Study expected to work with up to 2,000 primary school students
Life
Dr Sally McHugh of University of Galway’s School of Education with teacher Helen Ryan and Trinity Primary School pupils Atec Wojjtaszek and Izabely Rodrigues Pereira
A new initiative aimed at equipping children with coding and AI skills has been launched at Trinity Primary School in Tuam, Co. Galway.
The pilot initiative seeks to prepare students, in DEIS schools particularly, to engage with and shape an increasingly computing and AI-powered world, while addressing a significant gap in Ireland’s computing education system.
Led by the School of Education at University of Galway and supported by Google.org, the study will engage 80 schools and up to 2,000 primary pupils over the next two years.
Prof Cornelia Connolly of the School of Education at University of Galway said: “To grow our digital economy, Ireland needs an advanced workforce ready to take advantage of the opportunities digital transformation brings. Supporting our teachers and embedding these competencies within formal education is the way to do that. Current and future generations need to be able to navigate misinformation and other AI related challenges, and they also need to be able to take the opportunities which will be provided to those who can become skilful developers and operators of AI. This pilot is part of a nationwide computing education project with Trinity College Dublin and University of Limerick.”
This pilot project will initially focus on DEIS and rural schools in the West of Ireland, with plans to expand nationwide.
TechCentral Reporters