Unpack the Curriculum

Recognise and explore digital systems (hardware and software components) for a purpose (ACTDIK001)

Identify and explore a range of digital systems with peripheral devices for different purposes, and transmit different types of data (ACTDIK007)

Examine the main components of common digital systems and how they may connect together to form networks to transmit data (ACTDIK014)

Investigate how data is transmitted and secured in wired, wireless and mobile networks, and how the specifications affect performance (ACTDIK023)

Investigate the role of hardware and software in managing, controlling and securing the movement of and access to data in networked digital systems (ACTDIK034)

Systems

Systems explores the composition of systems and their use in all aspects of our lives.

Identify digital systems: Recognise and name digital systems.; Students name digital systems (e.g. smart phone or laptop) that they interact with at home and school and recognise that they are digital systems.
Explore digital systems with purpose: Play with and use digital systems in meaningful ways.; Students play (with guidance) and use different systems to explore what they do and how they work. They match digital systems to specific purposes (e.g. using a phone to call a family member).

Identify digital systems: Recognise and name digital systems.; Students identify digital systems that are unfamiliar by looking for characteristics and properties of known systems (e.g. a tablet is a digital system based on knowledge of a smartphone).
Explore digital systems with purpose: Play with and use digital systems in meaningful ways.; Students use systems differently depending on the demands of the task, and learn that many systems can perform multiple tasks. Adding peripherals may be necessary to perform other tasks (e.g. a laptop can only print when connected to a printer).
Peripherals and components: Components are the parts included in a digital system. Peripherals connect to a digital system to extend its functionality.; Students understand that external devices can be connected to digital systems to expand their functionality (e.g. a USB flash drive adds portable storage to a system; a MIDI keyboard allows a system to record music data directly).

Peripherals and components: Components are the parts included in a digital system. Peripherals connect to a digital system to extend its functionality.; Students explain how digital systems are made up of parts (e.g. a tablet includes a screen, battery, processor etc.) that perform specific functions (e.g. the processor controls the tablet, performs calculations, and manipulates data).

Specifications and performance: How well digital systems perform tasks is dependent on the characteristics of the components of a system.; Students can explain how different specifications, such as RAM available, CPU/GPU, network media etc impact performance of a system. Since systems are made up of lots of parts, the overall performance of any system - whether stand-alone or networked - is dependent on the specifications of all of its components.

Managing data: Data is stored on a physical medium that can be accessed through software.; Students can explain the principles of data management such as account privileges and linking accounts across services.

Networks

Networks describes how we connect devices together and use them to transmit data.

The content descriptions do not explicitly address Networks in band F-2.

Transmit data: Send and receive data to and from digital systems.; Students understand that different types of data can be transferred between digital systems (e.g. streaming music from an online service to your computer, using a smartphone to video call a friend).

Forming networks: Different systems can be connected to one another to exchange information.; Students explain how separate systems can be connected in different ways (e.g. cables or wireless) to exchange data (e.g. connecting a computer to an online gaming server).
Transmit data: Send and receive data to and from digital systems.; Students describe the way data is structured (e.g. broken up into small pieces) and transmitted through a network (e.g. passes from the source, through multiple devices, to the destination).

Transmit data: Send and receive data to and from digital systems.; Students explain how problems occur in network communication (e.g. routers can drop packets) and how they can be solved (e.g. TCP uses acknowledgements to confirm packets have been received).
Forming networks: Different systems can be connected to one another to exchange information.; Students can explain how the design of networks is affected by many things, including the media used in their construction. They understand that networks can be wired, wireless or mobile, and some of the limitations, implications and benefits of each.

Transmit data: Send and receive data to and from digital systems.; Students can explain the technical details of how modern networks determine how data moves from one location to another, such as how routers use IP addresses to direct packets through a network.

Security

Security is concerned with how we protect the data stored in and transmitted by systems.

The content descriptions do not explicitly address Security in band F-2.

The content descriptions do not explicitly address Security in band 3-4.

The content descriptions do not explicitly address Security in band 5-6.

Data security: Making sure the data can only be accessed by the people it is intended for.; Students can explain how the movement of data through networks creates a situation where it would be possible for that data to be accessed by another party. This creates a need for security to be factored into the network design, and students should understand the general principles of securing data.