Northern Grid for Learning - School Broadband, eSafety, Learning Resources and More

An example from Murphy Crescent School, an all age school for pupils with severe and profound learning difficulties.

Overview

Murphy Crescent School caters for pupils aged 2-19 with severe learning difficulties. At the time of writing the school has 30 pupils on role with almost 50% of pupils having profound and multiple learning difficulties.

The original school building was destroyed by fire in June 1997, with the loss of all equipment and documentation. At present the school occupies prefabricated buildings on a secondary school site

Pupils are divided into four classroom areas; in addition the school has a library/music room, a design and technology room, a multi-sensory interactive room, a hall and a life skills area.

Introduction

This development plan has been written by the ICT co-ordinator following formal and informal discussions with Head Teacher, Parents, Governors and all staff. Pupils needs and abilities are seen as central to the development of ICT within the school.

An audit of hardware and software was carried out along with a questionnaire for staff. The questionnaire covered the use of ICT equipment within the classroom, the assessment recording and reporting procedures in current use, staff confidence and competence and their future needs.

Information and Communication Technology at Murphy Crescent School

At Murphy Crescent School we see the use of ICT as wide ranging reaching beyond the National Curriculum to the development of life skills for our pupils.

The use of ICT supports our vision of self-advocacy and enhanced self-esteem for our pupils by giving them the opportunity and ability to have control over their environment, communicate effectively and make choices. The use of ICT also enables our pupils to work without adult support and pursue individual projects.

We develop pupils individual ICT capability through the delivery of structured teaching programmes based on school steps, National Curriculum level descriptors and county progression documents

We use ICT to provide access to all areas of the curriculum for our pupils. This is done through the use of the interactive room environment, switch systems, computer systems, TV and video, music systems and power link adapters.

We use ICT to develop early developmental skills, for example cause and effect, hand eye co-ordination and sensory awareness.

We use ICT to enhance and resource all areas of the curriculum through the use of appropriate software and access to the Internet.

We believe that the use of IT equipment enable staff to be more effective in their planning and delivery of the curriculum. The use of lap top machines can make working from home and dissemination of paper work easier. The use of standardised pro forma, pictures and type written work adds clarity to our documentation.

At Murphy Crescent School pupils and staff are encouraged to develop skills in all aspects of Information and Communication Technology. Everyone is supported to utilise the technology available to meet individual needs and to enjoy the benefits, excitement and fun it can provide.

Aims of the development Plan

The purpose of an ICT development plan is to promote improvement and effectiveness in ICT use, our school aims are as follows;

• To audit our present position
• To outline a shared vision for ICT at Murphy Crescent School
• To develop strategies for improvement
• To identify resource and in-service need.
• To set out measurable targets for future development