Victoria University

Gail Bray, director of Wyndham Tech School, Victoria University (VU), is leading the establishment of the STEM Centre of Excellence that serves as a connector, bringing future skills to secondary school students through deep partnerships with multiple stakeholders, such as the Department of Education and Training, Victoria University. She frequently participates in events and podcasts to inform educational authorities about the skills needed for the future, all while raising awareness about STEM-related vocations. In charge of forming relationships between schools and other educational institutions, Bray contributes to equipping students with future technical skills. She is also directing a team to establish VU Polytechnic’s digital division, which includes two major key initiatives: the Sunshine Skills Hub and the Cybersecurity Training Centre. Bray is passionate about promoting the growing job opportunities available to the young people of Melbourne’s West and believes that anything is possible if one possesses the diligence to achieve it.

What are the current challenges in the ed-tech space, and how do you approach the process of mitigating those predicaments?

The scarcity of skilled teachers is a major setback plaguing the ed-tech space currently. As a result, teaching pupils the skills they require through vocational education and training has become difficult. It is a matter of grave concern in secondary schools, as tech programs are seldom delivered to students. Presently, much of the work we do in various areas revolves around up-skilling our instructors and building programs to up-skill and reskill existing workers, as well as post-secondary school students, to provide businesses with an enormous pool of talent. One of the current alarming issues in STEM is the lack of participation and engagement beginning at a young age. Compared to other OECD countries, VU has a 12 percent engagement rate, whereas China’s involvement rate, for instance, stands at 56 percent. The meager participation percentage also stems from the dearth of females interested in STEM subjects or pursuing post-secondary education in technical fields, impacting the employment supply.

While elaborating on some of the technology you leverage to solve said issues, please highlight a recent project that benefited from your guidance.

The Wyndham Tech School is a major project I am working on presently; it involves planning, developing, and implementing a model that allows us to deliver training programs co-designed with industry partners and provide professional development opportunities for secondary school teachers. The tech school’s vision is based on industry 4.0 and evolving into 5.0, revolving around the idea of humans and robots functioning conjointly. Cybersecurity constitutes a crucial technical element that protects the platforms and technologies presently utilized to deliver education. One notable example is the COVID immunization deployment, in which one of our humanoid robots served as a receptionist, greeting patients and asking common questions like, “Do you have a cold?” “Have you been sick?” As a result, the receptionist could devote her time to answering more critical questions that a patient could have before getting vaccinated. Such endeavors ultimately help eliminate repetitive activities. This is just one example of how our students program the robot, in association with the industry, to untangle a problem.

“A lot of the work we do in various areas revolves around up-skilling our instructors and building programs to up-skill and reskill existing workers”

We are currently working with a client on programming one of our collaboration robots, which are dual-arm YuMi robots, assisting the formation of candles. The robot arm inserts candle wicks into the wax—a task that demands high precision—often difficult for humans to execute repeatedly and accurately for protracted periods. As a result, robots are considered the best alternatives to fill that position, allowing the operators to focus on higher-value tasks within the firm. This is part of what we do in secondary school, but we also have a pathway model where students may go into our vocational education and training area and pursue additional qualification training in specific topics, such as cyber security content creation or software development. As a consequence of COVID, the rate of technology adoption increased, having a knock-on effect on our instructors, who have developed more confidence in using various types of technology. We noticed a 67 percent rise in teachers' ability to use remote technology, video conferencing, and classroom technology virtually, indicating their significant improvement in digital literacy skills.

Is there any advice you would like to offer to new entrants to the ed-tech industry?

Collaboration is the everything; the world is developing at a fast pace, making it hard for individuals and businesses to sustain themselves independently. As an exemplification, the tech school model and all vocational education and training have been developed in conjunction with technology professionals. It is crucial to comprehend the skills in order to assign more value to them rather than qualifications alone. Eventually, it is about drawing the tech industry closer to the classroom.

The other aspect involves ensuring that the public is aware of the job we perform. Learning is a social activity; therefore, we like to collaborate with a variety of schools, both locally and worldwide, to see what they are doing and how we can learn from them. The next pivotal undertaking is understanding what comes further in the tech space and getting acquainted with the same. For instance, the impact of blockchain on education will be interesting to witness as this technology will allow greater ownership over education credentials. It will permit the sharing and updating of the login information promptly with anyone who as been granted access. However, educators or educational institutes cannot enter this field independently. They must team up with the tech industry to help educate the learners and determine how the new, emerging blockchain technology benefits the ed-tech sector.

Is there anything that you would like to add for our readers?

The tech industry comprises a myriad of prejudices, and the challenge is how do we, as an ed-tech industry, shatter those stereotypes. It is a common preconception that computing is restricted to a privileged few who are strong at arithmetic. Breaking such stereotypes about technology and communication should start young by heeding the wide range of creative opportunities. There is a broad spectrum of non-tech roles in the IT business, that are high-profile, well-paid positions often overlooked by many youthful and experienced people. Pertaining to the misunderstandings, several capable females are deterred from entering the field. Debunking tech-industry myths and preconceived notions are the need of the hour. Addressing this issue will help in attracting more proficient people to the profession, and the industry will have a huge pool of talent that will boost the economy.