Design and Digital Technologies (STEM)
We live in a world of continually evolving technologies and it is imperative our students are equipped with the necessary knowledge, skills and understandings to navigate and thrive in an ever changing, technology driven society. Our students need to be responsible global citizens and be creative and innovative when applying their knowledge and skills to come up with solutions to real world problems.
At Bunbury Primary School, Technologies is delivered in accordance with the Western Australian Curriculum which describes two distinct but related subjects:
- Design and Technologies: Students use design thinking and technologies to generate and produce solutions for authentic needs and opportunities
- Digital Technologies: Students use computational thinking and information systems to define, design and implement digital solutions.
In order to develop our students' technical competencies, critical thinking, and cyber safety, students are provided with explicit instructional lessons to develop their skills and knowledge of how to use computers, iPads and other digital technologies, including how to navigate the internet and stay safe online.
All our classrooms are equipped with Interactive Whiteboards, and all students have access to banks of iPads. The Conference Room, Visual Arts, Science and Music Rooms all have access to digital projectors. The school library is also well equipped with digital equipment and computer accessibility. There are Wireless Access Points (WAPS) located throughout the school.
Bunbury Primary School takes a whole school approach to learning, thus the Technologies Curriculum is integrated across learning areas and embedded into classroom lessons. The core curriculum areas of English and Mathematics utilise various online learning programs to support classroom teaching and learning. These include: Mathseeds (P), Mathletics (1-6), Reading Eggs/Eggspress (P-3) and Accelerated Reader (4-6). These programs can also be accessed using online Apps. A list of Apps used across the school can be found on the BYOD Program page. These are reviewed and updated each year by the school ICT team.
Our teachers use a range of teaching strategies and models to enhance our students' learning. They range from unplugged coding activities and games to exposure to robotics through the use of Bee-bots, Ozobots, Microbits and Makey-Makeys. School and community use of outdoor Green Screens is available for photos or filming projects. A set of instructions on how to use the Green Screen can be accessed by scanning a QR code and eBook (which is available on the Department of Education DigiTech School page).
The school has two 3D printers available to explore the diversity of technologies and the excitement of using a 3D printer to design and solve real world problems. Students can enrich their understanding of digital technologies through lunchtime and afterschool initiatives such as the Lego WeDo teams, Lego EV3 Mindstorm and Coderdojo Club (Saturday mornings at ECU). The school hosts and participates in expos and competitions such as First Lego League Expo and the Bebras Australia Computation Thinking Challenge. Drone and AR technology has also been explored.
Bunbury Primary has successfully partnered up with universities (Curtin University, Edith Cowan University, University of Adelaide, University of Sydney) on various digital technology projects. This has provided rich opportunities in digital technologies for teachers and students.
Bunbury Primary School has been a Digital Technologies Teacher Development School since 2018 and has been acknowledged by the Director General of Education for assisting and working with other schools and teachers around the state. As a TDS DigiTech we ensure we support our teachers to keep up to date and develop their skills and knowledge. Our school has 5 trained lead Teachers Can Code teachers, in phases of learning across the school and many other staff with highly developed skills that can provide support to others.
Our school was involved in an Innovation Partnership project in 2018-2019. The research project involved using ethnographic research to find out what our students wanted to do more of at school. The area identified was to engage more in outdoor learning. Our challenge was to incorporate digital technologies into the project. This concept was refined and our promising practice was developed and reflected to ensure it included 21st Century learning skills. The whole school was involved in the development. The project resulted in the school creating an outdoor eLibrary using QR codes to access each eBook in different locations around the school. The eBooks can be accessed by teachers as a tool to support classroom programs and for students and the community too. The school was very proud of the, project's outcomes and achievements.
Our student leadership includes IT Technicians who support our school ICT Technicians. The IT Technicians have to apply for the position and need to have the necessary technology literacy competency and skills to be able to support class teachers and other students.