Computing

Welcome to the Computing Department.

Computing at Dormston aims to provide pupils with the skills and knowledge for an ever-evolving digital future. It is an innovative subject designed to challenge and inspire pupils to think logically, critically, and creatively to solve problems. The curriculum is designed carefully to provide a balance of academic and practical elements to empower pupils to become motivated, independent learners. Computing is not just about ensuring pupils achieve academic success, but also building strong transferrable skills essential to world where digital literacy is crucial.

The department boasts 3 dedicated classrooms each with 32 computers. The school benefits from having 2 full time network managers who keep the system operational and up to date with the latest software to support learning.

KS3

In Key Stage 3, pupils are taught a wide range of topics which cover the three main strands of Digital Literacy, Information Technology and Computer Science. As part of a 5-year curriculum, elements of GCSE Computer Science are introduced as early as Year 7 to stretch and challenge pupils. The scheme of work uses units developed by the National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE)

KS4

Pupils who choose to study Computer Science at GCSE will build upon the skills and knowledge developed in Years 7,8 and 9. As pupils have been following the 5 year curriculum, the transition to GCSE from KS3 will be seamless. More challenge and GCSE aspects has been introduced at an earlier stage that helps our pupils prepare for their Computer Science qualification.

How we assess

Key stage 3

Formative assessments are conducted at the mid-point and end of each unit. These assessments are marked and feedback given to pupils to help guide pupils to improve. Teachers are then adaptive on planning subsequent “DO IT NOW!” activities to address common misconceptions.

As Computing is a variety of academic and practical units, a lot of feedback given to pupils is verbal and ad-hoc, allowing pupils to make rapid progress.

Summary of each unit with links to next steps for parents

Year 7

Unit	Topic	Link
7.1 – My Digital Wellbeing	Content	Help & advice \| Childnet
	Text	PowerPoint Tips: Simple Rules for Better PowerPoint Presentations
	Images	10 Easy Tips to Choose the Right Images for Presentations
	Speaker Notes	Adding and Formatting Speaker Notes to a Presentation in PowerPoint 2021/365 – YouTube
	Formatting	Use presentation tools \| Oak National Academy
7.2 – Scratch	Selection	Selection \| Oak National Academy
	Iteration	Count-controlled iteration \| Oak National Academy
	Variables	Program variables \| Oak National Academy
	Broadcasts	Broadcast – Scratch Wiki
	Operators	Operators \| Oak National Academy
7.3 – Spreadsheets	Basic Formulae	Spreadsheet calculations \| Oak National Academy
	Basic Functions	Analysing and visualising data \| Oak National Academy
	Advanced Functions	Excel IF Function Excel COUNTIF Function
	Conditional Formatting	Applying conditional formatting to data \| Oak National Academy
	Charts	Analysing and visualising data \| Oak National Academy
7.4 – Networks	Local networks and their components.	An introduction to computer networks \| Oak National Academy
	How devices on a computer network use protocols to communicate.	Protocols and IP addresses \| Oak National Academy
	Wired and wireless networks	Wired and wireless networks \| Oak National Academy
	The internet	The internet \| Oak National Academy
	Internet of Things	Internet of Things \| Oak National Academy
	Exploring the World Wide Web (WWW)	Exploring the World Wide Web (WWW) \| Oak National Academy

Year 8

Unit	Topic	Link
8.1 – Computer Systems	Inside a computer	Internal components of a computer — Isaac Computer Science
	Input and output devices	Computer devices – Digital devices – KS3 Computer Science Revision – BBC Bitesize
	RAM and ROM	Primary storage – Memory and storage – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
	Secondary Storage	Secondary storage – Memory and storage – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
	The CPU	The fetch-decode-execute cycle – Systems architecture – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
8.2 – Python Programming	Sequencing	Writing a text-based program \| Oak National Academy
	Variables, Arithmetic Operators, Comparison Operators	Working with numerical inputs \| Oak National Academy
	Selection	Using selection \| Oak National Academy
	Iteration	Iteration using while loops \| Oak National Academy
8.3 – Data Representation	Binary Conversion	Binary and denary – Units and data representation – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
	Binary Addition	Binary addition – Units and data representation – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
	Images	Images – Units and data representation – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize
	Logic Gates	AND gates – Boolean logic – OCR – GCSE Computer Science Revision – OCR – BBC Bitesize

Year 9

Unit	Topic	Link
9.1 – Cyber Security	Protecting Personal data	Protecting personal data \| Oak National Academy
	Social Engineering	Social engineering \| Oak National Academy
	Hacking and Brute Force Attacks	Hacking and brute force attacks \| Oak National Academy
	Malicious Software	Malicious software \| Oak National Academy
	Protecting networks from security threats	Protecting networks from security threats \| Oak National Academy
	Preventing cyber attacks	Preventing cyber attacks \| Oak National Academy
9.2 – Physical Programming	Introduction lesson	Hello physical world \| Oak National Academy
	Explore micro:bit hardware components	Bare bones \| Oak National Academy
	Microbit Projects	Make it: code it \| micro:bit
9.3 – Data Science	Introduction to Data Science and Visualising Data	Delving into data science \| Oak National Academy
	Global Data	Global data \| Oak National Academy
	The Investigative Cycle	Statistical state of mind \| Oak National Academy
	Data Cleansing	Clean it up \| Oak National Academy

Key stage 4

Similar to Key stage 3, formal assessments take place at the end of each unit, however pupils conduct detailed, forensic question level analysis to help identify their areas for improvement. For each unit of work, pupils complete a PowerPoint “workbook” is developed to be used as a Knowledge Organiser when preparing for further assessments and exams. Again, like Key Stage 3, there is a lot of verbal feedback given during practical elements and pupils are encouraged to self-assess their work to help identify next steps.

Subject specific websites to support independent learning and revision

Key Stage 3

Oak Academy – Computing lessons for Key Stage 3 students – Oak National Academy (thenational.academy)

BBC Bitesize – KS3 Computer Science – BBC Bitesize

Scratch – Scratch – Imagine, Program, Share (mit.edu)

Repl.it online coding environment – Home – Replit

BBC Click YouTube Channel – BBC Click – YouTube

Key Stage 4

Craig n Dave YouTube Channel – Craig’n’Dave – YouTube

BBC Click YouTube Channel – BBC Click – YouTube

BBC Bitesize – GCSE Computer Science – OCR – BBC Bitesize

Seneca Learning – Free Homework & Revision for A Level, GCSE, KS3 & KS2 (senecalearning.com)

Repl.it online coding environment – Home – Replit

Trips & Visits

Previous school trips have included looking at control systems at Alton Towers and code breaking at Bletchley Park.

Our Knowledge Organisers

Key Stage 3

As this is a brand new scheme of work, these are currently being produced and will be uploaded as soon as they are complete

Key Stage 4

Pupils use their completed PowerPoint workbooks as knowledge organisers. In addition to this, CGP Revision guides are provided for pupils when possible.

Non-Required Work

Non-required work in Computing/Business can be found on Go4Schools. This will be set as an ongoing homework task throughout the academic year and will reflect the units studies by that year group.