Incorporating IT and Computer Science into the Curriculum at Accrington Academy
Integrating Information Technology (IT) and Computer Science (CS) into the curriculum is essential for enhancing students' digital literacy. In today's digital world, proficiency in technology is crucial for success in both personal and professional settings. By equipping students with these skills, we ensure they are not only consumers but also creators and innovators in a technology-driven society.
At Accrington Academy, IT and Computing play a vital role in fostering students’ computational thinking and creativity, enabling them to understand and impact the world around them. Our Computing curriculum empowers students to become digitally literate—confident in expressing themselves and developing ideas through information and communication technology.
The skills developed through computing lessons prepare students for the future workplace, aligning with our mission to create “digital learners, ready for the next generation.” Our curriculum equips students with the competencies to adopt and utilize new technologies responsibly and safely. Students gain the skills needed for a dynamic digital workplace and insight into potential career opportunities. By cultivating digital literacy and competency, we promote creativity, resilience, problem-solving, and critical thinking.
The curriculum incorporates three main pillars: Digital Literacy, IT, and Computer Science, woven throughout Key Stage 3 (KS3).
Key Stage 3 Computing Curriculum
Upon joining the academy, Year 7 students receive a strong foundation in e-safety through PSHE and their initial IT. Through realistic scenarios, students learn strategies to address potential online risks effectively. Year 7 introduces essential skills for accessing computers and using software packages, including presentation software, Microsoft Teams, and OneDrive as well as word processing and file management.
The curriculum also covers Computer Science fundamentals, such as binary concepts, CPU basics, and foundational programming principles, including sequence, selection, and iteration. These concepts are introduced using Scratch, a block-based programming environment that fosters understanding of programming constructs before advancing to text-based programming. Additionally, Year 7 students explore digital information topics such as encryption and data manipulation using spreadsheet software.
The Year 8 curriculum builds on Year 7 concepts, progressively increasing in complexity. Students continue coding in Scratch and transition to a text-based programming environment, Python, allowing for a more detailed exploration of algorithms, data modelling, and spreadsheet skills. This progression reinforces foundational skills while fostering greater independence in problem-solving.
In Year 9, students delve deeper into Computer Science with a focus on programming techniques using Python in an Integrated Development Environment (IDE). The curriculum also introduces digital information technology interface development, which prepares students for Key Stage 4 (KS4) studies in Digital Information Technology. Within the technology rotation, students further develop their skills by exploring bitmap and vector graphics during photography lessons.
The students then have the option of pursuing Digital information technology Level 2 BTEC or GCSE Computer Science at KS4.
The Computer Science and IT curriculum at Accrington Academy equips students with essential digital skills and prepares them to thrive in a technology-driven world. By incorporating industry-leading software such as the Microsoft Office Suite and teaching Python—the world’s most widely-used programming language—our curriculum ensures students gain hands-on experience with tools that are integral to modern workplaces. This foundation not only develops their digital literacy but also empowers them as skilled, responsible, and innovative users of technology, ready to excel in their future academic and professional endeavours.