Supporting autistic pupils in primary computing

CO291 Online course

Plan and teach an effective computing curriculum for autistic pupils working at primary level.

Leadership Computing Key stage 1 Key stage 2 Teach primary computing certificate

Free online course 6 hours

Computing offers great opportunities to autistic young people, but effective teaching and curriculum planning can be challenging. This CPD, developed for teachers of autistic pupils working at primary level in primary schools, special schools and autism units, uses evidence-based approaches and draws on the experience and knowledge of successful teachers. You’ll consider the goals for you and your pupils, and how these can be achieved through high-quality teaching, adapted resources and considered planning of programmes of study.

Who is it for?

Teachers of pupils working with learners on the autism spectrum who are working at a primary level in computing.

Topics covered

Computing curriculum in context – You’ll consider the barriers and opportunities for autistic young people in computing, and contextualise the Teach Computing Curriculum to their needs and interests. This session also covers the importance of digital literacy for autistic learners and how to build resilience.

Applying Generic Pedagogy in Computing – This session covers the impact that autism can have on pupils’ learning and how to apply general pedagogy to teaching computing effectively. You will investigate how to support engagement and collaborative learning in the creating media and data and information strands of the curriculum.

Computing-specific pedagogy – You’ll receive an overview of different subject-specific pedagogies that can be used to effectively teach programming. The focus is on approaches that are straightforward to implement in the classroom that have been used successfully with autistic pupils. You’ll have time and support to reflect on which approaches will work for you and your school.

Teaching excellent computing lessons – This practical session supports you to adapt Teach Computing units to effectively support your autistic learners. You’ll learn about the range of support available to you as a teacher of computing, and a number of take-away resources and activities that can be easily implemented in the classroom.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Recognise the strengths and barriers to learning of autistic pupils in computing
Develop your understanding of a range of pedagogies and approaches to teach autistic learners effectively
Explore how to adapt materials and activities to include and engage autistic learners

This course is part of Teach primary computing

Teach primary computing

Our nationally recognised qualification will support you to demonstrate your commitment to developing your own practice and to computing as a school subject.

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This course is from the National Centre for Computing Education and is delivered by STEM Learning.

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