Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga said on Tuesday night that select schools would be piloting subjects such as robotics this year and if successful, the subjects could be rolled-out to public schools as early as 2021.
The minister made the announcement at the Vodacom Dome in Midrand, Johannesburg after she had announced that the country's national pass rate for 2019 was 81.3%, an increase from the 78.2% achieved in 2018.
Motshekga said the department was embarking on a process of measuring skills and competencies needed for the changing world and how this would affect curriculums in public schools.
Present on stage alongside the country's top achievers was a robot called "Pepper", a semi-humanoid machine manufactured by SoftBank Robotics.
Pepper, who was given an opportunity to speak, told the audience that the department would soon be unveiling its own artificial intelligence (AI) virtual assistant.
And the #4IR is in full swing as Pepper introduces @DBE_SA Minister Angie Motshekga onto stage. Pepper’s incorporation is in line with the department’s coding and robotics curriculum being piloted this year. #MatricResults2019 #MatricResults #MatricResults19 pic.twitter.com/rzeJR0GF4y
— SA Gov News (@SAgovnews) January 7, 2020
