IT curriculum

[Spree]

Does anyone understand what the IT curriculum is all about?

DS is in Yr8 and over the last year has learnt Access, Excel & HTML.

His homework this week is to spend 10mins / day touch typing on some bbc website?

Am I the only parent who thinks the UK IT curriculum is a bit out of touch?

Most Yr8 kids today have been using computers since they were knee high and today's technology is moving away from laptops / PCs towards tablets and tabs.

I'm just wondering why they don't do app development or things like that? (although I see the school is offering it as an after school).

App development/programming requires a higher level of knowledge than most teachers have,

Some schools do games/app/programming development through interface programs (scratch, Alice, dreamweaver). There is a drive for another subject at KS4 linking from KS3 that is/has been developed called computer sciences but as to how far it will get is yet to be seen.

But that's exactly my point, if all he learns will be out of date by the time he gets to work, surely it would be better for the curriculum to let him learn what's current.

We're always told when buying computers, phones or tabs to buy the latest generation so the thing doesn't go obsolete so quickly.

Why is it then that when our kids are learning technology at school, they are learning the stuff which goes obsolete most quickly?

I taught myself HTML coding 17 years ago and I see my son learning the same thing today when there are programmes which already do HTML automatically.

I'm just not sure what direction the UK IT curriculum is meant to be heading for this age group.

The government agrees with you.

We are currently in a period of transition. The ICT curriculum is being replaced on the basis that it is outdated and the subject is being renamed as ICT is felt to have negative connotations. From September 2014 there will be a new computing curriculum with the emphasis being on computational thinking and practical programming skills. The draft programmes of study for the new national curriculum in all subjects were published in July and can be seen here. The Computing section starts on p188.

It is changing, Spree -the new National Curriculum which is intended to operate from 2014 renames ICT as Computing and has a greater emphasis on programming - for example in Key stage 3:

"Pupils should be taught to:
 design, use and evaluate computational abstractions that model the state and behaviour of real-world problems and physical systems
 understand several key algorithms that reflect computational thinking, such as ones for sorting and searching; use logical reasoning to compare the utility of alternative algorithms for the same problem
 use two or more programming languages, at least one of which is textual, to solve a variety of computational problems; make appropriate use of data structures such as lists, tables or arrays; design and develop modular programs that use procedures or functions
 understand simple Boolean logic (such as AND, OR and NOT) and some of its uses in circuits and programming
 understand the hardware and software components that make up computer systems, and how they communicate with one another and with other systems
 understand how instructions are stored and executed within a computer system; understand how data of various types (including text, sounds and pictures) can be represented and manipulated digitally, in the form of binary digits
 understand and use binary digits, such as to be able to convert between binary and decimal and perform simple binary addition
 undertake creative projects that involve selecting, using, and combining multiple applications, preferably across a range of devices, to achieve challenging goals, including collecting and analysing data and meeting the needs of known users
 create, re-use, revise and re-purpose digital artefacts for a given audience, with attention to trustworthiness, design and usability
 understand a range of ways to use technology safely, respectfully, responsibly and securely, including protecting their online identity and privacy; recognise inappropriate content, contact and conduct and know how to report concerns."

(Though I am now wondering if you are in Scotland, as most English schools haven't gone back yet, in which case, this may not apply to you)

But that's exactly my point, if all he learns will be out of date by the time he gets to work, surely it would be better for the curriculum to let him learn what's current.

We're always told when buying computers, phones or tabs to buy the latest generation so the thing doesn't go obsolete so quickly.

Why is it then that when our kids are learning technology at school, they are learning the stuff which goes obsolete most quickly?

I taught myself HTML coding 17 years ago and I see my son learning the same thing today when there are programmes which already do HTML automatically.

I'm just not sure what direction the UK IT curriculum is meant to be heading for this age group.

Since we can't recruit enough specialist IT teachers I'm delighted if my DDs learn anything at all.

As far as I can see at one point it was DD1 teaching the others Scratch (and she doesn't know that much).

She certainly hasn't learnt anything as useful as Excel since DH has been teaching her that this holidays.

Sorry - posted twice.

I am abroad and DS attends a British curriculum school, which really means the curriculum is based on English schools.

So good to read that a revamp is underway

"But that's exactly my point, if all he learns will be out of date by the time he gets to work, surely it would be better for the curriculum to let him learn what's current."

But I disagree that Access, Excel, Word and Powerpoint are out of date. They are still widely in use in most workplaces. They give the basic grounding.

Sure kids have learnt to use computers, set them up, set up servers, install stuff, play games and use apps on their tablets etc with confidence and ease. But that is every day. It is true it is moving fast.

I had an Amstrad when I was 11, this was "The Future" and I was considered a geek for hanging out with the computer games boys.
I still learnt touch typing on old fashioned type writers during my first year of secondary, and chose Wordprocessing in my second year. The first month was for the kids who had not done any touch typing to catch up. I learnt Word Perfect. Mindblowing. I was in awe when Wordperfect 5.2 came out.
My first job was the summer i turned 16, I taught Wordperfect to an accounts deparment of a local business. It revolutionized how they handled writing letters!

The point I am trying to make is that even if the development is moving fast, they have to start somewhere, and the aforementioned programmes will give a good grounding, especially because they are very visual, very logical and still relevant.

Apps are so intuitive, anyone can learn to use them. Todays highly graphical interfaces make it possible to just touch your way to the end result. There is nothing to learn really.

And why waste time learning apps programming in school when most kids with a mind for it will work it out and do it anyway because of their interest.

I still think programming languages are the way to go, c and c++, html are still in use, and a good starting point before learning java, perl, poppet and the modern languages I dont even remember the names off.

Being "up to date" brings in another issue.

What school can afford to send their staff away every time there is an "improvement" in computers?

But automatic HTML is generally bad HTML, Spreadsheets/databases/touchtyping don't change an awful lot and a basic grounding is a good idea.

The number of people who can't manage a mail merge or handle their email or even just figure out where to get help to perform a task is ridiculous.

I do think that more should be taught around the social impact side - privacy, ethics etc. rather than just practical things, but a grounding in the practical things is important.

Back when I was at primary school we did Logo - if you're going to teach programming, there's no need to leap straight to the most recent languages (which the teachers will not be able to teach properly anyhow) a good grounding in algorithms, logical thinking etc. in an ancient language is just as good.

In my day job I'm a programmer. I use a very modern language, but so many of the techniques I use, the theories and strategies were first talked about in papers from the 70s. There's nothing wrong with learning the classics!

Well firstly, at the moment there is NO British IT curriculum as prh47bridge said earlier. In fact, it was parents about 17 years ago who demanded that their children be trained in office based software so that their offspring would not be disadvantaged in the workplace with the then new influx of IT systems. Hence Tony Blair introduced his new ICT curriculum. Lo and behold, this has now become unfashionable and a computing curriculum is being introduced.

Secondly, you need to take a step back and consider what your DC is learning. Is it the "language" or is it more hollistic skills instead? I'll take your HTML example (and as a HTML/XML specialist I question your 'out of date' point) and what your DC is learning is to be accurate, learning sequencing, the basics of how a web page is put together without using pre-made software, being able to see the results of programming immediately and shock horror, using a free platform which means parents don't have to worry about spending a lot of money at home.

The new ICT curriculum looks set to be fully introduced at the start of next September and therefore, current teachers have been adapting a scheme of work to fit their own students, fit current requirements, please inspectors and try to change it for the better, all under a zero budget.

ICT and Computing is not just about using software, it encompasses so much more than that and as long as your DC gets a good grounding, then they should be adaptable to it come the workplace.