Queensland students are being primed for the jobs of the future with the release of Advancing education: An action plan for education in Queensland today.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Education Minister Kate Jones joined Member for Bulimba Di Farmer at a Bulimba Primary School year-one coding class today.
Ms Palaszczuk said Queensland students were learning digital technology skills from a young age to prepare them for the jobs of the future.
Ms Palaszczuk said key priorities included:
Every state school offering the Digital Technologies curriculum, including coding and robotics, from Prep to Year 10 from 2016 Ensuring every state school has access to specialist science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers Ensuring all state schools offer languages other than English from Prep with a focus on Asian languages Ensuring improved learning outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait islanders students Supporting teachers through targeted professional development and practical teaching resources.
Today we are also launching #codingcounts: A discussion paper on coding and robotics in Queensland schools which proposes that state schools co-design technology based learning with students and develop real-world partnerships with industries or universities, Ms Palaszczuk said.
This is all about preparing students for the jobs of the future under the Advance Queensland banner through embracing new technologies, Ms Palaszczuk said.
Our plan is for all students to be global citizens who are skilled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, with expertise in Asian languages and intercultural understanding, literacy and numeracy.
We must ensure students are the digital creators and innovators of Queenslands future.
Learning coding and applying these skills to real world problems will help students to be critical thinkers, innovators and problem solvers.
Ms Jones said #codingcounts: A discussion paper on coding and robotics in Queensland schools outlined the next wave of digital reform for schools.
It will provide opportunities for every student to learn the new digital literacy of coding and have the opportunity to apply these skills through robotics, she said.
Ms Jones said our education system must adapt to remain internationally competitive.
Around 75 per cent of the fastest growing occupations require STEM-related skills and knowledge including coding and robotics, she said.
We want to hear the views of our schools, community and industry on how every student could be ready for jobs of the future and how schools innovate and engage in coding and robotics.
Widespread consultation will include 17 stakeholder forums across Queensland in Brisbane North, Brisbane South, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Logan, Rockhampton, Townsville, Cairns, Toowoomba, Mackay, Ipswich, Maryborough, Bundaberg, Charleville, Longreach, Roma and Mount Isa.
For more information about the forums and to provide feedback on the Action Plan visit The Advancing Education Site
