A survey has found that more than two-thirds of secondary and primary teachers are concerned that their pupils have a better understanding of computing than they do.
Research carried out by Microsoft and the Computing at School support network has revealed that while nearly three-quarters of computing teachers feel confident about delivering the new computing curriculum, many lack confidence in areas like creating and debugging computer programmes and coding.
Sixty-nine per cent of teachers, however, said they enjoyed teaching computing, which is now compulsory for all pupils from the age of five.
But there is still some way to go before all teachers feel confident about delivering computing lessons to tech-savvy young people. Eighty-one per cent of the teachers questioned called for more training, development and learning materials.
Microsoft and Computing at School said the survey highlighted issues that they have been working to tackle over the past nine months.
With funding from Microsoft and the Department for Education, Computing at School has produced QuickStart Computing, a free training toolkit to help teachers deliver the new computing curriculum.
Michel Van der Bel, CEO of Microsoft UK, said: "There is a moment of magic when you see a young person make something totally unique happen on a screen – something they had imagined and then made real through code.
"But to get to that moment we need passionate people who have the right skills and knowledge to give young people the building blocks they need. Microsoft has provided well over £300,000 for the QuickStart Computing initiative in order to support teachers in creating modern, exciting and engaging lessons that will inspire a new generation of digital stars."
QuickStart Computing can be downloaded at www.quickstartcomputing.org