CBSE Schools to Introduce Data Science as a Subject for Students above Class 9 from 2021

CBSE has announced its intent to introduce data science as a subject for school students of classes 9 to 12, and as a skill module of 12 hours for students of class 8 from the academic year 2021-22 onwards. This decision has been taken by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in line with the National Education Policy (NEP 2020). The board says that it is committed towards the development of skills in school students.

“Under NEP2020, we promised to introduce coding and data science in schools. Today, I'm happy to see CBSE fulfilling the promise right in the session of the year 2021 itself. In association with Microsoft, CBSE is empowering India's future generations with new-age skills. Kudos,” said Dr. Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, union minister of education.

All Students Need to Know About CBSE Introducing Data Science as a Subject

CBSE says that the subject is being introduced as there is a surplus of data today, and data science is in demand like never before. “The objective of this curriculum is to lay the foundation of data science, understanding how data is collected, and analyse how it can be used in solving problems and making decisions. It will also cover ethical issues with data including data governance and builds the foundation for artificial intelligence-based applications of data science. Thus, data science is being introduced as a skill module of 12 hours duration in class eight and is a skill subject in classes 9 to 12 student and faculty handbooks and teaching materials have been created with support from Microsoft,” says CBSE.

CBSE has Also Introduced Coding as a Skill Module in Partnership with Microsoft

Apart from data science, students can also undertake coding as a skill module. The board says that coding is a creative activity that students from any discipline can engage in, which helps to build computational thinking, develop problem-solving skills, critical thinking and exposure to real life situations to solve issues in various realms. “Therefore coding is being introduced as a skill module of 12 hours duration in classes 6 to 8 the idea is to simplify the coding learning experience by nurturing design thinking, logical flow of ideas and apply this across disciplines”, says CBSE. The board adds that foundations laid in the early years will help the students to build competencies in the area of artificial intelligence, data sciences and other disciplines.