Technology
Technology is everywhere around us! We use technology for education, work, communication and socialising to name a few.
Computer Science
Computer Science allows students, the next generation, to not only be the users of the technology, but also the creators of it. Students are given the opportunity to create digital technology and software for themselves, gaining an understanding of what happens behind the scenes of their digital devices and the computer systems that they encounter on a daily basis.
Students explore the internal hardware structure, computer software and the realms of the internet and world wide web.
Students learn how a system processes information from the data that we input and how an output is generated. Computer Science opens up discussions about the implications of the use of technology, the legal, moral and ethical factors that technology brings. Students develop their programming skills throughout all the key stages, from creating games using Scratch, developing systems using Python and creating databases using Structured Query Language.
Computer Science offers students the skills in which they can use to shape the future development of technology.
Raspberry Pi Challenges and Master Classes
As the curriculum changes in Primary Schools, there is now more of an emphasis on Computer Science. As a school, we want to support these primary schools, as we understand that many schools don’t have the subject knowledge to teach what the government expects.
A Computer Science teacher and a group of Y10 students wanted to support these schools, so they decided to provide local primary schools with a range of masterclasses using Raspberry-Pi technology. The Raspberry Pi is a credit card sized single board computer developed in the United Kingdom by the Raspberry Pi Foundation with the intent to promote the teaching of basic computer science in schools.
The project has been a massive success, with five local Welwyn and Hatfield Primary Schools taking part in the master classes and over 150 students being involved. Each student was given a certificate to confirm that they have completed the master class.
We are aiming to extend this, with two more primary schools getting involved. The master classes have really had a positive effect on the primary school students and teachers, as everyone has been able to learn about the fundamentals of programming and computer science. Computer Science is not just for geeks it’s for everyone…!
Programming Club
Our programming club allows students to challenge themselves beyond their IT and Computing lessons. Students use opportunities to expand the way they computationally think, through programming and applying real-world scenarios to generate fully working coded solutions.
The programming club is run by senior students within the Sixth Form who have a passion for Computer Science at A level. The club is open to all levels of experience from beginners at KS3 to more advance at KS5.
Students develop their programs using the programming language called Python, a language that teaches the basic concepts of programming and encourages students to problem solve by working through errors logically. The skills learnt through programming can be applied to other subjects and support how a student works through a problem.
