VIEWS & OPINION
Young people will need better digital skills by 2030 Comment by journalist and editor SAL McKEOWN
Judd School in Tonbridge entered the Apps for Good 2024 contest and won the People’s Choice award with an app called Out of the Blue. The team wanted to address the stigma of depression and suicide in teenage boys and young men. They created an app where users could find information about local therapy centres. They also offered support and guidance via a text or call, plus music to calm nerves and a game to distract from anxieties.
Projects such as this build the skills that
employers want. Companies are looking for skills such as teamwork, oracy, problem-solving, creativity and leadership. They also want young people who are confident using technology. This combination is in short supply right now, as a report entitled ‘Decoding the Digital Skills Gap’ shows.
Issued In August by the Princes Trust, their findings showed that:
· Over a third (37 per cent) of young people in the UK report they are not studying a ‘digital or tech subject’ beyond Key Stage 3
· 42% do not think digital skills will be essential to their career · Research warns of ‘digital skills crisis’ as estimates suggest that a digital skills gap’ already costs UK economy up to £63 billion a year
· Young people who already face disadvantage, such as being NEET, show lowest confidence and engagement with pursuing digital skills and jobs
The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2030, 77% of jobs will require digital skills. Secondary schools are between a rock and a hard place. Often, they do not have specialist computer teachers and are stuck with a curriculum that focuses on computer science, teaching children how to code, and how to create their own software.” However, Dr Peter Kemp, author of The Subject Choice Attainment and Representation in Computing project (SCARI) report, said: “This seems to deter some young people, in particular girls, from taking up the subject. We need to ensure computing is a subject that is appealing to all pupils and meets the needs of young people and society.” One increasingly popular solution is to introduce Apps for Good in Year 9. All the course materials are provided and schools can choose from areas including Machine Learning, App in a Day. App for Social Action. Innovate for Climate Change and AI for Good. The content is mapped to the KS3 curriculum in all four nations and is supported by industry volunteers. It can be delivered by computer specialist teachers but in some schools it is linked to citizenship and social action. Kamona Karim, Computing and IT teacher at Putteridge High School in Luton, credits Apps for Good with persuading a more diverse group of students to study computing at KS4: “By showcasing real-world applications of technology, such as app development, digital marketing, and data management, the course has opened doors for students with varied interests, helping them realise that computing can align with their unique passions and career aspirations.”
For more information visit
https://www.appsforgood.org/
Five steps to creating an inclusive and accessible library environment Comment by HEATHER GRAINGER, Librarian at Weatherhead High School in Wallasey
School libraries can be key to improving literacy, encouraging reading for pleasure, and allowing ‘stretch and challenge’ opportunities for all students. However, before it is possible to target these areas, it is vital that students feel welcome and included in the library space.
At Weatherhead High School we have tried to achieve this in a variety of ways:
• Ensuring all new students know where the library is and how to use it - All Year 7 classes have weekly lessons in the library, and at the
start of the school year, these times are used to provide a full induction, so that students know how to use the space and the resources, and can ask questions and explore. New students are also offered opportunities to visit the library, and older students often have start-of-year refresher sessions to remind them of what is on offer.
• Stock selection - It is essential that school libraries stock a wide range of books in order to appeal to the entire student body - non-fiction homework books, reading for pleasure options, books which cater for different students’ needs and books that tie in with interests and hobbies. A key theme in our library is that all students should have ‘windows and mirrors’ - books that allow them to see different lives/cultures and empathise with others, but also books that allow them to see people like themselves, represented on the page.
• Access outside of lesson times - Students need to be able to access the library at times that suit them, in order to feel it fully belongs to them. Opening at break and lunchtimes for quiet reading, homework, or simply to choose books, allows all students opportunities to visit the library and see what’s on offer. After-school provision allows even more
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access, as well as chances to engage with students in different ways such as ‘Dungeons & Dragons’, attracting students who otherwise might not think to visit.
• Reasons to engage/visit beyond just books - Our library regularly organises additional activities, events and competitions. There are frequently themed lunchtime activities/crafts provided to tie in with celebration days, film/book releases, and focus weeks/months that can work around the students’ lunch needs, and can be undertaken independently as and when students arrive. We’ve organised parties like our ‘Mad Hatter’s Tea Party’ which included crafts, games, a hands-on animal experience and food.
Our recent World Book Day ‘Murder in the Library’ challenge was also a huge success, involving teaching, non-teaching and SLT staff in a series of videos and clues. Our ‘LitFest’ event included author talks and workshops, a primary school visit, and trips to a bookshop and local library and was so successful we are running this again.
• Creating a safe space - Perhaps most important of all, it is imperative to make the library a safe space for any students who might need it. This means getting to know students and their needs as soon as possible. Having weekly Year 7 lessons certainly helps with this, but taking time to chat with students informally at break, lunchtimes and after school is equally valuable. It is essential that library staff are friendly and non- judgemental, willing to talk with students about their interests and worries, and able to devote time to this.
All of these ideas can be tailored to fit your school community. With the dedication of a librarian and/or school staff who has the knowledge and budget to implement a range of ideas, every student will benefit. The library space is always a work-in-progress, evolving to meet the needs of students as the world around them changes.
December 2024
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