Will the Cabinet Secretary provide an update on progress by STEM Learning in delivering teacher training commitments under the Curriculum for Wales grant, including a) the number of teachers trained to date, b) the form in which this training has been delivered and c) the total number of training hours provided so far?
We are investing £1.4 million over three years in national professional learning to support practitioners to develop effective approaches to teaching digital and computing skills, covering areas such as artificial intelligence, cyber security, coding and computational thinking.
STEM Learning received the grant award in late October. By the end of the financial year, they will have delivered three face to face sessions and around twenty live online professional learning sessions. We are awaiting information from the provider on total numbers of those participating as this financial year’s sessions end.
Delivery of this programme will continue to be reviewed as part of grant management arrangements, and we will be monitoring attendance and levels of engagement. The Curriculum for Wales grant support programme will also have a Welsh Government contractor undertaking the independent, systematic and longitudinal impact evaluation of all grants awarded through the programme. This will ensure that the grant programme makes a positive impact for practitioners in Wales.