How the Arm School Program
Can Help Teachers and Learners
Computing has transformed society in innumerable exciting ways.
Part of our mission is to work with teachers and educational experts
like you to spark learners’ interest and engagement in the subject.
Arm’s technology is in billions of devices – from supercomputers, mobilephones and cars to small computers from a vast range of ecosystem
partners. Many of these devices, including micro:bit, Raspberry Pi andArduino, are popular in education. Arm’s School Program works witheducation and technology partners to support teachers and learners inSTEM & computing education. Discover our range of professional learning
support for teachers, plus our teaching & learning resources, which arelinked to the computer science curriculum.
If you’re interested in improving your learners’ engagement in Computing,
we can help. Project-based learning (PBL), combined with PhysicalComputing, offers a way for learners to experience the thrill of innovating
while also gaining and practicing the skills and knowledge they need.
If you would like to learn how to deliver PBL effectively, we offer a rangeof free-to-access professional development courses as well as structured
teaching and learning materials, which can support you from beginner toexperienced PBL practitioner:
Support and training for teachers — professional development
courses and communities for Computing and STEM teachers.
Visit page 07 to find out more.
Free-to-access teaching and learning resources
on arm.com/schools, linked to the Computer Sciencecurriculum. Visit page 08 to find out more.

1.

Context for Inclusion (Page 03)2.

Scaffolding for Differentiation (Page 03)3.

Computing for Real-World Problem-Solving(Page 04)

4.

Whether you do a PBL lesson once a week orevery 2 or 3 weeks, this could really help shift yourlearners’ perception of the subject, sparking theirinterest in pursuing a career in tech.

— CSTA Mapping

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Our teaching and learning resources are groundedin the following principles:

SCHOOLThe Arm School Program’s approach to projectbased learning is designed to give you theconfidence and the tools you need to engage yourlearners in rewarding and meaningful learning
experiences. It is informed by the learning theories
of constructionism, cognitivism, and behaviorism.

The Arm School Program approach to PBL iscarefully structured to create meaningful learning
experiences that engage all learners.

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What Do We Meanby “Project-BasedLearning”?

— UK GCSE Mapping

ALIGN TOS TA N D A R D S— IPO— Design Templates— Teamwork— Collaboration

GRACIOUSPROFESSIONALISM— Soft Skills— Communication

DESIGN— Success Criteria— Stretch Tasks

Curriculum Links for Teaching Relevance(Page 04)
— Context Driven Problems— Engaging and Real World— Technology Focused

MODELING
LEARNING— Activity Sheets

ACTIVELEARNING— Cheat Sheets

SCAFFOLDEDRESOURCESASSESS STUDENTLEARNING— Formative and Summative
Assessment of Computing— Lesson Plans

Skills/Knowledge— Slide Decks
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Context for Inclusion

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Solving real-world problems provides learners with motivation that can lower barriers tolearning. Using a PBL approach to guide learners in solving the problem encourages themto practice a range of skills along the way. These include, for example, critical thinking,teamwork, and communication skills. With a little creativity, any context can be used fora PBL project. Some contexts also offer opportunities for learners to explore societalchallenges. A project that focuses on automating crop watering in developing countries
is more suitable than one that involves creating robots to be used in war, for example.

SCHOOLYour interest in PBL might start with its potential to improve learner engagement.
An important step towards this goal is to choose both a context that is meaningful to
your learners and a problem that motivates them.

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1.

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) present a range of global issues thatcan be used as context for problems in PBL. Many of the resources from the Arm School
Program link to the Global Goals. For example, the oil-spill cleaner-upper activity on
page 05 links to Goal 14 ‘Life Below Water’, as well as Goal 12 ‘Responsible Consumption
and Production’.

2.

Scaffolding forDifferentiation

Every learner is different. When faced with a problem to solve, each learner requires adifferent level of support. For some, simply having a target to aim towards will be enoughto get them working towards a solution. Other learners need step-by-step instructions
to get them started and build their confidence. Many will fall somewhere in between—
requiring occasional hints and tips to unstick them along the way. No matter what thelevel of ability or confidence of their learners, the teacher’s goal is to keep them in thezone of proximal development by providing only enough support to ensure progression
throughout the lesson. This encourages learners to be resilient, creative, collaborative,and independent. The combination of shaped learning and free expression underpins theArm School Program methodology. It combines aspects of a formal, didactic approachwith classic discovery learning.
This method of teaching is often alien to teachers who prefer to “drive” a lesson fromthe front. Partially letting go can be uncomfortable. The Arm School Program can help
you make this shift when you teach a PBL lesson. In our resources, we provide detailed
lesson plans, as well as a variety of scaffolded resources. The resources are also available
in editable formats to allow you to adapt them to suit your learners.

