Should High Schools Teach Big Data?

Given the anticipated shortage of data scientists, should students start learning the precepts of big data in high school? Changing when advanced database technology is taught has real-world implications, given the realities of today's job market. Both data analytics and big data skills are in high demand in private industry and government. But there is a looming shortage of workers with these abilities.

McKinsey & Co. sounded this alarm back in 2011 with its seminal report that predicted the U.S. would face a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 workers with the skills to manage and analyze big data. The popular technology job board Dice.com has seen a spike in listings for "data scientist," up from just a handful a year ago to more than 35 at the start of October. While still an imprecise job designation, "data scientists" command high salaries compared to other IT job titles. (Separately, the unemployment rate for technology professionals dropped in the third quarter to 3.3%, as compared to 4.2% in the same quarter a year ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.)