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AI as new school subject from 2023

02 Nov 2022

  • Primary teachers to be trained from December for English medium 
BY Buddhika Samaraweera The Ministry of Education has planned to teach artificial intelligence (AI) as a subject for students studying in Grade 10 from the coming year onwards, under the programme of transforming the education system into one suitable for the modern era. Speaking at an event yesterday (1), Minister of Education and Attorney Dr. Susil Premajayantha said that it has been planned to teach AI to students in Grade 10 from 2023 onwards. Emphasising that there is a need to make a transformation in the education sector, he said that all teachers should be provided with proper training pertaining to technology in order to make that transformation a success. Speaking further, he said that at present, the country is facing a challenge to protect the youth, including children in urban and semi-urban areas, from various undesirable social activities. In order to overcome that challenge, he said that a programme has been launched to eliminate the propagation of various practices and customs that should not be in schools. He said that a special workshop has been commenced with the participation of teachers from 144 schools in the Colombo District, and added that the support of training counselors in Divisional Secretariats will also be sought for the programme in the future. Dr. Premajayantha also stated that primary teachers will be trained from next month onwards so that students in Grades One and Two will be taught English.  “We will be commencing the new term from mid March. By then, all primary teachers will be trained to teach students’ English. If we are to move ahead with technology, we need a universal language such as English.” On an earlier occasion, Dr. Premajayantha stated that students who show slowness in the face of new educational challenges should be directed towards vocational training education after Grade Nine, and that primary, secondary, and higher education sectors should be innovated through educational reforms such as teaching AI. He further said at that time that subjects such as nanotechnology, biotechnology, and AI should be included in the university courses, and that the knowledge base of local students should be made equal to that of students carrying out higher education at universities in developed countries.


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