Elementary and Secondary Education Minister Abdul Mu’ti said the ministry will soon roll out a new plan that will allow students to be taught the subjects of artificial intelligence and coding.

Mu’ti, however, said that the lesson on AI and coding would be elective and would only be available for students in fourth grade.

“For elementary school, the subjects won’t be available for first graders, but only for fourth graders, fifth or sixth,” Mu’ti said, as quoted by Antara.

The newly-inaugurated minister also said that the ministry is looking into the possibility of hiring new instructors to teach AI and coding or collaborating with institutions already specializing in the two subjects.

In a statement published on Thursday, the ministry said that only schools with adequate tools and a reliable internet connection could start giving lessons on coding and AI.

Earlier on Thursday, Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said he was in talks with Mu’ti on how to include coding in a new curriculum drawn up for elementary and secondary school students.

“In principle, we have agreed that we need to have a curriculum on coding,” Meutya was quoted by Antara state news agency.

Discussion on the plan to include coding and AI in the new curriculum was sparked earlier this week by a statement from Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka who said he had given orders to Mu’ti to start working on a plan to teach coding to elementary students.

“We should not lag behind India [on coding]. To get to Golden Indonesia we need a golden generation, those who are experts on coding and AI,” Gibran told a gathering on Monday.

-In Association with ANN