The government is to scrap the 'appalling' ICT GCSE

[TheFaQQer]

It's not, when the definition of IT is how to write a letter in MS Word, or how to search the internet.

IMO, this sort of thing should be taught in PSHE or IL, not as a separate subject.

WHS - it needs to be covered somewhere in the curriculum (for those that don't use computers at home, or don't have internet), but not as a GCSE.

I was a little saddened this year when I realized that my old school doesn't teach A level computer science any more - I wouldn't be where I am today (and no, I don't mean sat at home on the sofa because I can't find any work) if it wasn't for doing Computer Science.

[DaveB]

My son started doing ICT but gave up on it because he and most of the rest of the class already knew more than the teacher. Lessons revolved around how to use different menu options in MS Word or Excel.

Waste of time as a GCSE.

[TheFaQQer]

My son started doing ICT but gave up on it because he and most of the rest of the class already knew more than the teacher. Lessons revolved around how to use different menu options in MS Word or Excel.

That kind of thing was being taught as part of my wife's degree - I ended up doing the coursework for her because it was just easier, and she didn't understand it.

She was training to be a teacher.

[BoredBloke]

My son has a 1-to-1 IT teacher becasue of his disability and his teacher is seriously rubbish. I guess that's why he is teaching it!

[VectraMan]

I was a little saddened this year when I realized that my old school doesn't teach A level computer science any more - I wouldn't be where I am today (and no, I don't mean sat at home on the sofa because I can't find any work) if it wasn't for doing Computer Science.

I did A-level computer science without doing the lessons; i.e. just worked through some text books and sat the exam. I didn't do it originally as everybody said it was a waste of time subject, and if you wanted to do computer science at university (which I did), they were only interested in maths. The two of us that did it that way got A's, and went on to university computing courses, and I think all the people that actually took the subject properly got no better than C's and I'm not sure if any of them went to university at all.

It seems not being able to teach IT usefully in school is nothing new.

[Doggy Styles]

Does the A-level cover processors, instructions, code and storage efficiency, latency, and all that malarky?

[Iron Condor]

An ICT GCSE.

Is this to teach our next generation of managers on how to bring over foreign workers on ICT visas?

[the_duderama]

I did a scottish standrad grade (scottish GCSE) in computing studies, and it covered programming (in comal but still programming), networking, databases, hardware etc, was actually really good from what i remember. We covered the "this is a word processor" before the GCSE stage.

[TheFaQQer]

Does the A-level cover processors, instructions, code and storage efficiency, latency, and all that malarky?

Can't remember what it used to cover - I didn't do Comp Sci at university.

These days, it probably covers switching it on, using facebook, and how to twitter. But they aren't dumbing down the A-levels. Oh no, definitely not.

[Moscow Mule]

Can't remember what it used to cover - I didn't do Comp Sci at university.

These days, it probably covers switching it on, using facebook, and how to twitter. But they aren't dumbing down the A-levels. Oh no, definitely not.

Doesn't look too bad...

http://www.ict-teacher.com/Alevel.html