What’s Inside China’s New High School Tech Curriculum? AI, Big Data, and More

On January 16, the Ministry of Education introduced the 2017 General High School Curriculum Standards, officially incorporating artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, big‑data processing, algorithms, and open‑hardware project design into the new curriculum.

The revised plan divides high‑school learning content into required, selective required, and elective courses. In the information‑technology subject, the structure is shown below: High‑school mandatory information‑technology courses aim to comprehensively improve students' information literacy and consist of two modules: “Data and Computation” and “Information Systems and Society”.

Data and Computation

(1) Understand data encoding. (2) Learn to collect, analyze, and visualize data. (3) Acquire a programming language and implement simple algorithms. (4) Recognize the importance of artificial intelligence.

Information Systems and Society

(1) Know the basic principles of information systems. (2) Be able to develop simple information systems. (3) Assess security risks and understand protective technologies. (4) Comply with relevant laws and ethical standards.

Selective required courses, designed for students’ academic and personal development, include six modules: “Data and Data Structures”, “Network Basics”, “Data Management and Analysis”, “Introduction to Artificial Intelligence”, “3‑D Design and Creativity”, and “Open‑Hardware Project Design”.

Elective courses, offered for personal interest, career exploration, or school‑based projects, cover “Basic Algorithms”, “Mobile Application Design”, and other school‑specific information‑technology modules.

Compared with the 2003 curriculum, the new standards broaden students’ choices in technology education, reducing emphasis on basic software use while significantly raising expectations for programming, computational thinking, algorithms, artificial intelligence, open‑hardware, and cybersecurity knowledge.