Computing Lead - Mrs G Mills

Intent

At St Gildas Catholic Primary School, our computing curriculum is designed around the four key areas, as outlined in the National Curriculum. These are computer science, information technology, digital literacy and online safety. The combination of these areas equips our children with the ability to safely and confidently use a computer.

At our school we want pupils to be masters of technology and not slaves to it. Technology is everywhere and will play a pivotal part in students' lives. Therefore, we want to model and educate our pupils on how to use technology positively, responsibly and safely. We want our pupils to be creators not consumers and our broad curriculum encompassing computer science, information technology and digital literacy reflects this. . We want our pupils to understand that there is always a choice with using technology and as a school we utilise technology (especially social media) to model positive use. We recognise that the best prevention for a lot of issues we currently see with technology/social media is through education.

We recognise that technology can allow pupils to share their learning in creative ways. We also understand the accessibility opportunities technology can provide for our pupils. Our knowledge rich curriculum has to be balanced with the opportunity for pupils to apply their knowledge creatively which will in turn help our pupils become skillful computer scientists. We encourage staff to try and embed computing across the whole curriculum to make learning creative and accessible. We want our pupils to be fluent with a range of tools to best express their understanding and hope by Upper Key Stage 2, children have the independence and confidence to choose the best tool to fulfill the task and challenge set by teachers.

Implementation

Our children begin their journey with technology in Early Years, with access to iPads and BeeBots, as well as some time spent in the computer room to familiarise children with a desktop setup. Teachers facilitate children’s curiosity with challenge and modelling how to use the equipment carefully and safely.

In KS1 children continue their journey with the BeeBots, using them more precisely. They learn how to programme a BeeBot to reach a destination and begin to be able to debug when something doesn’t work out the way they imagined. In the computer room they improve their mouse control and learn how to log on and off a computer using their class username. They will also be using their own usernames and passwords for Mathletics  They learn about online safety and what to do if they encounter something which makes them feel uncomfortable as well as what personal information is and why it is important we don’t share it with someone on the internet. Coding then progresses from BeeBots onto a computer-based programme where children learn how to programme a variety of sprites.

In KS2, children continue this coding journey, not only making the sprites move, but interact with each other. As children progress up KS2 the coding becomes more complex and they are able to create basic games with code. Their digital literacy skills are combined with English, science, history and geography and work is word processed and presentations are created using PowerPoint. Children learn how to use the hardware we have in school including webcams, where they are taught how to take and manipulate pictures, showing them that what they view in the media isn’t always accurate. The children are also taught internet safety throughout each year of KS2. They know how to keep themselves safe online and what to do if they come across something that makes them uncomfortable. KS2 are taught the difference between being a bystander and an upstander and the importance of reporting something they experience happening to themselves or another person, as in accordance with our Anti Bullying Policy and our Online Safety Policy. Upper KS2 understand the importance of media balance and appreciate that as they get older, they are more responsible for their online presence and how often they access a variety of forms of media.

Impact

The impact of our computing curriculum can not only be seen in displays around school and on the children’s section of the P drive, but also can be measured by speaking to the children themselves. The teaching of the computing curriculum enables our children to use a computer with confidence.

We measure the impact of our curriculum using the following methods:

· Summative assessment of pupil discussions about their learning.

· Images of the children’s practical learning in a class portfolio

· Children’s work saved onto their individual folders.

· Interviewing the pupils about their learning (pupil voice).

· Annual reporting of standards across the curriculum.