Computing Curriculum at St Catherine's
Through our computing curriculum, we aim to prepare our children for a future with technology. Pupils are taught to engage with technology in an ever changing world with intelligence and confidence. Every term begins with structured lessons about how to stay safe online so that pupils can use technology without putting themselves and their personal security at risk.
Why is computational thinking so important?
It allows us to solve problems, design systems, and understand the power and limits of human and machine intelligence. It is a skill that empowers, and one that all pupils should be aware of and develop competence in. Pupils who can think computationally are better able to conceptualise, understand and use computer-based technology, and so are better prepared for today’s world and the future.
Things that have long been part of ICT in schools, such as finding things out, exchanging and sharing information, and reviewing, modifying and evaluating work, remain as important now, for a broad and balanced technological education, as they ever were. The new programme of study provides ample scope for pupils to develop understanding, knowledge and skills in these areas.
[Adapted from A Curriculum Framework for Computer Science and Information Technology]
National Curriculum Documents and Policies
The 2014 national curriculum introduces a new subject, computing, which replaces ICT. This represents continuity and change, challenge and opportunity. It gives schools the chance to review and enhance current approaches in order to provide an even more exciting and rigorous curriculum that addresses the challenges and opportunities offered by the technologically rich world in which we live. Computing is concerned with how computers and computer systems work, and how they are designed and programmed. Pupils studying computing will gain an understanding of computational systems of all kinds, whether or not they include computers. Computational thinking provides insights into many areas of the curriculum, and influences work at the cutting edge of a wide range of disciplines.
As a school, we use a mixture of Purple Mash and Rising Stars 'Switched on Computing' to inform our teaching and assessment.
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There is more to computer science than programming, though. It incorporates techniques and methods for solving problems and advancing knowledge, and includes a distinct way of thinking and working that sets it apart from other disciplines. Every core principle can be taught or illustrated without relying on the use of a specific technology. The role of programming in computer science is similar to that of practical work in the other sciences – it provides motivation, and a context within which ideas are brought to life. Information technology deals with applying computer systems to solve real-world problems.
