Year 9 · Computing
Students use digital design to communicate the central MSC message in a clear, accessible and responsible way. They learn how audience, purpose, message, interface, visual hierarchy and accessibility influence digital communication, then create, test and improve a screen based campaign poster. The lesson uses safe, non diagnostic messaging and does not require personal disclosure.
Strand at a glance
The lesson sequence below comes from the complete strand guide.
Detailed strand guidance
Driving Question: How can technology communicate what we cannot always see?
Students begin by connecting the wider Year 9 journey: Science developed understanding of human complexity, Maths planned support using real constraints, and Computing becomes the communication stage. The central message is that there may be more behind the screen than what someone first sees.
The lesson begins with a rapid poster comparison before introducing core digital design principles. Students learn:
Students then receive the MSC Digital Campaign brief. Working in groups of three, they create one 16:9 digital poster for students aged 11 to 16. The poster must communicate the idea that what someone shows on the outside or online may not show their whole experience.
Students can choose from four campaign directions: Behind the Screen, More Than a Number, What You See / What You Don’t, or their own safe interpretation of The Hidden Reality. They use defined group roles so that digital design, wording and user experience are all considered.
Important boundaries are built into the activity: students do not ask for personal experiences, use shock or graphic content, diagnose people, give medical advice or make promises. The wording must remain respectful, clear and supportive.
During the build, a client update tightens the requirement: the poster must communicate its core message within five seconds. Students reduce unnecessary text, strengthen hierarchy and contrast, remove clutter and make the message more immediate.
Groups then complete a five second user test with another group. The viewer should be able to remember the headline, identify the main message and recall a clear visual feature. Students use this feedback to improve the final version before submission.
Students produce: Final Digital Campaign Poster
Conceptual journey
The Strand in One Sentence: Students move from recognising effective digital communication, to applying design and accessibility principles, creating a safe campaign message, testing it with real users and improving it before final submission.
Recall -> Learn -> Design -> Test -> Improve -> Submit
The Computing Strand therefore turns the Year 9 theme into a practical digital communication task, moving from design theory to creation, user testing and improvement while maintaining clear safeguarding boundaries.
Assessment evidence and skills
The lesson produces a complete digital product and clear evidence that students have designed for a specific audience and purpose:
The final MSC Computing score considers digital design principles, communication of The Hidden Reality message, user experience and hierarchy, accessibility, response to the client update, creativity and technical quality.
Across the strand, students practise:
| Category | Points |
|---|---|
| Digital Design Principles | 25 |
| Communication of The Hidden Reality | 20 |
| User Experience & Hierarchy | 15 |
| Accessibility | 15 |
| Response to Client Update | 10 |
| Creativity | 10 |
| Technical Quality | 5 |
| TOTAL | 100 |
Curriculum source: Y9 Strand Guide.docx
