Computing
Vision
‘And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.’ Micah 6:8.
Through the teachings of Jesus, all can flourish spiritually, emotionally and academically throughout life, living out love and justice for all. Our Christian values of love, justice, compassion, wisdom, forgiveness and friendship underpin the life of the school community and impact on our daily lives. Guilden Sutton Church of England Primary School strives to provide the best possible education for our children. We aim for excellence within our happy, secure school where each individual’s achievements are valued and celebrated. By using a holistic approach, we will provide a curriculum that offers a diverse and challenging environment to inspire and motivate every child in our care.
Intent
At Guilden Sutton Church of England Primary School, we understand that a high-quality computing education is essential for pupils to understand modern information and communication technologies (ICT). We strive for our children to be able to use these skills to become responsible, competent, confident and creative participants of an increasingly digital world. Whilst ensuring they understand the advantages and disadvantages associated with online experiences, we want the children at Guilden Sutton C of E Primary School to develop as respectful, responsible and confident users of technology that are fully aware of steps that can be taken to keep themselves and others safe online.
Implementation
As well as ensuring computing is embedded across the curriculum, at Guilden Sutton C of E Primary School it is timetabled through stand-alone lessons that are taught fortnightly. We follow the Kapow Computing condensed scheme which covers all aspects of the National Curriculum and has been organised so that children understand concepts, develop knowledge and skills and so that they progress throughout the year groups. The Kapow Computing scheme is organised into five key areas (Computer systems and networks, Programming, Creating media, Data handling and Online safety), creating a cyclical route through which children can develop their computing knowledge and skills by revisiting and building on previous learning. All children receive the same curriculum offer. Our ambitious, broad and balanced curriculum is adapted to ensure learning for all our children is never narrowed. Computing resources via the Kapow curriculum and additional support are available and utilised where appropriate to further enhance first quality teaching.
Teachers ensure that regular assessment happens in lessons to track progress and identify gaps in children’s skills and provide progressive objectives that ensure children build upon prior learning. Regular feedback from teachers provide opportunities to not only address misconceptions but also deepen and challenge learning through the form of Blooms questioning. Providing children with enrichment opportunities (Digital Wizards Club, Xplore visit) and cross-curricular teaching enhances children’s learning. Subject-specific language is used in lessons and high quality resources enhance children’s proficiency.
As a school, we take online safety very seriously and aim to give children the relevant knowledge and skills to keep themselves safe online. This is done through both computing lessons and Collective Worship assemblies. Each year group engages with a block of work on age-appropriate E-Safety content and current trends which coincides with our behaviour and anti-bullying policies. Safer Internet Day and E-Safety Week are annual events that are celebrated in our school. In an ever-changing environment, we recognise the importance of keeping up-to-date with the needs of the children and aim to keep parents informed also.
Impact
Children at Guilden Sutton C of E Primary School are enthusiastic about the subject and enjoy any opportunity to use their technology skills in their school life. They will become increasingly aware of how computing has shaped the world in which we live as well as being critical and analytical in their thinking. Over their time at our school, children will be able to develop their knowledge and skills through involvement in enrichment activities and in after school clubs. Children will leave school in Year 6 equipped with a range of skills to enable them to succeed in their secondary education and be active participants in the ever-increasing digital world. Here at Guilden Sutton Church of England Primary School, our children are confident users of technology and understand the purpose of Computing and how it can prepare them for the wider world. The vast majority of pupils reach end of year expectations.
Guilden Sutton Church of England Primary School has achieved the national Computing Quality Mark after evaluating its computing education and demonstrating high-quality provision. The Computing Quality Mark is awarded by the National Centre for Computing Education and recognises excellence of computing education offered by a school as part of their curriculum development through the Computing Quality Framework (CQF). The school has been recognised for delivering high-quality computing education to young people, developing their digital skills and preparing them for the future.
