Curriculum
Computing
Why study Computing?
Computing is part of just about everything that touches our lives from the cars we drive, to the movies we watch, to the ways businesses and governments deal with us. Understanding different dimensions of computing is part of the necessary skill set for an educated person in the 21st century.
How will I study Computing?
The computing curriculum teaches pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to solve problems. They will learn the principles of information and computation, how digital systems work and how to create programs and systems of their own. As a result, our pupils will become responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology, with the skills to solve problems, design systems and understand human and machine intelligence. They will learn how to apply the academic principles they learn in the classroom to real-world systems in an exciting and engaging way.
What will I study at Key Stage 3?
Students in Year 7 will explore data representation in the form of binary-denary, hexadecimal, bitmap and vector images. They then move onto basic algorithms where they examine computational thinking, written description and flowcharts. Pupils will gain an understanding of hardware and software before moving onto programming techniques such as arithmetic operators. They then begin working with spreadsheets and experience methods of data manipulation such as the Sum, Min/Max functions. It is also important for pupils to have some grounding into cybersecurity and user interfaces where they understand threats to computers and prevention.
In Year 8 pupils will look at data representation in the form of image representation and file sizes, before examining system architecture through the fetch-decode-execute cycle and primary and secondary storage. Their programming techniques develop further through iteration, strings, lists, and data types. Their spreadsheet skills develop further with exploration of macros, and the IF function, before investigating different user interfaces as part of cyber security.
In Year 9 , learners deepen their understanding and examination of data representation where they examine binary shifts, units and compression and characters (Unicode). They also deepen their understanding of programming techniques through arrays, string manipulation and Boolean operators. Their work with spreadsheets develops through understanding how to link sheets, advanced calculations, and further their manipulation through conditional formatting and transposing data. They will also further explore algorithms through trace tables and logic gates (Boolean Logic).
What will I study at Key Stage 4?
Creative iMedia
Students begin with a study of pre -production skills. This covers the purpose and content of pre-production, planning pre-production and producing pre-production documents. Students go onto creating digital graphics. Students study the purpose and properties of digital graphics. They are to plan and create a digital graphic. Optional units cover storytelling with a comic strip. Students study comic strips and their creation. They plan, produce and review a multipage comic strip. Students create interactive multimedia products. They use the properties of interactive multimedia products. Students plan, create and review interactive multimedia products.
Curriculum Overview
Year 7 | Year 8 | Year 9 |
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Year 10 | Year 11 |
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Assessment
KS4 Exam Board Specification: OCR Cambridge National Certificate in Creative iMedia
Overview | Focus |
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Written paper OCR set and marked 1 hour 15 mins 60 marks (60 UMS) |
R081: Pre-production skills |
Centre-assessed tasks OCR-moderated Approx 10 hours 60 marks (60 UMS) |
R082: Creating digital graphics |
Centre-assessed tasks OCR-moderated Approx 10 hours 60 marks (60 UMS) |
R084: Storytelling with a comic strip |
Centre-assessed tasks OCR-moderated Approx 10 hours 60 marks (60 UMS) |
R087: Creating interactive multimedia products |
Enrichment Offer
The Department offers subject-specific enrichment clubs during lunchtime and after school. Intervention sessions to consolidate prior learning and ensure maximum progress are at the heart of our delivery model.
Careers
The study of Computing can lead to future careers ranging from Games Programmer, Digital Content Producer and Software Engineer to Analyst, Formula 1 Engineer and Coder. Famous Computing graduates include James Gosling (creator of Java), Anita Borg (founding director of the Institute for Women and Technology (IWT) and the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing).
Useful Resources and Revision Support