The annual update event for the wider range of SQA Computing Qualifications (PDA, NC, HN etc. ) takes place on Friday (10 March) at the Radison Hotel in Glasgow.

The team will be there to provide updates on a wide range of qualifications and the agenda includes a keynote talk (from Microsoft) and a demonstration of virtual reality.

There are still places available so please register online if you want to attend. It’s open to anyone with an interest in vocational education. Contact Helen if you want to know more or, simply, register directly.

Computing at School Scotland is now represented in discussions with SQA about changes to the National 5 qualification. In order to make sure that the voice of Computing Science teachers is fully represented, the SQA are offering a feedback session on Thursday the 23rd of February in the SQA’s office, in the Optima Building, 58 Robertson Street, Glasgow.

It would be ideal to have as many voices as possible represented in the feedback session, in order to get the most appropriate set of changes to the qualification. The current proposals would move assignments to external marking, change the balance of coursework to exam, and change the number of marks in the final exam. It is really important to put across any ideas we have as a group of teachers. More details to follow.

As part of our focus on ensuring a high level of digital skills and computational thinking amongst our young people, SQA, Education Scotland and Scottish Government have recently been discussing the potential professional learning needs of those who teach Computing Science in Scottish secondary schools.

Of course, the people who are best able to judge this are the teachers themselves. We have therefore developed a questionnaire asking about current provision and priorities, with a view to informing any future action. We would be grateful if you could complete this by Tuesday 20 December 2016.

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/computingPLD

It has just been announced on the Raspberry Pi website that the two-day PiCademy sessions are coming to Scotland!  Thanks to Google’s Digital Garage programme, the action-packed CPD is coming north of the border for the first time.

Four sessions are being held in the Mitchell Library, Glasgow on the following dates:

• 14/15 October 2016
• 25/26 October 2016
• 01/02 November 2016
• 28/29 November 2016

Full details and the application form can be found at the Raspberry Pi website: https://www.raspberrypi.org/picademy/google/

Hurry though – there are only 25 spaces for each session.

Code Club are also offering training – more details on the original post at www.cas.scot