Teach Computing Curriculum: updates to the secondary journey
In August, we made several updates to the Teach Computing Curriculum (TCC), and as of September 1, all updates are now complete. Here’s a summary of the changes made over the summer:
Updates now complete:
1. Deeper thinking opportunities
You mentioned that the Teach Computing Curriculum needed more opportunities for deeper thinking about content covered in the curriculum. In response, we reviewed all relevant units and updated the unit guides to highlight areas where teachers can encourage students to engage more critically with the material.
2. Identifying common misconceptions
Feedback also suggested the need for better identification of common misconceptions. We worked with expert computer science teachers to gather common misconceptions and develop tailored strategies to address them. Key misconceptions have been identified for each unit in key stage 3 and key stage 4, and we’ve included these in the updated unit guides to help prevent misunderstandings in students’ learning.
3. Access for all schools
Some schools highlighted difficulties accessing the full curriculum due to reliance on Google services. We have now ensured that alternatives are available for schools using different platforms. All units and lessons from key stage 1 to key stage 4 have been reviewed, and adjustments made to ensure equal access, regardless of the tools your school uses.
In addition, we have refined our secondary question banks, providing feedback on why each question is correct. We are also publishing Google and Microsoft forms for each TCC unit, complete with feedback for students. These will be available on the unit pages via a new access button for teachers.
Other resources to help you along your journey
As well as the Teach Computing Curriculum, there is also the Isaac Computer Science platform – the free online textbook for GCSE and A level students of computer science - to help support teachers and students from key stages 4 to 5.
We hope you enjoy using the updated Teach Computing Curriculum, and we encourage you to continue providing feedback through the links on the lesson pages!