By Delphine Herbert of RNZ

A digital education professor has called on the Government to be bolder with its plan to bring in artificial intelligence as a subject in schools.

The Government has announced a number of new secondary school subjects for years 11 to 13, which will begin rolling out from 2028.

It included a new year 13 subject on Generative AI, but for later development.

Speaking to media announcing the new secondary school subjects, Education Minister Erica Stanford said there would be a new emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI).

“With the rapid development of AI, students will be able to learn about generative AI. This may include learning about how digital systems work, machine learning, cybersecurity, and digital ethics.

“I’ve asked the Ministry [of Education] to investigate a new specialised Year 13 subject on generative AI for later development.”

Canterbury University associate professor of digital education Kathryn MacCallum said children needed to start learning about AI before Year 13.

“Why does it sit at Year 13 and why aren’t we doing this a lot earlier. It misses the point that a lot of students and even younger are engaging with AI.

“If we’re leaving it to Year 13 to engage with this, how does it set them up to using it appropriately?” she said.

MacCallum said if the Government was going to focus on AI as a Year 13 topic, it was too late.

“Looking at the refresh of the curriculum, we should be actually starting with an explicit engagement of AI from Year 1, and we should be tailing this with digital literacy.

“So AI literacy to some degree sits as a separate subject or a separate focus, but it also needs to dovetail into being good citizens, and being able to be digitally literate, and supporting students to engage in a society that is so much more around digital.

“So I think we also have a responsibility to also be really focused on how do we get all students to be more engaged in the digital side and that’s not just coding, it needs to be about the broader spectrum of digital,” she said.

MacCallum also urged the Government to be broad when it began developing the framework.

“I know that some of the commentary is about generative AI, but if we’re going to do it, we need to be very broad about what we’re trying to engage our students in and understanding that what AI is in its broad nature.

“We should be talking about how it works and not just the technology, so we shouldn’t be just saying, OK, [here is] AI technology, these [are the] tools, and how do we use it in this context.

“We should be explaining to the students and helping them understand where AI sits and equally, where it shouldn’t sit... that’s why we need to start early is because part of the process of navigating the space is knowing when AI should sit in the process, but equally when we shouldn’t be and how it’s manipulating us, but equally how it can be useful in certain spaces.”

MacCallum said she supported the Government’s move to introduce AI into schools and wanted a framework in place as soon as possible.

Other school subjects announced on Thursday include mechanical engineering, building and construction, infrastructure engineering, civics, politics and philosophy, Pacific studies and primary industry.

Stanford said the new subjects reflected the growing importance of science, technology, engineering and maths.

RNZ has approached her office for more comment on MacCallum’s views.

Concern over teacher numbers

Dr Nina Hood is a former secondary school teacher and founder of the Teachers Institute, which gives prospective in-school training but also upskills existing teachers too.

She told First Up she didn’t think there were currently enough specialist teachers to teach new subjects being introduced by the Government.

She said some work would need to be done to build capacity across the teaching force to be able to offer the subjects.

That could involve bringing new people into the profession or partnering with industry.

Devaluation of outdoor education – principal

Mount Aspiring College principal Nicola Jacobson said high school students who were looking to continue on to university were being discouraged to study outdoor education under the new curriculum.

Outdoor education would lose its University Entrance and Academic status – becoming a vocational subject instead.

Jacobson said the move would narrow students’ academic focus and devalue the subjects that no longer counted towards University Entrance.

“What the Government is proposing is very distinct lists between vocational and academic. Students might develop a perception around a pathway – or parents might develop a perception around a pathway – when we need people who are able to do all of those things and feel valued in the skills and knowledge that they have,” Jacobson said.

Jacobson said equally valuing all subjects under NCEA allowed a greater variety of skills and achievement to be reflected within the qualification.