ICT MATERIALS

ICT has a NATIONAL STRATEGY which goes beyond that of the other subjects in that there are freely downloadable from the QCA. These contain ALL the necessary information required to teach

I have identified a number of useful sites which will help both staff and students with the NATIONAL STRATEGY. I would anticipate that this would be most useful to the former, as the latter are unlikely to see the benefit of independent research at this age...

The KEY STAGE 3 area of the site is excellent and has some useful materials: Schemes of Work, Terminology Sheets, Checklists and other resources. Take a look..

The information has also been reinterpreted at a number of places. Several advisors and authorities have been kind enough to place their work on the Internet for mass consumption, and it is MUCH APPRECIATED! (We need a lot more of this collaborative work...)

Check out the excellent ICY TEA site at Finchley Catholic High School (say ICT and it sounds a bit like....ICY TEA) This focuses at the moment on Key Stage 3, although more GCSE and AS content is promised. Some great stuff, especially the FLOWOL demo VIDEOS which are in SHOCKWAVE FLASH format and can be saved if you have a FLASH GRABBER. A load of videos on key skills by clicking the VIDEOS button. Enjoy. This has some great adaptations of the tired old QCA stuff. Highly recommended.

Also worth visiting the site of the Norfolk Secondary Strategy for ICT. Hosted on the ESINET of Norfolk County Council, it features a range of downloadable resources and advice, and was recommended by Richard Gates. There are also updates on websites which are helpful for teaching KS3 ICT.

As with other subjects in the Foundation Subjects strand, the aim should be to introduce the 3 stage lesson scheme:

There will also be a certain amount of ROLLING FORWARD each year, as Year 8 will not be doing the Year 7 SoW for 2004-5

Also a stress on the use of Intervention, Effective questioning and Assessment for Learning

1. Using ICT

2. Information and presentation

3. Processing text and images

4. Models - rules and investigations

5. Data - designing structure, capturing and presenting data

6. Control - input, process and output

7. Measuring physical data

8. Public information systems (WEATHER INFORMATION SYSTEM)

9. Publishing on the web

10. Information - reliability, validity and bias

11. Data - use and misuse

12. Systems - integrating applications to find solutions

13. Control systems

14. Global communication - negotiating and transferring data

15. Systems - managing a project

Because we are introducing this at KEY STAGE 3, we will be using the same units with YEAR 7 and YEAR 8 groups as part of a rolling programme to introduce new programmes of study at Key Stage 3. From next year, the Year 8 groups will obviously have already been through the Year 7 work, and will move on to the next level.

7.1 - 1. Selecting and organising content for a presentation

2. Selecting and using appropriate images

3. Selecting and using appropriate fonts and colours

4. Selecting and using appropriate sounds

5. Modifying the style of a presentation for a different audience

6. Modifying the content of a presentation for a different audience

7.2 - 1. Matching information to purpose

2. Selecting sources and finding relevant information

3. Assessing the reliability of information

7.3 - 1. Corporate image

2. Designing a leaflet

3. Creating a logo

4 & 5. Capturing images fit for purpose

6. Creating a folded leaflet

7.4 - 1. Using a spreadsheet

2. Modelling using a spreadsheet

3. Using a spreadsheet to build a model

4. Refining and developing a model

5. Ways of presenting data from a spreadsheet

7.5 - 1. Evaluating and interrogating an existing data set

2. Presenting information in different formats to test hypotheses

3. Designing a questionnaire to collect data

4. Creating a questionnaire and designing a data handling file structure to answer a key question

5. Entering, checking and testing data

6. Drawing conclusions and selecting data to support them

7.5 - 1. Control systems

Use of the FLOWOL software

Control system - programming

7. 1 basically looks at the POWERPOINT software and the various aspects of using this product

7.2 investigates the issues surrounding searching for information on the INTERNET and assessing the validity and usefulness of different websites on the same topic

7.5 looks at using data in a spreadsheet to produce a report based on the testing of hypotheses, and how file structure needs to be considered at the stage when questionnaires are being developed so that data can be handled appropriately

7.6 is concerned with CONTROL TECHNOLOGY and starts with some very interesting short films of traffic lights changing...

This unit is the first of the Year 7 units, and introduces the students to a piece of software called POWERPOINT (although there are other Presentation Graphics options...)

Students will be introduced to the school network, for some they will not have been in a dedicated computer suite before, so they have to be taught basic protocols. They have to be shown how to log on to the school network (passwords are provided to all Year 7's in the first lesson of the year when they are with their form tutors..)

Materials are available on the administration server, and also on staff laptops: these have been downloaded from the QCA site.

