Information Technology

This strand of the curriculum equates to what was most of the areas from the old ICT scheme of work. Most of it can be covered by using technology to support other subject areas though it may be necessary to teach some discrete skills.  Students should understand that technology is everywhere, be able to identify the technology they encounter and have a basic understanding of how it works. This will link to work on programming and algorithms.

Appropriate activities include word processing, creating images, taking and using photographs and video, creating music and animations, using and creating databases, producing websites and contributing to blogs. As well as creation of digital materials pupils should have experience of manipulating and editing their own work and resources from elsewhere. They need to know how to use the tools available but also to have an element of digital literacy – awareness of audience and good design principles. Pupils should experience a range of different applications and software, initially the teacher will select the programs they use but over time pupils should be encouraged to make decisions themselves.

Pupils also need to know how to store and organise their files so that it can easily be found again. They need an understanding of the devices they can use including: hard drive, USB sticks, school network server, and the cloud storage on the internet.