Head Of Department: Steve Fernihough
Second In Charge: Dave Aiano

Overview

The Nature of Design and Technology
Design and Technology is essentially about providing opportunities for pupils to develop their capability, through combining their designing and making skills with knowledge and understanding in order to create high quality products, using a wide range of materials and processes.

The teaching of D&T is a distinctive creative process that combines the intellectual with practical skills through purposeful practical activities. The creative process in which pupils are engaged is interactive, but involves a series of identifiable activities including:

• investigating design opportunities
• developing creative design proposals, and modifying them in light of evaluation
• planning and making proposed solutions
• overcoming problems as they arise
• evaluating the effectiveness of process used and the products made.

D& T is an important subject in that it makes a distinctive contribution to the curriculum. It teaches important skills not covered in other subject areas and offers the opportunity for a wide range of teaching and learning styles enabling students to achieve, learn and value their schooling.

Key areas for success:

• Learning through doing
• Using a wide range of skills
• Opportunities for Creativity
• Problem solving and critical thinking
• Enjoyment
• Making quality products
• Relevant tasks
• Ownership of projects

KS3 Schemes of Work

KS3 Project Plan
Based on 72 hours per year

Year 7
D&T Foundation year covering all areas of Design and Technology, taught by the same teacher over the year.

• Year 6/7 transition (2)
• Graphics skills (10)
• CAD – Prodesktop (10)
• CAM – Techsoft keyfob (8) 
• Hand Held Game – Wood/Plastics (18)
• Textiles –Printing/Tie Dying (8)
• Food/ICT – research, testing (8)
• Structures – team tasks (8)

Year 8 & 9
Students do 40 hours Resistant Materials in both years 8 and 9, and do 36 hours Food tech in either 8 or 9 and 36 hours of Textiles in either 8 or 9

• Food / Textiles – one project per term (36)
• Trophy – Metals (12)
• Decorative Box - Wood (12)
• Mini Light – Plastics/Electronics (12)

Year 9

• Food / Textiles – one project per term (36)
• Clock / mobile – plastics/multi-material (20)
• Graphics – investigation, modelling, corporate design, built environment (6)
• Project Pinocchio – B&E team task (10)

GCSE Course(s) Overview

KS4 Overview
There are GCSEs run in four areas, all following AQA specifications:

• Graphic Products
• Resistant Materials
• Textiles Technology
• Food technology

Courses start in year 10 with a number of focussed practical tasks and projects designed to raise students’ skill levels.

The Design and Make assessed coursework (worth 60% of the final mark) begins towards the end of the spring term of year 10 and continues until just after the spring half term of year 11. Students are encouraged to develop their own briefs within set parameters to try to ensure ownership of projects. Students are set a number of interim deadlines during this time and are provided with support materials and assessment information to enable them to maximise their marks.

The rest of year 11 is directed towards revision activities and preparation for the final exam.
 

GCSE Exam Boards Used

Board: AQA
D&T: Food – 3542
D&T: Graphic Products – 3543
D&T: Resistant Materials – 3545
D&T: Textiles – 3547

AS/A Level Course(s) Overview

Course Structure: AS Level
In the first year of study the following units will need to be completed:

AS F521: Advanced Innovation Challenge 40% of AS total mark
AS F522: Product Study 60% of AS total mark

AS F521: Advanced Innovation Challenge

The Advanced innovation challenge is a seven-hour design challenge set by the exam board. It is undertaken in two three-hour sessions over the period of one day and a one-hour session at a later date. All sessions are completed during the June exam series. The task assesses the candidates’ ability to be innovative, demonstrate flair, work with materials and apply knowledge gained throughout their AS course.

A theme is released in the September prior to the examination. This year’s theme is “Outdoor Festivals and Events”. Each theme runs for a year, enabling candidates to research and gather resources to help them with designing. Candidates should identify and collect these resources, into a collection called a job bag, which is then taken into sessions 1 and 2. A challenge sheet based on the theme will be included with the workbook and will first be seen in session 1. Candidates select one challenge from the sheet, related to the material area of their choice. There are several challenges dealing with all material areas.

AS F522: Product Study

This is a more conventional type of Design and Technology piece of coursework and will take almost two terms to complete. The starting point for this coursework is a simple existing product. The product is analysed to identify its strengths and weaknesses and compared to other similar products. An aspect of the product can then be redesigned and modelled in an attempt to improve the product. A prototype can then be made and tested and evaluated against an identified specification.

Course Structure: A2 Level

In the second year of study the following units will need to be completed:
A2 F523: Design, Make and Evaluate project 60% of A2 total mark
A2 F524: Product Design paper 40% of A2 total mark

A2 F523: Design, Make and Evaluate project

This is the main piece of coursework for year 13 and is made up of two units: “Designing” and “Making and Evaluating”. This project will take up most of the lesson time in year 13 and will be completed at the end of the spring term. Preliminary work on the project does however begin at the end of year 12 when all the AS units are completed. The choice of this project is down to you, but it should be based on a genuine need. It should also be challenging and rigorous and allow input from third parties such as potential customers, professional designers, retailers and manufacturers.

A2 F524: Product Design Paper

This is the written paper you will sit in June. In many ways it is similar to theory papers you will have sat for GCSE, but the questions are asked in a bit more depth and you are expected to have developed a broader range of knowledge. Many of the key topics for the exam will be covered while doing the coursework sections, but you will also be set example questions to do on a regular basis over the year. More intensive preparation will be done for the exams after the coursework has been completed. The exam itself is in two sections. Topics covered include knowledge of contemporary design related issues as well as a range of manufacturing processes associated with wood, metals, plastics, graphic materials and textiles. You will be able to choose from a wide range of questions so you can best match your individual knowledge base. The second section tests your designing ability; responding to a given brief in controlled exam conditions.

AS/A Level Exam Boards Used

Board: OCR

AS GCE in Design and Technology: Product Design H053

AS F521: Advanced Innovation Challenge
AS F522: Product Study

Advanced GCE in Design and Technology: Product Design H453

A2 F523: Design, Make and Evaluate project
A2 F524: Product Design paper