WSU FACULTY OF EDUCATION GEARS TO INFUSE CODING & ROBOTICS IN ITS CURRICULUM

In response to the National Department of Basic Education’s directive to incorporate coding and robotics into the schooling system, WSU’s Faculty of Education has undertaken an initiative to equip its cohort of new teachers with the skills required to teach the subjects.

In the year, 2022, Department of Basic Education Minister Angie Motshega announced that the department had finalised curriculum changes to introduce robotics and coding in public schools from Grades R to 9.

Through a joint project with the University of Johannesburg (UJ), WSU has started training faculty staff to teach the subject to their students who are pursuing teaching degrees.

“It was imperative for us in the Faculty of Education to be on board as far as that subject is concerned because we are preparing teachers for the schooling system. It was imperative for us to be competent, and to be trained in coding and robotics so we had to benchmark with other Universities. We identified the University of Johannesburg as one that has successfully implemented the teaching and learning of these subjects,” said Acting Dean of the Butterworth Faculty of Education, Nondwe Mtshatsha.

Secondary to training its staff, the faculty will also embark on an intensive drive to develop a fully-fledged curriculum which will encompass coding and robotics to ensure that WSU teaching graduates are well versed in the teaching of the subjects.

Mtshatsha added that the university’s currently accredited teaching programmes were going to be reviewed to ensure that they receive updated accreditation which will include coding and robotics. 

“We believe that we do have the opportunity to review our programmes so that we involve coding and robotics, there are no two-ways about it.  The faculty has to infuse these subjects in its curriculum if we want to be relevant, and to produce the kind of teachers that are needed by the schooling system currently,” said Mtshatsha.

By Yanga Ziwele