Tech businesses are being encouraged to bring their industry to life for young people through an innovative series of live lessons being delivered in Scotland’s schools.
Tech Industry in the Classroom sees employers from across the digital sector using their industry experience to offer pupils an insight into their day-to-day work.
With Scottish Careers Week taking place from 15-19 November, energy firm SSE is delivering a live lesson with Johnstone High School, Renfrewshire, focusing on data security.
Tech employers are also now being invited to join the first in a series of training sessions explaining the resources available for taking part in live lessons.
These include a best practice guide to virtual engagement, and to make use of a new online toolkit offering further support.
Mark Logan, author of the Scottish Tech Ecoystem Review, is amongst those encouraging employers to take part.
He said: “Partnerships between school and industry are essential if we are going to strengthen the talent pipeline.
“Engaging schools in this way provides young people with a richer idea of what a career in tech could offer them. It brings the curriculum to life and shows the real-world applications of what is taught in the classroom.
“I’d ask tech employers of all types to consider how they could play their part in attracting the next generation of talent.”
Next Tuesday’s lesson involving SSE and Johnstone High School will focus on the role data security plays in tackling climate change, with the lesson aligned to the National Progression Award (NPA) in Cyber Security.
Next Thursday also sees the first of a series of employer training sessions looking at the different resources employers can use to deliver classroom sessions, covering topics such as Ethical Hacking, Digital Forensics, Software development and also looking at our Best Practice Guide for virtual engagement with learners.
Each of the three sessions will be different, covering
Employers can also make use of the Tech Industry in Schools toolkit launched last month which aims to make it as easy possible for the tech industry to sign up to the myriad of education-related programmes available.
Claire Gillespie, Digital Technology Skills Industry Manager at Skills Development Scotland (SDS) added: “The success of our pilot programme of live lessons showed this concept has a great deal to offer. It gives young people a genuine insight into the tech sector and helps employers engage with potential new talent.
“As the adoption of new technologies continues to accelerate, it’s hugely important that tech employers grasp the opportunity to show young people how digital skills can unlock an increasingly vast array of exciting new careers.”
