“If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.”

John Dewey

In our fast paced and everchanging world, information and communications technology are a vital aspect of our children’s lives and futures.

At St. Luke’s we look to foster pupils’ development in understanding the place technology has in the world, how we can use it safely and the skills needed to thrive in an increasingly technological world. It is essential that learners are prepared with the skills to develop digital media literacy and computational thinking in a safe and responsible manner. Through targeted workshops with Online Safety experts and themed Internet Safety days, we encourage pupils to explore ways to make the internet better together and share strategies for coping with negative experiences online. This includes; what is safe and unsafe for them to do online, identifying untrustworthy sites, distinguishing between real and fake news, how to report and block unwanted communication and who to contact if they’re worried about something they have seen online.

However, Computing is not a standalone subject. Technology has become part of our everyday life whether we are reading, shopping, calculating or being entertained. Computing is taught explicitly but also utilised in many non-computing subjects to support pupil engagement but also in the strengthening of their computing skills. For example, co-authoring a piece of writing online using Purple Mash, creating a video to dramatise a period of time learned in History or creating a song to help learn and retain new languages learned in Modern Foreign Language courses.

In addition, through educational workshop opportunities, school and home learning with Purple Mash, and weekly Computing lessons; St. Luke’s learners will explore computer science, digital systems, sound engineering, computers/hardware and coding within discrete lessons as well as develop their skills for later life in this digital world.

Pupils are preparing for careers that may not even exist yet and computing at St. Luke’s aims to provide the opportunity to develop creativity, logic, communication and problem-solving to lead them into their future.

“Tech gives the quietest student a voice.”

Jerry Blumengarten