Computing

Introduction

This document outlines the knowledge, language and concepts that should be taught in Computing. It includes: • A summary of the Computing knowledge and principles that underpin our approach • Long Term Sequence (curriculum map) for Computing • Progression of Computing including alignment with the National Curriculum, substantive concepts, big ideas and questions as well as Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary It is influenced by documents and research, including https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/research-review-series-computing/research-review-series-computing and the National Centre for Computing Education’s computing taxonomy.

 

Computing is planned so that the retention of knowledge is much more than just ‘in the moment knowledge’.

The cumulative nature of the curriculum is made memorable by the implementation of Bjork’s desirable difficulties, including retrieval and spaced retrieval practice, word building and deliberate practice tasks. This powerful interrelationship between structure and research-led practice is designed to increase substantive knowledge and accelerate learning within and between study modules. That means the foundational knowledge of the curriculum is positioned to ease the load on the working memory: new content is connected to prior learning. The effect of this cumulative model supports opportunities for children to associate and connect significant computing concepts, over time, and with increasing expertise and knowledge.

Our Computing curriculum has sequenced the national curriculum into meaningful and connected ‘chunks’ of content to reduce the load on the working memory as well as creating coherent and strong long-term memories. The sequence of substantive and disciplinary knowledge enables pupils to become ‘more expert’ with each study and grow an ever broadening and coherent mental model of the subject. This guards against superficial, disconnected and fragmented Computing knowledge and weak disciplinary knowledge. High frequency, multiple meaning words (Tier 2) are taught explicitly and help make sense of subject specific words (Tier 3).

Computing contributes to our vision of excellence in the following ways: