National Diploma for IT Practitioners Curriculum leader: Sue Wilcox

Tutor: Sue Wilcox

Overview

The course is aimed at people who wish either to continue their education in IT and Computing or wish to pursue a career in computing.  It aims to give the basic knowledge and understanding required in the computing world and provide the skills to enable students to successfully put knowledge into practice.

The course is intended to prepare individuals either for a career in the computer industry or for Higher Education. On successful completion of the course people may progress to Higher Education (HND or Degree) or obtain work.

The award for this course is BTEC National Diploma IT Practitioners.  This is at level 3 and is equivalent to 3 A levels.

There are two streams being offered:  General or Software Development.  All students study the General stream for the first year of their studies and will then be given a choice of continuing with the General stream or taking the Software Development stream.

The Units studied are chosen from the following bank, depending upon whether students elect to follow the General or Software Development stream.

Unit 1: Language and Communications
The aim of this unit is to develop students' communication skills.  The unit covers written, vocal, research and presentation skills.

Unit 2: Computer Systems
This unit outlines the fundamental way in which a computer works, starting with simple logic and covering other areas such as hardware, peripherals and operating systems.

Unit 3: Business Information Systems
The aim of this unit is to help students gain an understanding of the structure of organisations and how information is used within them. It aims to give an understanding of the need for health, safety and security in the workplace as well as how information is processed in an organisation.

Unit 4: Introduction to Software Development
The aim of this unit is to introduce students to the basic concepts of program design and implementation, using a suitable procedural high level language.  It gives the opportunity to use design techniques and processes to find solutions to given problems, with an emphasis on practical activities, problem solving and the production of good quality documentation.

Unit 5: Communications Technology

This unit considers the way in which computers are connected to provide efficient data communication, and how computer networks have developed to become established features of most businesses.  The unit also aims to give students a thorough appreciation of the importance of the Internet.

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