Post Primary ICT Accreditation Scheme
The Key Stage 3 ICT Accreditation Scheme is intended to provide you with a framework to develop and enhance your pupils’ ICT skills. At the end of Year 10, you will be able to award pupils a certificate recognising their level of ICT competence.
The scheme supports the objectives of the Northern Ireland Curriculum and will support you in implementing the cross-curricular skill of Using ICT (UICT). It also provides you with the opportunity to prepare for the statutory assessment of UICT.
The scheme incorporates the principle of ICT skills being embedded in learning and teaching across the KS3 curriculum. It is designed to support you in the statutory requirement to provide your pupils with opportunities to acquire and develop knowledge, skills and understanding of Using ICT and to apply these across all Areas of Learning. The focus is on using the skills.
By registering in the scheme and being accredited to assess UICT:
- your pupils will complete a number of assessed UICT activities to confirm their level of UICT competence;
- you will be required to submit portfolios for moderation;
- your school will be provided with feedback on the portfolios;
- each of your assessed pupils will receive a certificate from CCEA; and
- your school will receive a certificate of ICT Accreditation.
A range of resources has been developed to support you. These include:
- Levels of Progression to support you in making a holistic judgement about pupils’ levels of competence in using ICT;
- Expansion of Levels that offers examples of how each level of progression statement might look in practice;
- Desirable Features that set out characteristics showing progression in a range of ICT activities;
- Exemplification Database that provides you with examples of pupils’ work in various subject contexts (complete with teacher commentaries); and
- Task Writing Tool to guide you through the process of writing your own tasks.
Teachers will also be able to submit tasks electronically for approval.