Computing Curriculum

ICT Curriculum Vision

At Brooke School we believe that PE is crucial to pupils’ physical and emotional development and health. Our Physical Education curriculum provides children with the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge and understanding of fundamental skills and movements for lifelong participation in physical activity and sport. We provide children with engaging, accessible and challenging PE lessons, where each child can reach their full potential.

Our high-quality Physical Education curriculum inspires all pupils to succeed and excel in sport and other physically-demanding activities. It provides opportunities for pupils to become physically confident in a way which supports their health and fitness. We believe that opportunities to compete in sport and other activities build character and help to embed values such as fairness and respect.

Key Aims

Brooke School computing curriculum aims to ensure that all pupils:

• Can understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation (Computer Science)
• Can analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of writing computer programs in order to solve such problems (Computer Science).
• Can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems (Information Technology.
• Are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology (Digital Literacy).
   

To accomplish this, we have planned a curriculum that combines the 3 pillars of progression:

• Computer Science
  • Computer science covers knowledge of computers and computation, including concepts such as data, system architecture, algorithms and programming. Computer science is seen as the core of computing and underpins the whole of the subject. Because of this, it is fair to say that computer science provides the foundational knowledge required to understand and interpret the other areas of the computing curriculum.
• Information Technology
  • Information technology provides a context for the use of computers in society. It focuses on how computers are used in different sectors and describes the methods used to create digital artefacts such as presentations, spreadsheets and videos.
• Digital Literacy
  • The National Centre for Computing Education defines digital literacy as the ‘skills and knowledge required to be an effective, safe and discerning user of a range of computer systems. It covers a range of knowledge and skills, such as using physical devices or knowledge of the features that are likely to mean digital content is reliable.
     

Pupils make progress in computing by knowing and remembering more about and, importantly, across each of these categories, and being able to apply this knowledge. However, these pillars do not sit separately from each other. Knowledge from each pillar complements the others and some subject content only exists at the interplay between these 3 pillars.

This curriculum draws a distinction between declarative and procedural knowledge in computing. Declarative knowledge, often referred to as conceptual knowledge in the literature, consists of facts, rules and principles and the relationships between them. It can be described as ‘knowing that’. In contrast, procedural knowledge is knowledge of methods or processes that can be performed. It can be described as ‘knowing how’.

Our curriculum fulfils the statutory requirements for computing outlined in the National curriculum (2014) and, in conjunction with our RSE & PSHE scheme, also covers the government’s Education for a Connected World -2020 edition framework. Every year learners complete an online safety unit of learning. The unit of learning incorporates the 8 topics outlined in UKCIS Education for a connected World Framework. In addition to this learners apply what they have learnt every year when we celebrate safer internet day

Key Areas

We have categorised our lessons into the five key areas below, which we return to each year making it clear to see prior and future learning for pupils and what we are teaching fits into their wider learning journey. Our Computing curriculum has been designed as a spiral curriculum with the following key

principles in mind:

✓ Cyclical: Pupils revisit the five key areas throughout KS1 and KS2.

✓ Increasing depth: Each time a key area is revisited, it is covered with greater complexity.

✓ Prior knowledge: Upon returning to each key