said Roger Davies, director of ICT at the Queen Elizabeth school in Cumbria. "I think a lot of IT teachers felt rather trapped [by the ICT curriculum], teaching fairly shallow skills. They were a bit like a hamster on a wheel ... teaching very few skills that were transferable."
There was agreement around the table that the biggest challenge for most schools over the next six months will be ensuring teachers – who already have heavy workloads – have adequate time for training. Eddie Copeland, head of digital government at the thinktank Policy Exchange, pointed out that teachers will also need time to embed new knowledge and skills. "It's the equivalent of a modern foreign languages teacher trying to teach French from a phrasebook; eventually they will get really good and develop fluency, but we have got to accept that it's great to be ambitious, even if it takes time to bed in."
But Chi Onwurah, MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central and Labour shadow minister for the Cabinet Office (previously shadow for Business, Innovation and Skills) disagreed, saying that this could lead to "bad teaching" and could turn pupils off the subject – particularly girls, who are already underrepresented in computer science both in higher education and in employment.
Participants also held contrasting views on the role industry should play in delivering training to teachers, with some pointing out that excellent practitioners don't always make the best teachers.
But Wendy Devolder, CEO and founder of Skills Matter (a network of software professionals that share good practice, with the aim of writing better software) disagreed, saying that the idea of computer programmers and engineers not having communication skills was a stereotype: "Every day we have 50-500 people in our building, learning and sharing skills and teaching each other, so it's a very creative, intelligent and inclusive community. Yes, there will be some introverts, but I don't think there are more introverts in the computing industry than there are in any other."
A number of participants suggested that coteaching – teachers working with an industry expert alongside them – would be an excellent way to give teachers on-the-job training. This approach, which allows "teachers to stop being a broadcaster and start being a facilitator", is a far more effective way to encourage young people to develop curiosity for computing, said Alasdair Blackwell, cofounder and director at Decoded, a company that teaches how to code.
Others suggested alternative ways industry could support education, such as supplying equipment or creating teaching resources. Microsoft, for example, is currently creating teaching resources for computing that can be used in schools.
And while the introduction of computing into the school curriculum is long overdue, care does need to be taken to ensure young people do not start seeing computing solely as a school subject, it was said. Several participants spoke about how – driven by curiosity – they had taught themselves how to code, at home, learning from their mistakes along the way.
"We shouldn't forget that young people do spend 80% of their time outside school, and I think we have so much to learn about how they learn outside the classroom, particularly from games," said Annika Small, CEO of the Nominet Trust, which invests in technology ventures.
Broadband
But not all young people get the opportunity to develop their computing skills outside the classroom. Onwurah pointed out that 30% of homes still don't have broadband and spoke of an industry dominated by a "narrow, very male elite".
There was disagreement among participants about whether enough is being done to recruit women into computer science. "I'm not sure how helpful it is to berate the gaming industry for not doing enough to attract girls," said Livingstone. "We would love to have more programmers who are girls because 40% of our market, perhaps more, are female users … but we can only hire who we can hire."
Onwurah argued that this wasn't good enough, saying that companies needed to make more effort to engage with young women and encourage them to consider careers in the industry. "To attract women, you have to speak to women. So it's not good enough to say you will be gender neutral and just hire who comes out there; you have to go out and help create that supply."
Julian Davis, engineering director at game developers Lionhead Studios, pointed out that recruitment efforts need to go beyond the big companies like Google and Microsoft. "If you take Guildford, for example, there are probably 20 or 30, five-to-10 man operations. So I think if we're going to talk about inspiring people to consider careers in programming – both boys and girls – we have to include these smaller companies as well."
But there was agreement around the table that there is work to be done to challenge stereotypes around careers in computing.
Livingstone drew comparisons with engineering, which has managed to change its image, he argued."Engineering has always had this sort of bad, unsexy image, but we're at a point now where we can make it very attractive. With people like will.i.am promoting these skills in a very 'sexy' way, geek is chic! So the next kids don't want to be Wayne Rooney or Jordan – they want to make an app and be very successful."
"I think we are trying to shift the perceptions of our nation from thinking of computer science as a narrow, male subject for 'techie people' into a foundational subject that every child might study," said Simon Peyton-Jones, chair of Computing at School and principal researcher at Microsoft Research. "That's a big hearts and minds job, and we need help from everybody around the table to help us convey that."
At the table
Sue Littlemore (Chair) Education journalist
Hugh Milward Director of corporate affairs, Microsoft
Alasdair Blackwell Cofounder and director, Decoded
John Wastnage Head of employment and skills, British Chamber of Commerce
Prof Alan Mycroft Professor at Cambridge University; cofounder of Raspberry Pi Foundation
Eddie Copeland Head of digital government, Policy Exchange
Rob Wall Head of education and employment policy, Confederation of British Industry
Chi Onwurah MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central, shadow minister for the Cabinet Office, Labour
Paul Curzon Professor of computer science, School of Electronic Engineering, Queen Mary, University of London
Simon Peyton-Jones Chair, Computing at School; principal researcher, Microsoft Research
Dr Andy Sievewright Headteacher, Acton high school
Roger Davies Director of ICT, Queen Elizabeth school, Cumbria
Annika Small Chief executive officer, Nominet Trust
Bill Mitchell Director, BCS Academy of Computing
Julian Davis Engineering director, Lionhead Studios
Wendy Devolder CEO and founder, Skills Matter
Ian Livingstone Cofounder, Games Workshop
Credits
Roundtable report commissioned and controlled by the Guardian.Discussion hosted to a brief agreed with Microsoft as part of Microsoft's Global YouthSpark programme. Funded by Microsoft. Contact Steve Rackham on 020 3353 2700 (steve.rackham@theguardian.com). For information on roundtables visit: theguardian.com/sponsored-content