Secondary school technology teachers: the IT industry, through the Next Up project, is the perfect application of the technology subject!

"To understand the role of technology for the individual, society and the environment, the technology that surrounds us needs to be made visible and understandable."

This is what the introduction to the primary school curriculum in technology says. Under "Aim of the subject" it says that teaching should develop pupils' "interest in technology and the ability to approach technological challenges in a conscious and innovative way", and under "Core content in grades 7-9" it says that the following should be covered: "Communication and information technology solutions for the exchange of information, such as computers, the Internet and mobile telephony".

Beautiful, and for those of us in the IT industry, inspiring words. Given the promising job prospects in our industry, combined with the frequent use of smart phones and social media that teenagers already have, it goes without saying that they should see technology as one of the most important subjects in school.

Well, that is hardly the case...

The subject has been part of the curriculum since the 1990s, and every pupil is expected to spend 800 hours on it during their primary school years. However, it has always struggled with its identity: it has been difficult to establish a clear and coherent structure around the different elements of engineering, which range from how to use a soldering iron to the structure of the Earth's energy systems. In addition, there is a severe shortage of qualified teachers - it often becomes an extra subject for teachers with a completely different focus. Perhaps most importantly, it has been difficult to find applications that connect with young people's perceptions of reality, and thus make teaching meaningful.

However, there are near-term solutions, and below are two messages: one to technology teachers and one to the IT industry itself.

Technology teachers first: A group of member companies, led by Sogeti, CGI, Academic Work and others, have realized that efforts must be made to raise the profile of IT among secondary school students. They are the driving force behind the IT&Telecom companies' Next Up initiative - which will start with a pilot round in the Stockholm area this fall. Next Up will have a clear link to both the technology subject and the school's focus on entrepreneurship.

On Wednesday 10/4 at 10 am, a first meeting will take place between Sogeti and some technology teachers with the aim of sketching how real cases can be built up to be used in Next Up. More technology teachers are welcome - either to that meeting or later in the spring. Because surely this is a golden opportunity to actually apply what is in the curriculum?

The message to the rest of the IT industry: Some member companies see the point of this secondary school initiative. Others have asked themselves: Is the subject of technology important for the IT industry? Isn't IT much more than just technology, something that should be woven into all subjects? Some in the industry even think that we should drop the IT concept altogether and talk about "digital development" or something like that.

However, such an approach reveals a considerable overestimation of the importance of the sector. The truth is that the IT industry, despite the fact that its products and services underpin most of what surrounds us, is astonishingly anonymous - at least when viewed as a potential future employer by young people.

A case in point: last week I got a call from some media and communication students from Halmstad who were doing a survey on how IT companies recruit and "brand" themselves. They admitted at the beginning of the conversation that the IT industry was indeed a foreign world. Try it: young people in their early twenties studying media and communication at university level - hardly digital nerds - claim: "The IT industry is a foreign world".

This ties back to the first sentence above: the IT industry needs to become "visible and understandable". And the natural route is via the technology subject (complemented by the entrepreneurship perspective). Sure, IT is more than just technology, but technology is at the bottom of everything. From there, a broadening of young people's perspectives on what technology can be used for can take place.