GCSE Design and Technology builds on the experience and skills you have developed at Key Stage 3. Over the two-year course you will develop your designing and making skills as well as gaining an understanding of the technology behind the subject. You will learn about the methods used by industry to manufacture the products we use every day and gain an insight into issues related to design and technology that affect us all.

Some of the subject content is taught through practical activity and students will be expected to support each practical activity with a design folder. The majority of work is carried out on A3 paper and students are advised to use an A3 portfolio to transport work between home and school. Students who do well are hardworking, well organized, able to meet deadlines, creative and enjoy practical activity.

There are two options available to those interested. Graphic Products is about Designing and Modelling and Resistant Materials is about Designing and Making. For further information talk to your DT Teacher about the differences between the two subject areas and if one suits you better. The following information may help you to decide.

Design and Technology - Graphic Products
EDEXCEL 2GRO1

This GCSE is concerned with the designing of graphic products and presenting solutions through drawings and models. There are a wide range of graphic products such as advertisements, promotional merchandise, displays, packaging, poster and magazine design as well as presentation drawings for products and architecture. All of these areas offer the student the opportunity to express their creativity and skills. Some graphic techniques will be tackled from hand skills such as shaping plastics colour pencil rendering and modelling skills with paper, card and sheet material. There is also a strong emphasis on the use of computers to aid drawing and manipulate images. Many drawing methods will be taught: pictorial, such as isometric and perspective, as well as formal, such as orthographic projection.
For much of the course the student will be placed in a situation, much like a professional graphics studio, where real life design problems will have to be solved within the restraint of the commercial environment. Students will also have to study industrial manufacturing processes so that their designs could be produced in quantity.

Design and Technology - Resistant Materials
EDEXCEL 2RM01

Students who enjoy creating items in materials such as wood, plastic and metal should consider this course. A logical approach to designing will be taught and the candidate will learn to work skilfully with a range of materials to solve real life practical problems. The type of projects tackled can be very varied, for example, furniture design, product design such as lighting systems, racks and toys, through to jewellery and storage units. A wide range of machinery, tools and techniques can be taught such as welding, lathe work, brazing, sheet fabrication, casting and many hand skills.

Both computer-aided-design (CAD) and computer-aided-manufacture (CAM) will be practised. The student will also study how products are manufactured industrially and in quantity.

Assessment
Both of these GCSEs are assessed in the same way.

Unit 1 Creative Design and Make Activities Unit. 60%
This unit is internally assessed under controlled conditions.

• Students must complete a design and make activity. These activities can be linked (combined design and make) or separate (design one product, manufacture another).
• The teacher will choose a task(s) from a range provided by Edexcel to best suit St Christopher’s circumstances.
• All work, with the exception of research and preparation, must be done under informal supervision, i.e. within class time.
• Research and preparation may be completed under limited supervision, i.e. within class time and homework.
• Students need to complete their designing and making within 40 hours of informal supervision.
• Marking of task(s) will be carried out by teachers and moderated by Edexcel.
• There are eight assessment criteria for designing and five assessment criteria for making.
• There is a total of 50 % of marks available for the designing and 50 % of marks available for the making.

Unit 2 Knowledge and Understanding. 40%
This unit is assessed through a 1½ examination paper set and marked by Edexcel.

• The examination paper will be a question and answer booklet and all questions are compulsory.
• The examination paper will consist of multiple-choice, short-answer and extended-writing questions.