“I believe technology should give us superpowers. Everyone should have the opportunity to learn to think, analyse, and create with technology.“
Intent
At St Joseph’s our curriculum is intended for pupils not only to be digitally competent and have a range of transferable skills at a suitable level for the future workplace, but also to be responsible online citizens. We build and enhance children’s cultural capital through exposure to different experiences that they would otherwise not be able to access using iPads, Chromebooks and virtual reality. Children will develop their problem solving skills and resilience to competently identify issues and debug their work accordingly. Children will apply these skills across the curriculum and understand the value of computing in everyday life. They will understand the dangers associated with using technology and have positive strategies to keep themselves safe online. Online Safety is an essential part of our Computing curriculum. All children will be safe, responsible and resilient users of technology.
Implementation
Computing is embedded across the curriculum whilst also being taught in explicit sessions to ensure children gain the knowledge and skills they need. Teachers follow a comprehensive progression document and plan to best embed and cover every element of the computing curriculum. The knowledge/skills statements build year on year to deepen and challenge our learners. The curriculum is divided into three overarching strands: Computer Science, Information Technology and Digital Literacy – with a clear progression of skills from year-to-year. At the core of the Computing curriculum is Computer Science in which pupils are taught the fundamental principles of information and computation, how digital systems work and how to transfer this knowledge to create and use programming. These aspects are taught throughout the Computing curriculum and can be transferred within STEM subjects
Impact
Our intent is for all children to leave school as resilient, competent and computer-literate coders and researchers. Our computing curriculum will have ensured children have the tools to further their learning. The impact is measured through progress trackers, evidence of work, and interviews with pupils. Impact can also be seen in cross-curricular work through research projects, presentations and films created by pupils. Children will be able to build on these strong, extensive foundation blocks in secondary school and feel confident to learn.