03

As we know at Arm, computing is all about creative problem-solving. In project-basedlearning, the learner is not a passive recipient of knowledge, but an active participant.
The combination of problem, guidance, hardware, making, and creativity can lead tohighly engaging lessons.

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The Arm School Program’s approach combines PBL with physical computing, whichmeans learning is expressed through physical artifacts. Developing a physical solution
to a problem means that learners can see and hold the result of their learning inthe shape of motors, LEDs, and more, rather than just seeing a “Hello World” in an
integrated development environment (IDE).

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Computing forReal-World
Problem-Solving

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Creating physical artifacts requires an element of planning, which is encouraged by ourdesign sheets and input–process–output (IPO) tables. Then, there are the additional
challenges of building, making, and programming the solution, as well as testing it
once complete. Arm School Program lessons mirror aspects of computing in industry,
encouraging learners to collaborate and communicate with their teammates as they
develop and iterate solutions. The more learners engage with this style of learning,the more their resilience and confidence grow.

4.

Curriculum Links for
Teaching RelevanceAs a teacher, you need to know how teaching and learning resources support youin covering the curriculum with your learners.
That’s why all our classroom-based resources are cross-referenced with formal
curriculum standards, such as the UK Computing subject content, or the US
CSTA standards. The teachers and educationalists who develop Arm School
Program resources refer to these standards throughout the development process.
This ensures that the levelling is appropriate and that they cover as much of thecurriculum as possible.

Project-Based Learning+ Physical Computing= Arm School Program04

This project was designed for middle-school learners (11–14-yearolds), and we provide some scaffolding to get them thinking about
the inputs, processes, and outputs (the IPO model). This model helps
learners to make the link between the code and the real world. It
neatly shows how the physical computing elements provide inputs,processing, and outputs, and how they all need to work together tomeet the success criteria.

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The success criteria are a list of SMART (specific, measurable,achievable, relevant, and time-bound) objectives for the learner,
based on the context set out in the “Getting Started” section.
They are essentially the learning outcomes and the deliverables
for the project, presented as a checklist for the learner. Clear
success criteria help ensure learners stay on task, and the teacher
can use them to assess learners’ progress quickly. Learners shouldbe frequently reminded to compare their designs and solutions
against these criteria. Some success criteria can be very specific,and others can be more open-ended to allow for more creative
problem-solving.

Now your learners can begin developing their ideas. It’s important
to encourage learners to consider the feasibility of their ideas:
can they build their project in the time given and with theresources they have access to?

SCHOOL

Our projects are the basis for Arm School Program resources.
They apply a consistent set of headings, which allow you toprovide the right level of scaffolding for each of your learners.
We call this our “Project Schema.” This flexible schema enables
learners to engage easily with complex projects, confident inwhat they need to do and why they are doing it. The projects
can be done in teams or on an individual basis.

Success Criteria

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How Do We Structure
Our Resources?

Getting Started
In “Getting Started,” the project isintroduced and the context is explained
to ensure that learners have a goodunderstanding of the problem they needto solve. Read “Contexts for Inclusion” onpage 03 for more on our approach.
In this section, we also start to introduce
project constraints. These are vital toensure both that the project is achievableand that the learners focus on a welldefined problem. The problems aredesigned to be solvable by students inthe age range and to use computational
techniques with which learners should
be familiar.
It’s important to introduce the challenge
in an interesting and engaging way
to stimulate the learners’ imaginationand enthusiasm.

Pro-Tips
Pro-tips can be tips, examples, or common tripping-up points that you may wish
to highlight for your learners. We write them when the projects are being tested.
In this example, the learner is provided with some guidance on how to build
the solution, and also how to wire the micro:bit with the motors. This type ofscaffolding for the elements of physically building the project is often needed.
Typically, learners do not learn about basic electronics until later in theireducation, and they may disengage from the project if they don’t know how towire the components together.
A pro-tip might also guide learners through any coding that is needed. It could
provide some starter code or blocks. The learner is then expected to complete
the rest independently. This is an important point of differentiation. Somelearners won’t need any support in coding; others will need lots of guidance.
In our example, we provide just the first few steps of the algorithm, and thenlearners can extrapolate this to solve the full problem.

05AR MThe Arm School Program Project Schema

Lesson plan

CT problem

Success criteria

Slide deck

Making elements

Pro-tips

Worksheets

PBL

Stretch tasks

Cheat sheets

Flipped resources

Final thoughts

Teacher solutions

Fomal lessons

Collapsed days

Extra curricula

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Getting started

SCHOOLEngaging context

Stretch Tasks
Stretch tasks are an extension of the baselevel success criteria, so they are morechallenging. They provide differentiation
for confident learners by adding morechallenge and complexity to the project.

