COMPUTING IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF SCHOOL LIFE AT OUR LADY OF LOURDES.

It is used across the curriculum and discretely with children using Chrome Books and PC’s as naturally as any other classroom resource.  We are aware that continuing professional development for staff is paramount to success, positive promotion and Internet safety in school.

Computing at Our Lady of Lourdes caters for all children, taking into consideration all learning styles as well as SEN and Gifted and Talented children.  We aim to teach pupils to use equipment and software confidently and purposefully.  We aim for our children to become digitally literate, to be able to use and express themselves and develop their learning and ideas through information and communication technology, at a level suitable for future learning and as active participants in a digital world.

We believe that the Internet offers a valuable resource for teachers and children and, whilst it is recognised that there are risks to using it, there are many more advantages. Through our RSE programme as well as discrete Computing scheme, we aim to ensure that our children are knowledgeable about E-Safety and use it with wisdom to make safe choices. Our Acceptable Use Policy sets out measures to be taken to minimise risks. The safe use of technology enables our children to demonstrate our school virtues of being attentive and discerning.  

Implementation

A high-quality computing education equips pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world. Computing has deep links with mathematics, science, and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems. Children are taught through weekly lessons, and are encouraged to use the skills that they are taught in other areas across the curriculum. The children have access to iPads, Chrome Books and desktop PC’s. They use GSuite for learning activities and have their own Tapestry account in EYFS. The Seesaw platform is used as a learning environment for homework, and school communication and the Tapestry account is used by the children in EYFS as a communication tool between themselves and home. Computing links all areas of the curriculum and is taught within the class topic in EYFS and discretely from year 1 upwards.

Impact

Our curriculum for computing aims to ensure that all pupils:

• can use understanding to understand and apply the fundamental principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation
• can use persistence to analyse problems in computational terms, and have repeated practical experience of working with computer programs in order to solve such problems
• can evaluate and apply information technology, including new or unfamiliar technologies, analytically to solve problems
• are responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology.

We believe that the computing curriculum at our school will allow all children to become confident users of technology, therefore equipping them for their future lives.