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Make your classroom a hub of ideas While coding is a key element of the computing curriculum, it isn’t all about teaching students technical skills. Integral to technology is the ability to think creatively and to come up with ingenious solutions to real world problems. This is something I am always keen to portray to my students, and it’s a great way to help them realise the true potential of what they are learning. For instance, as part of a lesson earlier this term, I asked my Year 6 class what one thing they would do if they could create a program for anything. A simple question, but one that sparked a number of brilliant ideas, from preventing wars to controlling the minds of pesky siblings! While of course they aren’t actually in a position to create such things (yet), it was a great way to demonstrate the infinite possibilities and exciting opportunities associated with coding; think quantum computing, artificial intelligence, working for the secret services. Taking that even further, it’s a skill which will prepare students for jobs which don’t even exist yet and therefore it’s incredibly important to encourage them to see beyond what’s possible and to have the confidence to think outside of the box.
Don’t just save learning for lesson time I believe that learning should not be confined to the classroom, and that teachers should trust students to use resources and computer rooms outside of lesson times. While most computer rooms aren’t large enough to accommodate all students at once, devising a rota based on year groups can be a good way to ensure that all students have equal access to this. Student-led clubs are also a very effective way to boost engagement and are something we actively encourage here at Ickford. When we first introduced the FUZE, for example, one of our students who was particularly adept at using it set up a mini code club to help other students develop their programming skills. Considering that she hosted the club during lunchtime, it was wonderful to see so many students forfeiting part of their break to take part; I think there’s definitely something to be said for student-to-student learning. For us, computing has been a welcome addition to the new National Curriculum. While it’s a change that has, and will undoubtedly continue, to challenge schools, it also has the
“I believe that learning should not be confined to the classroom, and that teachers should trust students to use resources and computer rooms outside of lesson times”
potential to equip students with the skills needed for a beter future. Therefore, schools should not be afraid to reassess their current scheme of work and teachers should not be put off by a lack of prior computing experience;
utilise resources, challenge the status quo and enable students to lead their own learning. After all, it’s very possible that they’ll be leading the future of the technology industry one day, and they’ve got to start somewhere. ET
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