Newsnight to report on Livingstone paper ahead of Education Department's official response
The games industry will get its chance to speak to the nation next week, with the BBC’s Newsnight programme scheduled to run a feature on the Livingstone-Hope Skills Review.
The Department for Education is due to break its eight-month silence on the Skills Review paper, which launched in February this year and called for computer science to return to the national curriculum.
Ahead of the department's response, on Monday Newsnight will run a feature on the paper itself and the Education Department’s position.
The Skills Review, co-written by games industry figurehead Ian Livingstone (pictured, right), as well as skills group NESTA, was fully endorsed by culture minister Ed Vaizey upon release.
Many in the UK games industry claim they are hamstrung by the so-called ‘brain-drain’, with graduates too often ill-equipped for employment at games studios.
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The Skills Review made twenty key proposals that, it claimed, could revive fortunes.
[FEATURE: HOW TO REVOLUTIONISE GAME EDUCATION IN TWENTY STEPS]
Backed by overwhelming support from the industry itself, Livingstone has met with ministers and MPs across many government departments to discuss the matter.
The Department for Education and its secretary Michael Gove (pictured, left) has declined repeated meeting requests by Livingstone.
I found myself shouting at the TV watching this newsreport.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15240207
For starters I agree that teaching programming in schools is a good idea, and "ICT" is a bit of a joke.
However, to say this is the blame for the failing games industry is completely negating the real issues. There was no mention of tax breaks at all, nor the fact that so many jobs are being outsourced, not because the UK isn't skilled, but because it's simply cheaper to outsource. The fact that Mr Livingstone says the following quote is laughable as there are many times more skilled people as there are positions- "We're very very good at making games - but we need the skills. We need computer scientists, animators, artists and there aren't enough of them,".
The evidence is in the amount of unemployed programmers, artists etc. The fact that companies can be so picky with whom they employ and yet so stingy with salaries, makes me wonder why they complain about lack of talent.
Anyone else's thoughts?
I agree with Nic. I am not against globalization but the truth is that I.T has the fewest barriers to entry of any high skilled profession. The games industry also attracts the passionate. These factors mean pay is poor in the industry. I stay out of it and in all honesty I have looked at starting a developer using Polish guys and have also travelled to the Ukraine. I am simply saying this is the reality but talk of a skills gap is massively disingenuous.
