EdTech innovation is essential during the COVID-19 lockdown

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the creative industries in the United Kingdom are stepping up to provide opportunities for young people who are currently out of school. One such initiative is SideQuest, a collaborative project between UK games studios and a non-profit organization.

Chaired by Ian Livingstone CBE, the SideQuest initiative offers a range of resources to help young people build their skills quickly in the context of a relevant, motivating activity such as game design. The project includes masterclasses from industry professionals on different aspects of the game-making process, a prototyping pack, and bi-weekly game jams.

To participate, young people need not have any prior experience in game development. The SideQuest initiative is open to all young people who are currently out of school due to the lockdown.

In addition to the SideQuest initiative, several other developments are taking place in the creative industries. The Creative Industries Sector Plan, for instance, has made key sector-wide announcements in areas such as AI, Intellectual Property and Regulation, Business Models and Access to Finance, Skills, Jobs and Education, and more.

The importance of accredited qualifications in journalism has also been emphasized by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Journalism occupations are included on the DCMS's list of Creative Occupations.

Meanwhile, Professor Hasan Bakhshi MBE, the Professor of Economics of the Creative Industries and Director of Creative PEC, has been discussing the Equity Gap in Britain's Creative Industries in the context of bridging the imagination deficit.

The SideQuest initiative is not the only initiative aimed at supporting young people during the lockdown. The Department for Education has been supporting the creation of remote education resources, publishing guidance for teachers and parents/carers, and signposting online resources.

Looking back, we can see that the BBC's Computer Literacy Project in the 1980s played a significant role in creating a world-leading videogame industry. The technical skills learned during that time went on to be applied creatively in fields as diverse as banking and medical imagery.

The opportunity for such initiatives is huge right now, as there is more scope than ever for children to engage with authentic, open-ended learning activities like game design. Effective teaching presence in remote learning requires a well-structured sequence of intellectually engaging learning activities where students are provided with feedback and take responsibility for their work.

The Global Creative Economy Council, a platform for conversations between the Global North and South, aims to unsettle and reorder the creative economy. Dr Josh Siepe has been discussing the co-location of the Creative Industries with Other Industrial Strategy Priority Sectors.

Research suggests that the digital skills most likely to be needed in jobs predicted to grow in the UK are ones that are used in non-routine tasks, problem solving, and the creation of digital outputs, like animation, multimedia production, and design in engineering.

The 2025 Spending Review has implications for the creative industries, according to a readout from Creative PEC Bernard Hay and Emily Hopkins. The Department for Education in England published an EdTech strategy in April 2019, including a series of challenges to prove the potential of EdTech and inform its future use.

The challenges in remote learning include the need for immediate measures to sustain education in lockdown, medium-term measures to support seamless learning when schools reopen, access to engaging and curriculum-aligned content, blended offline and online remote learning, and provision of supplementary support.

In conclusion, the SideQuest initiative, along with other developments in the creative industries, is providing valuable opportunities for young people to learn and grow in these challenging times. The initiatives are not only focused on teaching technical skills but also on fostering creativity and imagination, which are essential for the future success of the creative industries.