At Amazon, we believe in the power of Computer Science (CS) to unleash creativity and unlock human potential. We also know that while talent and passion is spread across all young people, opportunity is not. For instance, while a million students enroll in CS engineering courses annually in India, students from underserved and underrepresented communities contribute relatively small numbers. There are several reasons - low exposure to CS-related career opportunities, lack of inspirational role models in their community, and language barriers to access interesting curriculum formats. Also, government schools have limited resources to impart CS education.
The Amazon Future Engineer program aims to address this gap by bringing early exposure and access of CS education to students through in-person, online and blended learning formats. In the first year of its launch, Amazon aims to enable and deliver CS learning opportunities to more than 1 lakh students from 900 government and aided schools across seven states in India.
We aim to bring the CS curriculum closer to these students in the languages of their comfort and choice, empower them with right skills and tools to be able to expand their career outlook.
“Students from underserved communities in India face disproportionate barriers to education, especially in the field of computer science. We are thrilled to bring the Amazon Future Engineer initiative to India, as we believe that all young people, irrespective of their backgrounds, should have the right exposure and accessibility to quality computer science education. We aim to bring the CS curriculum closer to these students in the languages of their comfort and choice, empower them with right skills and tools to be able to expand their career outlook,” said Amit Agarwal, Global Senior VP and Country Head, Amazon India. “We hope students emerge more confident and skilled to be responsible creators of technology solutions and build a better future for themselves, and communities around them,” Amit added.
Delivered in partnership with Code.org, a global non-profit organization dedicated to computer science education, Amazon Future Engineer is a comprehensive childhood-to-career community program.
This global computer science (CS) education program takes local nuances into account. For instance, the curriculum for India has been contextualized for the Indian teacher and student community in government school settings. It will offer students coding fundamentals along with future-focused tech courses like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing (Voice Technology) in Indian languages.
Taking quality CS education to the grassroots
Amazon will partner with multiple education-focused non-profit organizations to take quality CS education to the students at government schools across the states of Karnataka, Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Telangana. The initiative will primarily focus on students in grades 6-12, and will also train teachers and educators to teach computer science in a more engaging way. Apart from enabling content and curriculum, Amazon Future Engineer will also help students discover and explore the world of computer science through exciting interventions. Initiatives include meeting Amazonians working in different roles, for students to understand tech career opportunities to help explore the practical usage of technology.
Over the next few years, Amazon India will continue to scale the program and expand the bouquet of CS related education offerings in India. Amazon Future Engineer will also amplify its support to students through scholarships, internships, problem-solving hackathon events, and targeted mentorship programs by Amazonians. Schools, administrators, and teachers interested in participating in Amazon Future Engineer can learn more here.
