Government urged to invest in computing education

A new report by The Royal Society finds that over half of English schools do not offer GCSE computer science, leaving young people without the opportunity to learn programming and algorithm skills.

It found that 54 per cent of English schools do not offer computer science GCSE and that England meets 68 per cent of its recruitment target for entries into computing teacher training courses. This is lower than physics.

Only one in five computer science GCSE pupils were female.

Following the report, the government has been urged to invest £60 million into computing education over the next years.

The society states that without additional investment “an entire generation may never unlock the full potential of new technologies such as robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning”.

Professor Steve Furber FRS, who led the research, said: “The rate at which technology is transforming the workplace means that we live in a world where many primary schoolchildren will work in technology-based roles that do not yet exist, so it is essential that future generations can apply digital skills with confidence.”