Empowering the next generation of digital citizens

Digital literacy isn’t a question of successfully saving PDFs anymore. As technology has evolved, so has our interaction with it.

While the generations of Gen X and Millennial parents may have spent a significant part of their childhoods without a home computer — and then, with one family machine with dial-up in a designated computer room — kids these days seem to learn how to navigate a tablet before they start eating solids. What does their future relationship with technology look like?

“This generation is growing up with tech completely integrated into their daily lives,” says Rozlynn Wick, Youth Initiatives Project Manager.

“Encouraging young people to become digital citizens, prepared to participate in our evolving digital society with digital emotional intelligence, skills and safety is why we’ve created digital youth programs.”

Learning for life starts now

With access to the latest technology, these digital programs give kids a taste of the tech they might encounter throughout their educational journeys and in industry, and arms them with the digital intelligence to begin to engage with it.

"Digital intelligence is fundamentally important in preparing students to participate in our rapidly evolving digital society," says Abdullah Rafih, Youth Program Specialist. "Jobs of today and the future all incorporate a digital layer. Regardless of their passion or career path, today's youth will engage with digital in the jobs of tomorrow."

The educational framework of these programs helps youth understand how digital transformation is changing career pathways and introduces them to the impact technology has beyond personal laptops and cellphones.

Whether they’re learning to become an app developer in SAIT Summer Camps, sending an encrypted email through Art of the Possible workshops or extending reality with HoloLens headsets through Turning Points, industry-informed and hands-on learning is what makes SAIT’s digital youth programs stand out.

The new and the notable

• In-person SAIT Summer Camps return for 2022. With 16 new program offerings for Grades 1 to 12, camps include AI Developer, App Developer, Coding Explorers and many more! Registration opens Monday, April 11. To view all camp offerings, visit SAIT Summer Camps.
• Art of the Possible workshop's are back! These 90-minute online experiences allow students in Grades 7-10 to engage with industry experts and virtual demonstrations to discover emerging technologies and learn about online safety. Teachers, register your classes here!
• Turning Points is a career exploration school program that promotes post-secondary education to at-risk high school students. New this year, students plugged into what’s possible with extended reality technologies, such as Meta virtual reality headsets.Schools interested in Turning Points can contact programs@sait.ca for more information.

Through school-based and public offerings for youth Grades 1 to 12, SAIT camps and programs are designed to encourage young people to explore their interests — meeting the needs of students where they are.

For more information on digital youth programs, visit SAIT Youth Programs.