Bletchley Park - Year 10 Computer Science Trip
Year 10 Computer Science Students attended a trip to the Heritage Site in Bletchley Park, Milton Keynes on Friday 8th March.
To start, we were greeted by the informative tour guide who gave us an insight into the conditions the code breaking operators had to endure during World War Two. With the guide informing us along the way, we explored the site. We were impressed with the full engagement and impeccable behaviour of our young RMS Computer Scientists, as they wandered through the huts' tight corridors - asking questions, and finding an interest in the equipment used during the early computational developments within the 1940's, as well as experiencing the conditions where the encryption took place!
Bearing this in mind, the modest detail continued with amazing timely historical artefacts shown in the images. Students found great interest in stopping and taking in the surroundings, including the machinery and even a wall within the site whereby each code breaker had a brick engraved with their name. In contrast, the Bletchley House itself had a magnificence and grandeur of the time, with an equally impressive intelligence factory nearby with hands-on practicals in abundance.
In addition to this, students were in awe of the modern multi screen experience with a montage of 12 layered cascading screens giving a 3D effect (spanning a wall the size of two cinema screens), recalling the historical figures such as Alan Turing and the relevance of the Enigma machine, including the impact this saw during the War. Finally, students spent time in the Wartime Learning Hub, completing practicals with the Professor and simulating the Lorenz machine! We used Boolean Logic during the encryption activities, and this has followed into our lessons this week and consolidated our Utilities Software and Boolean Logic learning and discovery!
Students feedback has been positive with an anticipation for siblings to attend the site in future years, and a reflection upon the moments within the trip that inspired them!
Thank you to all the teachers attending and to our brilliant students for this memorable experience!
