With the general election looming, at least one consensus appears to be emerging among the two main political parties: something needs to be done about young people's digital skills.
The demand for IT insight is growing across industries and businesses as the digital economy expands into every aspect of life. Yet high school students currently receive about one hour of computer lessons per week and can quit the subject at the age of 14.
A flood of voices is calling for mandatory IT classes. A recent House of Lords committee report recommended major curriculum reform to prepare students for a digital future and the introduction of a basic digital literacy qualification.
The government's response does not go that far, but does recognize the barriers to learning digital skills in the current computing curriculum, including the available teaching time. It appears to be leaning towards a better focus on digital skills in key phase 3, saying it is "working with schools and other experts on this important issue".
Meanwhile, Labor says learning digital skills and navigating online platforms is "out of step with the reality of young people's lives".
It points to "huge gaps" in the technical skills needed in some sectors, such as green technology, life sciences, digital and creative industries, where there are huge numbers of unfilled vacancies. If elected, it promises a "complete, expert-led review of curriculum and assessment" that will seek to implement innovative reforms and "embed digital, oral and life skills" in children's learning.
The signs that criticism of the status quo is starting to sink in will be welcomed by many, not least industry, businesses and public services, who are clamoring for recruits with basic digital skills, but also more advanced specialist IT skills, complex problem solving and communication acumen.
"Children should practice touch typing, in addition to learning the times tables and practicing handwriting"
Becky Patel, Head of Education and Learning, TechSheCan
A shortage of digital skills among a generation of young people described as 'digital natives' seems a strange mismatch. But research shows that their ubiquitous use of iPads and smartphones is essentially passive. For example, a recent survey from the London School of Economics found that only a minority of young people were engaging in creative digital opportunities, such as producing their own content.
In the countless conversations Becky Patel has had with schoolchildren about what they want to do, no one has ever said, "Becky, I want to be a software engineer."
"They don't know that's a thing," says Patel, head of education and learning at TechSheCan, which campaigns to include women and girls equally in creating and developing new technology companies, products and services. "They mention jobs that people wear uniforms for or that their parents do. Young people rarely wonder how digital technology actually works, who created their devices and what the jobs are behind them."
Patel wants computer use to be made compulsory in schools and its status raised to match that of math and writing.
"Children should not only touch type, but also learn the times tables and practice handwriting," she adds.
According to Katherine Bond, head of technology training at PwC, computing taught in schools has not kept pace with advances in the real world.
"It's difficult for the curriculum to keep up with the pace of technological development," she says. "For example, cyber security as a topic was missing, but that is a huge growth area in technology, and we have apprenticeships specifically aimed at that. We know that there would be many more young people who would be interested in it, but who don't have as much understanding of it because they have never been exposed to it at school before."
Such are the shortcomings of computer science at GCSE; St Paul's Girls School in West London does not offer this. Instead, the school has designed its own qualification in computer science and the creative technologies that encourages and motivates students and is externally moderated.
Sarah Fletcher, high mistress of St Paul's Girls, wants to see a major rethink of the whole assessment regime for secondary schools, saying: "We have a fundamental duty to look at what is happening in the digital world. If you look across the country at key stage 3 information technology (IT) and computing and key stage 4 computing, there are so few children doing this. In our system, students can stop doing anything related to technology at the age of 14. How is that possible?"
Beyond the school curriculum, further education and specialist colleges in London are working hard to tackle the tech skills gap and help teenagers understand the variety of opportunities open to them.
For example, a new technical college in Lambeth, part of South Bank Colleges, is inspiring young people with a vocational and technical curriculum in a state-of-the-art working environment.
Ada National College for Digital Skills (named after Ada Lovelace, the 19th century mathematician considered the first computer programmer) was founded in 2016 with the aim of bridging the digital skills gap and training the next generation of diverse digital talent .
Teenagers study computing alongside A-levels, with input from industry partners including Deloitte, Bank of America, King and Salesforce.
The new campus in Victoria will accommodate approximately 300 sixth form students and students enrolled in digital internship programs.
"Tech is everywhere: healthcare, banking, green energy, education. With AI technology it really touches all areas," says Tina Götschi, director of the sixth form at Ada. "We want to change the narrative around digital skills education; it's a great field to get into and you don't have to have a computing background to study or intern in a digital field."
One of the myths around technology that Götschi is keen to debunk is that it's all about coding. "Not everyone is coding all the time," she says. "It's clear that all our students learn to code, but that doesn't mean they become software developers. Some will provide technical advice or deal with cyber or creative areas such as games. There are so many opportunities for a great career."
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