Final Thoughts
The “Final Thoughts” section reflects
on the project and how it relates to thewider world. It draws together learners’
experiences throughout the project,
as well as asking more open-ended,
humanities-style questions for learners
to reflect on. They can be used as final
thoughts by the teacher at the end of thelesson, or even as homework questions.

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Introduction toProject-Based Learning

Practical Application andClassroom Strategies for PBL

Effective Assessment ofProject-Based Learning

Whether you’re new to teaching Computing, you’re a specialist
Computer Science teacher, or you just want to learn more about
physical computing, this program will set you on the path to becomingan expert with practical computing, and help you understand theimportance of project-based learning. Each course is about 10–12
hours of learning, which you can do over a few days, a week, or
10 weeks—whatever works best for you. The courses also work
independently of each other, so you can pick and choose thecourses that best suit your needs.

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Free-to-Access Online
Professional Development(PD) Courses

SCHOOL1.

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What Support Does
the Arm School Program
Offer Teachers?

Soft Skills, Teamwork
and the Wider CurriculumThis course is focused on STEM skills and attributes, including
gracious professionalism, teamwork, communication, and collaboration.
It shows you how you can structure PBL lessons and events to give
all your learners the opportunity to practice and develop these skills.
To save you time, we provide resources and guidance—all free to download.

2.

The Arm School Program offers a series of six professional development
videos, which explore key themes addressed in the online courses
described above. Visit our website school.arm.com to view them.

Further PD Support

Additionally, if you are a teacher trainer, the Arm School Program
can support you with training and presentational materials to enable
you to run your own professional development sessions on teaching
Computing through project-based learning and physical computing.
Contact us at school@arm.com.

This course gives an overview of physical computing, including
devices from Arduino, Raspberry Pi and micro:bit. It then explores
the learning theories and teaching approaches relevant to projectbased learning (PBL).

Project-based learning (PBL) is a useful tool for teachers of Computer
Science (and other subjects!). This course focuses on equipping
you with the knowledge and resources you need to begin teaching
Computing through PBL with confidence.

Assessment is an area of Project-Based Learning that teachers often
struggle with. Many teachers think PBL just can’t be done effectively,
and so they can’t see a place for it in their teaching, except perhaps
for end-of-term or end-of-semester activities. In fact, PBL can bedone effectively, and this course shows you how.

Teachers can also join one of our communities of practice to join online
events and network with peers to discuss the challenges of teachingand expand their knowledge and understanding. Visit our website
school.arm.com to find out more.
3.

Innovation Days

An Innovation Day is a competition where teams of learners
design, program and build solutions to a real-world problem using
physical computing. It’s an engaging, motivating and fun day, which
demonstrates to students that working in Computing can be a creativeand social experience, where teamwork and resilience go hand-inhand with putting your subject knowledge into practice.
Visit our website at school.arm.com to access all the resources andsupport you need to run your own Innovation Day.
07Primary/Elementary School (5–11)

Secondary/Middle School (11–14)

Secondary/High School (14–18)

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Project Books

Micro:course (all ages)

Select the link on each resource to visit ourwebsite and learn more about it.

SCHOOLThe Arm School Program has a range of projectbased teaching and learning resources all freely
available at arm.com/schools. All our resources
apply a project-based learning pedagogy. You
can learn more about this approach and how
we structure our resources on page 05.

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Free-to-Access
Teaching andLearning Resources

Arduino Projects for Schools (11–18)
Raspberry Pi Pico
Projects forSchools (16–18)

Introduction to Computing using micro:bit (7–14)

Courses

Introduction to Programming using MicroPython (11–16)

Robotics and Internet of Things (11–16)

Smart Schools on Arduino (11–18)

International Computing coursewith micro:bit (9–12)

Introduction to Microprocessors(16+)

Additional

Arm School Program on YouTube (all ages)
Computational
Thinking Tasks(14–16)08

Raspberry Pi Pico Projects
for Schools (16–18)

Introduction
to Computing
using micro:bit (7–14)

Smart Schools
on Arduino (11–18)

International
Computing coursewith micro:bit (9–12)

Introduction to Programming
using MicroPython (11–16)

Robotics and Internetof Things (11–16)

Arm School Programon YouTube (all ages)

Computational Thinking
Tasks (14–16)

SCHOOLPROGRA M

The Arm School Program has a range ofproject-based teaching and learning resources
all freely available at arm.com/schools. All ourresources apply a project-based learning pedagogy.
You can learn more about this approach and how
we structure our resources on page 05.

Arduino Projects
for Schools (11–18)

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Free-to-AccessResources

Micro:course (all ages)

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