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Experts from technology giant Microsoft have praised Wales’ efforts to incorporate digital education into school life, describing it as "world leading".

Ian Fordham, Microsoft’s director of education in the UK and Daniel Sumner, Microsoft’s director of public sector innovation programme, said Wales is “leading the charge” by embedding digital across the curriculum rather than having dedicated and separate IT classes.

They urged parents to get on board by engaging with what their children are doing with technology and said they could help them learn through games like Minecraft.

The two were among speakers and delegates at the Education Summit conference in Cardiff discussing education reforms in Wales.

“There’s no doubt the Welsh Government is both a UK and world leader on digital education in schools,” said Mr Fordham, who leads Microsoft’s work with schools, colleges and universities and is also a Mayor of London Technology Ambassador.

“In England there is a statutory requirement for IT/computing classes but in Wales literacy, numeracy and technology are all together. It is world leading and the evidence is coming that this is making children (in Wales) more digitally aware.

“Looking at England, Scotland and Wales, Wales is leading the charge in policy development around the curriculum and the digital competency fra mework and how it is supporting teachers and learners.

“There is still a major challenge reaching parents and engaging them.

“I think the fast pace of change means parents are always going to have a challenge catching up.”

Anglesey-born Mr Sumner, who is based at Microsoft’s Seattle office said schools in Wales have the digital infrastructure and parents must engage more to help their children learn skills vital for the future.

“Being able to code is an enabler. In future if you study biology, for example, you are going to need to understand algorithms to understand data. Whatever you are studying, being able to code is an enabler and employers will want it.”

The pair said Minecraft education programmes are a good tool for children to learning coding, problem solving and other skills and parents should find out more about what their children are doing on their digital devices.

“Minecraft is a very accessible tool that works well for children, and they can work in a social context to code,” said Mr Fordham.

“Parents should understand what their children are doing on Minecraft and engage with it more. If they are just playing on it, direct them to the programming. Getting parents involved in Minecraft is contributing to the conversation about how they can be involved in their children’s learning.”