Next week, more than 150 NSW students will be pitted against the nation’s leading thinkers and futurists to design a solution to the question: ‘How might we humanise technology?’
The Game Changer Challenge, a collaboration between the NSW Education Department and Google for Education, will be hosted by Department of Education Secretary Mark Scott at Google’s Australian headquarters on Tuesday August 5.
The flagship event, which coincides with Education Week 2019, involves 18 primary and secondary school teams, including a team from the Children’s Hospital School at Randwick.
The Q&A panel, which includes Google Australia managing director Melanie Silva, professors Toby Walsh and Mary-Anne Williams, ethicist Dr Matt Beard, entrepreneur Jillian Kilby and Microsoft national technology officer Lee Hickin is the catalyst to spark ideas and solutions to the Challenge question.
Scott said the Game Changer Challenge was designed to promote 21st century skills such as communication, collaboration and critical thinking among students and teachers.
He said the collaboration with Google for Education was an exciting opportunity for students to work within an industry setting alongside some of the most creative and disruptive thinkers in the country.
“This opportunity showcases how as a public education system we are ensuring our students can thrive in a rapidly changing world by giving them the knowledge and skills to translate learning from the classroom into a real-life context,” Scott said.
Silva said the theme of the Challenge speaks to Google’s vision of “creating things that help people in their everyday lives”.
“[The Challenge] is also about the role technology and innovation can play in shaping future opportunities for all Australians,” Silva said.