One area of their site offers PUPIL LEARNING OBJECTIVES for the ICT Key Stage 3 Strategy - they may extend this to other subjects, notably Geography later perhaps.

The OXFORDSHIRE County Council site has some useful PUPIL CHECK SHEETS which I shall certainly be using to aid ASSESSMENT, and you might find them useful too. If in doubt, have a look at what others have done before doing anything yourself.

For Unit 7.1 for example, which I started working through in September 2003 with 4 different groups (oh well, it saves on lesson preparation time...) there are a series of checks which can be ticked by both the pupil and the teacher. Recommended.

Explores ideas of SEARCHING, and how to narrow down searches to find what you actually want, rather than what's available when you do a fairly open search.

Starts with some sites such as the BBC and Amazon, then moves on to LONDON along with some other searches on TOWER OF LONDON before looking at how the provenance of sites can be a little hard to decide.

Followed by a leaflet on KES, which had to be designed by the student using the design theories that had been explained and illustrated by the work so far. Need to consider PURPOSE and AUDIENCE in all.

Will then move on to producing LOGOS for a range of subjects at school. This includes a piece of work looking at LOGOS.

7.4: Using SPREADSHEETS - Introduction to Modelling and presenting numeric data

This starts with a useful Powerpoint presentation which looks at a DATASET of information on visits to the UK by people from outside the UK. Students are shown how to interrogate the dataset, having first assured themselves that the data is RELIABLE, ACCURATE and RELEVANT.

The unit looks at how data can be entered into spreadsheets and how they can be formatted. It also looks at the replication of data, and how formulae can be copied from one cell to another.

Students build up a DISCO model which shows how a spreadsheet can be used to make predictions on profits by changing the variables and the various elements which make up the model.

The next stage is for the students to explore the validity of data and to collect some data of their own. This involves designing questionnaires to investigate PUBLIC TRANSPORT in their own town (a link with GEOGRAPHY here...good to see)

Primary colleagues will perhaps be familiar with the tremendous resources available at MAPE (now NAACE) - try the CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES for some great DATABASE SORTING activities such as Sherlock Holmes and Greenfield Road (based on DATABASES) - also a useful RANDOM NUMBER generator for those RANDOM SAMPLING exercises you may be doing to collect data for entry.

This starts out with a fascinating video showing TRAFFIC LIGHTS at work followed by some discussion of why it is that cars don't collide. Perhaps this would be better explained by a little trip out to your nearest set of traffic lights but who has the time these days ?

The unit involves a piece of software called FLOWOL which needs to be on the school network. It gives you the opportunity to CONTROL and MIMIC the activity of a set of TRAFFIC LIGHTS and then set up a flowchart which controls the way in which the traffic lights change, and the delay on each of the colours.

Computers obviously control other things too, and can be found in many household appliances and most modern cars in some capacity.

An online walk through of the early stages of the use of the software can be found courtesy of CHERWELL SCHOOL in Oxfordshire. Go HERE for the INDEX page of a series of pages which take you through and introduce you to the main features of the software.

It makes use of what are called MIMICS. These (not surprisingly) mimic certain situations, e.g. a pelican crossing or a traffic light sequence, which can then be programmed to occur, and it takes place on the screen in front of you. It's actually quite neat and good to see it all working.

The NC ACTION page includes information on coming to a JUDGEMENT on the quality of work during the Key Stage. As well as the reporting for Year reports, there needs to be an end of Key Stage report.

This judgement cannot be made on a single piece of work. A piece of work could provide a partial description of each key stage level, but a 'portfolio' of work will probably need to be built up - perhaps in pupil folders which the teacher will have administrative access to.

The NC ACTION page is not intended to be a model for all teachers to follow, but it does give some information on how the assessment could be carried out.

Some of the evidence may be ephemeral and come from observation of the groups. This may not always be evident in a print out, as the pupil will have worked through a DECISION MAKING process.

We will start by placing each pupil on a 3 tier level depending on the progress that has been made, helped by a spreadsheet which has been set up for the purpose.

Thanks to colleague Mr. Shaw for inspiring the production of this COVER LESSON / STOP GAP / END OF UNIT piece of work which draws together strands from various topics.

Download the task from HERE. It can take 2 to 3 weeks depending on the group. It brings in various aspects of other units.

YEAR	AUTUMN	SPRING	SUMMER
7	7.1, 7.2 & 7.3	7.4 & 7.5	7.6 & Measuring Physical Data
8	8.2: Web Site Design (minus the 'boring bit')	8.3 & 8.4	8.5
9	Control Systems	Global Communications	Systems: managing a project