Computing

Intent:

Computing at Wadworth Primary School intends to give every child the skills they need to succeed in our digital society.  We want to enable pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to become active participants in the digital world.  In addition, we will ensure that children understand the advantages and disadvantages of online experiences, in order to help develop their responsibility as technology users, and confident that they can keep themselves and others safe online.  Computing plays an essential role in the school curriculum through its contribution to children’s: intellectual development, personal development, wider understanding of the world and future employability.  Our aim is to provide a curriculum that is designed to balance acquiring a broad and deep knowledge alongside opportunities to apply skills. The foundation for this can be found in a well-resourced and progressive curriculum.

The school believes that IT, computer science and digital literacy:

• are essential life skills necessary to fully participate in the modern digital world.
• allows children to become creators of digital content rather than simply consumers of it.
• provides access to a rich and varied source of information and
• communicates and presents information in new ways, which helps pupils understand, access and use it more
• can motivate and enthuse
• offers opportunities for communication and collaboration through group working both inside and outside of
• has the flexibility to meet the individual needs and abilities of each

The school aims to:

• Provide a broad, balanced, challenging and enjoyable curriculum for all
• Develop pupil’s computational thinking skills that will benefit them throughout their lives.
• Meet the requirements of the national curriculum programmes of study for computing at Key Stage 1 and 2
• To respond to new developments in technology
• To equip pupils with the confidence and skills to use digital tools and technologies throughout their lives.
• To enhance and enrich learning in other areas of the curriculum using IT and computing.
• To develop the understanding of how to use computers and digital tools safely and responsibly.

Implementation:

We are currently implementing a new scheme of learning based on the ‘Teach Computing’ Curriculum which covers all aspects of the National Curriculum. It can be broken down into 3 strands: computer science, information technology and digital literacy, with the aims of the curriculum reflecting this distinction.

This scheme was chosen as it covers all aspect of the national curriculum, was created by subject experts and is based on the latest research.  It also allows non-specialists to confidently conduct lessons with pre-prepared resources and background knowledge notes.  It is a progressive curriculum that enables a clear pathway to be followed for all year groups.

Early years (see also the Early Year’s policy)

It is important in the foundation stage to give children a broad, play-based experience of IT and computing in a range of contexts, including off-computer activities and outdoor play.

Computing is not just about computers.  Early years learning environments should feature IT scenarios based on experience in the real world, such as in role play. Children gain confidence, control and language skills through opportunities such as ‘programming’ each other using directional language to find toys/objects, creating artwork using digital drawing tools and controlling programmable toys.

Outdoor exploration is an important aspect and using digital recording devices such as video recorders, cameras and microphones can support children in developing communication skills.  This is particularly beneficial for children who have English as an additional language.

By the end of key stage 1 pupils should be taught to:

• understand what algorithms are, how they are implemented as programs on digital devices, and that programs execute by following a sequence of instructions
• write and test simple programs
• use logical reasoning to predict and computing the behaviour of simple programs
• organise, store, manipulate and retrieve data in a range of digital formats
• Communicate safely and respectfully online, keeping personal information private, and recognise common uses of information technology beyond

By the end of key stage 2 pupils should be taught to:

• design and write programs that accomplish specific goals, including controlling or simulating physical systems; solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts
• use sequence, selection, and repetition in programs; work with variables and various forms of input and output; generate appropriate inputs and predicted outputs to test programs
• use logical reasoning to explain how a simple algorithm works and to detect and correct errors in algorithms and programs
• understand computer networks including the internet; how they can provide multiple services, such as the world-wide web; and the opportunities they offer for communication and collaboration
• describe how internet search engines find and store data; use search engines effectively; be discerning in evaluating digital content; respect individuals and intellectual property; use technology responsibly, securely and safely
• Select, use and combine a variety of software (including internet services) on a range of digital devices to accomplish given goals, including collecting, analysing, evaluating and presenting data and

Resources and access

The school acknowledges the need to continually maintain, update and develop its resources and to make progress towards consistent, compatible computer systems by investing in resources that will effectively deliver the objectives of the National Curriculum and support the use of IT, computer science and digital literacy across the school. Teachers are required to inform the computing subject leader or the IT technician of any faults as soon as they are noticed. A service level agreement with [Company name] is currently in place to help support the subject leader to fulfill this role both in hardware & software. Resources are located either in classrooms, in the KS2 shared area, resource room and individual classrooms.   Computing network infrastructure and equipment has been sited so that:

• Every classroom from reception to Y6 has a computer connected to the school network and an interactive whiteboard with sound, DVD and video
• There are 24 laptops and 16 tablets available in the KS2 shared area.
• The laptops and tablets are available for use throughout the school day as part of computing lessons and for cross-curricular
• Internet access is available in all classrooms.
• Pupils may use IT and computing independently, in pairs, alongside a TA or in a group with a
• The school has a computing technician who is in school every Tuesday between 12.30 and 3.30.
• A governor will be invited to take a particular interest in computing in the school.

Impact:

The computing curriculum is planned to demonstrate progression, build on and embed the skills taught.  It utilises both plugged and unplugged elements to boost engagement and stretch understanding of both theory and practise.

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

• Pupil discussions and interviewing the pupils about their learning (pupil voice).
• Monitoring of planning, children’s work, and lesson delivery by the subject leader.
• Learning walks and discussions with staff (teacher voice).
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• Progress of our computing curriculum is demonstrated through outcomes and the record of coverage in the process of achieving these outcomes.