Manor Junior School Policy for Information Technology

Introduction
This is a statement of the aims, principles and strategies for teaching and learning of Information Technology at Manor Junior School. It was developed in December 1997, through a process of consultation with teaching staff. It was approved by the governing body in conjunction with the Policy for Teaching and Learning. This policy will be reviewed annually. A schedule for the review is set out in the school’s development plan.

Definition
Information Technology is the use of computer equipment and software to communicate and handle information in order to support problem solving, recording and expressive work.

Principles of Information Technology

Information Technology is rapidly becoming an integral part of today’s society. It is taught at Manor Junior to enable children to develop the fundamental I.T. skills which will enable them to access and support learning in all other National Curriculum subjects and prepare each child for tomorrows technological future.

• The Information Technology component of the National Curriculum is detailed in the IT Attainment Target in the National Curriculum document.
• Use of IT is also specified in all subjects of the National Curriculum.
• Pupils should be capable of using IT across the whole curriculum. The programmes of study should be seen as the minimum entitlement for all pupils.

Manor Junior School’s I.T. curriculum should provide pupils with the learning experiences that will enable them to:

• Learn basic I.T. skills in a structured manner;
• Develop and extend an awareness of the computers in school and their programs;.
• Explore robots and control though first hand experiences;

• To provide each child with a fair and balanced share of computer time.
• Increase each individual child’s awareness and capabilities when using a computer
• Develop the confidence to communicate through word processing, painting, controlling and data handling;
• To be an active participant in problem solving and troubleshooting activities.

Strategies for Teaching Information Communication Technology

I.T. is a core subject in the National Curriculum. It is divided into four main areas of activity at Key Stage 2 namely, Communicating & Handling Information, Controlling, Monitoring and Modelling.

I.T. is a major resource which is used across the curriculum. Children should be taught key I.T. skills using the following strategies:-

• Teacher demonstrations.
• Children observing good practice displayed by their peers
• Classroom helpers

Strategies for Ensuring Progression and Continuity

• To facilitate continuity from year to year given the range of computers available in the school. There should be an agreed set of software applications used across the year group.
• The choice of the software applications and tasks should provide for the progression of each pupil

Responsibility of the I.T. Co-ordinator

The co-ordinator is responsible for the day to day implementation of I.T. and the I.T. policy and:

• ensuring that the I.T. policy is implemented consistently throughout the school
• establishing collaboration between year groups;
• ensuring assessment and recording of each pupil’s I.T. capability;
• organising resources to support the I.T. policy and its priorities;
• ensuring safety of equipment;
• co-ordinating the purchase and maintenance of equipment;
• assisting curriculum and year leaders, and other teachers, to incorporate I.T.
• arranging in-service support;
• providing advice;
• monitoring and reviewing I.T. practice and provision;
• involving all staff in the review and development of I.T. policy;
• keeping up-to-date on the use of I.T. in the curriculum;
• liaising with other schools;
• liaising with LEA advisory services and other agencies;

Assessment

Record keeping in Manor Junior is relatively simple as all the tasks are intended to be achieved by all children. A running record which commences at Year 3 and follows the child through to Year 6 will form the basis of record keeping. The targets are learning outcomes which can be monitored by observation and other means as appropriate. Each target is the minimum required to be achieved by the end of each academic year.

Strategies for the Use of Resources

The Computer and accompanying resources are the responsibility of the class teachers who ensure that:-

• All children know where resources are kept and the rules about access and use
• All children know what they must not touch for reasons of safety and privacy.
• During planning meetings, the rotation of a computer with CD-Rom facilities should be rotated within the year group ensuring access to all pupils within that year group.
• Software for the CD-Rom will be distributed termly in accordance with each yuear groups planning requirements. Each CD should be signed for and remains the responsibility of the year group until it is returned. A list of available CD’s are listed in the I.T. Folder (Red)

The development of central resources is the responsibility of the I.T. Co-ordinator. Maintaining the resources is the responsibility of all.

Time is a valuable resource. To maximise its use:

• At the younger end- children’s time is closely organised by the teachers. Children should work in pairs when using the computer and be guided by either a child with more confident computer knowledge or a parent.
• As the children progress they are encouraged to undertake a more independent approach to utilising I.T. for example research skills.

• All computer equipment will be covered by the Authorities subscription to an external maintenance contract.
• Any faults to the equipment should be reported to the I.T. Co-ordinator
• All equipment should be unplugged and covered over at night where appropriate and kept clean from dust.
• Disks and CD’s should be handled carefully, kept free from dust and returned to their containers when not in use.
• Programs should be exited properly and hard disks should be "shut down" correctly.

Health and Safety Issues in I.T. include:-

• Children and staff should be taught safe use of the computer
• Staff should be aware of current European guidelines in particular that 40 minutes is the maximum time that any child should spend in front of a computer in any one session.
• Staff should ensure there is no reflection on the monitor (i.e. sunlight)
• Staff should ensure there are no dangling cables or extension leads trailing around.
• EC regulations state that chairs of the correct height accompany computer trolleys
• Children are not allowed to switch on using the mains switch.
• The National Curriculum together with The Borough acts as the foundation upon which this policy is based.