Tartu schools to offer drone training this fall
Tartu plans to introduce an elective drone studies course in upper secondary schools, aiming to spark interest in defense and engineering, with preparations underway this August.
The city of Tartu is planning to add a drone studies course to its upper secondary school curriculum as an elective in the upcoming academic year. Throughout August, representatives from the City of Tartu, upper secondary school administrators, and the Estonian Defense Resources Agency will meet to discuss the course content and the equipment needed for teaching.
According to Kaisa Keisk, chief specialist for education management for Tartu city government, one reason for creating the course is the growing need for national defense. "We would like to see young people become interested in these topics and pursue not only drone technology but engineering more broadly. Giving them hands-on experience at an earlier age could encourage them to consider careers in these fields later in life," Keisk told ERR.
Urmo Uiboleht, head of Tartu Private School, and Lembi Loigu, vice principal for academics at Jaan Poska High School, agree that creating the course is important from a national defense perspective and that schools must adapt to technological advances. However, Uiboleht is critical of the plan, questioning whether there is room for it in an already crowded curriculum.
Keisk said several schools already have teachers with the necessary qualifications, including certification to operate drones and teach related subjects. "We still need to discuss what kind of equipment is needed, whether we can purchase it and how we would provide it to schools — whether drone simulators or some other type of equipment," Keisk said.
Students at Jaan Poska High School have been able to participate in an extracurricular drone studies club since 2017. According to Loigu, the club is offered only if enough students sign up. So far, it has been held every year and Loigu said student interest remains strong.
Keisk said it is unlikely that other upper secondary schools will begin offering drone studies in September. She added that schools will be allowed to introduce the course gradually. It also remains undecided what form the instruction will take, since drone flights are subject to certain restrictions. Keisk said the most likely approach is for students to train using simulators. "Another option that has been proposed is that it could take place indoors. We have also discussed, though to a lesser extent, whether there may be locations in Tartu where schools could cooperate with another institution or a company that has facilities where students could fly drones in a real-world outdoor environment," Keisk said.
Developing drone education capacity is part of the City of Tartu's engineering action plan, which aims to strengthen technology and engineering skills in both schools and kindergartens.
