Computing & AI

Our Approach

With the rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI), it is crucial to empower our students with the knowledge, skills and right attitudes to use AI for good. Launched in 2021, all Secondary 2 students attend a weekly lesson on AI that is designed and conducted by AHS teachers. Through interactive activities, students learn key AI concepts such as natural language processing, machine learning and the importance of quality training data. Students also engage in discussions on the societal impact of AI applications, such as ChatGPT and deepfake technology. In 2023, AHS welcomed our first batch of Sec 3 students taking ‘O’ level Computing. Our key approach lies in computational thinking, where students are taught to break down complex problems, analyse patterns and develop a logical approach to solve the problems in the 21st Century context.

Learner Outcomes

The AI curriculum aims to foster AI literacy amongst the students in the following areas:


AI Knowledge	To equip students with knowledge of the core AI concepts and understand their applications in the AI-integrated world.
AI Skills	To equip students with basic programming and computational thinking skills to enable them to function in an AI-integrated society proficiently.
AI Attitude	To enable students to critically evaluate AI, recognise the potential ethical issues of using AI technologies and to use AI for the benefit of humanity.

The ‘O’ level Computing curriculum aims to provide students with the foundation to continue with further studies in computing, and the requisite skills to participate in a rapidly changing technological environment. Students will be able to:
● Acquire knowledge and understanding of the computing concepts of logic, algorithms, data analysis, data representation and networking.
● Develop and apply computational thinking skills such as abstraction and decomposition to solve real-world problems by designing, writing, testing and debugging programs.
● Develop an appreciation of computing as a dynamic and creative field including awareness of recent developments in computer systems.
● Develop an understanding of the social, ethical, legal and economic implications of computing.
● Develop attitudes and 21CC needed to do well in computing such as inventive thinking, perseverance, collaboration, communication as well as striving for accuracy and thoroughness.

Key Programmes

Programme	Level	Description
AI Literacy	Sec 2	Modules in the AI programme include: ● Machine Learning ● Natural Language Processing ● Speech Recognition ● Computer Vision ● Self-Driving Cars ● Introduction to Python
Game Development Project	Sec 3	Computing students apply their Python programming knowledge and skills to develop a game for a specific target audience. Completed student projects can be viewed here

Enrichment

Learning beyond the Curriculum
Our Computing students are encouraged to learn beyond the ‘O’ level curriculum through enrichment programmes, such as the National Digital Explorers, Swift Accelerator Programme and modules by National University of Singapore Centre for Nurturing Computing Excellence. Students keen to learn about data science and cybersecurity are given opportunities to join the TP-VJC Data Science Hackathon and Sieberrsec Capture-The-Flag respectively.

Competitions
Students who wish to deepen their programming skills are given opportunities to take part in competitions such as IDE Code Hackers and the National Olympiad in Informatics. For students who aspire to use their programming skills to develop apps that create value for others, they are given opportunities to join the Splash Awards and Swift Explorers Singapore.

Education and Career Guidance
To give our students a broader perspective beyond the ‘O’ level curriculum, we seek to engage alumni in tech-related fields to interact with our Computing students. In 2023, alumnus Dylan Alden Kusbiyantoro (Class of 2022) was invited to share his experience pursuing H2 Computing at Victoria Junior College.

Mr Eric Chia (Class of 1993), CEO of Advocado, was also invited to join in for our student presentations on their game development project. His feedback for the students provided valuable insights from the industry perspective, sharpening our students’ thinking. Eric also mentored the Splash Awards team in their app development idea, with the team making it to the top 24 pre-tertiary teams in Singapore!

“Joining Splash Awards has allowed me to experience the process of bringing ideas to life, starting from understanding societal issues to implementing an app for improvement. Working with our mentor, Mr Eric, and Advocado's UI/UX team, we learnt about design specificity and the life of a designer. This experience has enabled me to improve my design thinking, communication and collaboration skills!”

- Cheah Sheng Xin, 3J Team Leader, Splash Awards