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Digital Skills Gap Opens Up in English Schools


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Young women studying.

The University of Roehampton's annual computing education report, which looks at how many U.K. students achieved General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and A-level computing qualifications in 2017, found that fewer children in the U.K. are deve

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Fewer children in the U.K. are developing the digital skills that employers and government say are vital, according to the University of Roehampton's annual computing education report, which looks at how many students achieved General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and A-level computing qualifications in 2017.

Although Information and Communication Technology is being phased out of the curriculum and will disappear after this summer as an extra subject, its replacement at GCSE and A-level concentrates on much more challenging computer science lessons. The report notes this subject is proving difficult for students to complete, and for schools to find qualified staff to teach it.

In 2017, slightly more than 50% of schools in the U.K. offered computer science at the GCSE level, and only 12% of students chose to take the subject. In addition, girls make up only 20% of computer science students at the GCSE level.

From BBC News
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