Technology – Hard

As a faculty, we are committed to ensuring that all students make good progress throughout all the projects that they participate in within Design and Technology.

To achieve this we believe in supporting all students to achieve their target grades, regardless of what their target grades are. Students work is regularly marked and targets for improvement set. Work is revisited so that students have the opportunity to achieve these targets.

Technology Department

Year 6 Transition

In order to excite and captivate our new students to Technology a range of fun activities have been planned. These are aimed at encouraging students to work creatively and as a team to aid their transition into a new school facilitating making new friends. Their tasks will be as follows:

• Design Technology – Students produce a key ring.

Key stage 3

In the academic year of 2019-2020 all students will experience a wide range of different projects within the different Technology subjects; these include Design Technology and Engineering, Textile Technology and Food Preparation and Nutrition. All students will be taught the basic skills needed to complete projects to high standards, covering areas such as a research, design, modelling, development, planning, making and evaluation. Within a 1 hour session students can expect to follow a variety of different tasks which will help them to develop their understanding of a range of skills, techniques and equipment. This will help students gain a level of independence so that they are able to plan and progress their own work.

Technology is a very practical based subject which enables the students to learn in a variety of different ways. The projects that students are involved in have been tailored to suit all ability levels and cater for a wide range of interests.

All groups are mixed ability.

Timetabling

Students will spend the following amount of time in Design and Technology over a two week cycle:

• Year 7 = 2 hours;
• Year 8 = 2 hours;
• Year 9 = 2 hours.

Students cover a range of projects in Design Technology over the year. Within Textiles Technology and Food Preparation and Nutrition groups are in a carousel system.

Assessment arrangements for Key Stage 3 Design and Technology

All students in Key Stage 3 will be assessed approximately each half term to monitor progress. Each assessment will focus on particular projects, for research, design, planning or evaluation work and practical work. The grades reported will be a combination of marks across the whole faculty.

Timetable of Projects

Year 7

Projects will be timetabled in a variety of different combinations:

Year 8

Projects will be timetabled in a variety of different combinations:

Year 9

Projects will be timetabled in a variety of different combinations:

Projects Costing

A considerable amount of time is spent sourcing the materials for practical work. We believe that a valuable part of the subject is that of materials use, waste, and costing. As a result students will be asked to pay, a representative sum for projects and food practical’s across Technology in one lump sum at the beginning of the year. These are as follows:

• Key Stage 3 – Year 7, 8, and 9 – £8 per year;
• Key Stage 4 – One off payment of £24.00 (this does not cover revision guides).

The Learning Journey

Design Technology

This is currently being updated, please check back soon.

Key stage 4

At Key stage 4 students can opt for one of 2 courses offered within the Technology faculty. The courses including the examination boards and web site addresses offered to students are shown below:

• GCSE Design Technology – AQA: Design Technology | AQA;
• BTEC Tech Award in Engineering – Edexcel: BTEC Tech Award in Engineering.

Time Allocation

For all subjects students are allocated 6 hours per fortnight in Year 10 and Year 11.

Assessment Arrangements

GCSE Design Technology

Assessment for the subject listed above consists of 50% NEA (non – examined assessment). This involves the production of one project over 40 hours for both subjects. This is started in the July of Year 10 and continues until March of the following year in Year 11. The assessment criterion follows the process of analysis of a task, development of ideas, making, testing and evaluation.

A 2 hour exam worth 50% will be taken at the end of the course. Part of the Design Technology exam (15%) will be based on a context students will be notified about before the exam and part on the work which will have been covered throughout the year (25%).

BTEC Tech Award in Engineering

This course is made up of 2 coursework tasks worth a total of 60% of the final mark. Students will carry out an exam which is made up of two parts and will be completed in two hours for Part 1 and one and a half hours for Part 2, which is worth 40% of the course. Students begin working on the Award and upon completion gain the equivalent of a GCSE grade. Students are awarded Pass, Merit or Distinction grades. Students are encouraged to develop independent working on this course.

Breakdown of Topics

Design Technology

Term 1
Robotics, Automation and production in Industry and Enterprise, Market pull and technology push, people, society and culture;
Sustainability and the environment, critical evaluation of new and emerging technologies, planned obsolescence, design for maintenance, ethics, the environment;
Renewable and non-renewable resources, systems, types of motion;
Modern materials, smart materials, composite materials, technical textiles, material properties.

Term 2
Functionality, aesthetics, environmental factors, availability, cost, social factors, ethical factors;
Designing: sketching, modelling, testing;
The six Rs: Ecological issues in design and manufacture, properties of materials, modifying properties for a purpose;
Commercially available types and sizes of materials, manufacturing specification/working drawings.

Term 3
Tools, equipment and processes, quality control, how materials are cut shaped and formed to a tolerance, surface treatments and finishes, types of forces and reinforcing materials;
Manipulating materials to resist/work with forces;
Investigate, analyse and evaluate the work of past and present designers/ companies;
Generating imaginative and creative designs;
Using primary and secondary data to understand client and/or user needs.

Year 11 Term 1 will be spent on the NEA.

Term 1

How to write a design brief and specification;
Generating imaginative and creative designs: Isometric and perspective designs;
Exploded diagrams, working drawings, computer-based tools;
Audio and visual recordings, modelling, satisfy the requirements of the brief, functionality, aesthetics, potentially marketable;
Materials are selected based on functionality, cost and availability;
Working accurately;
Cutting, shaping and forming materials to tolerance;
Planning the cutting of materials to minimize waste;
Using measuring and marking out to create and accurate and quality prototype.

Term 2
Preparing a material for a surface finish, applying a surface finish;
Selection of the correct hand tools and machinery, safe use of tools;
Selection and use of specialist techniques. Preparing a material for a surface finish. Applying a surface finish;
How materials can be altered to change their properties;
Scales of production;
Commercial processes.

Mock exams will take place throughout Year 10 & 11.

BTEC Tech Award in Engineering

Assessment is 60% coursework, and graded by a pass, merit or distinction. The 2 units of study are of equal weighting.
Exam is 40% and is based upon Responding to an Engineering Brief. This is worth the equivalent of 1 GCSE.

Breakdown of components

Students begin the course with a short induction programme explaining BTEC and the expectations of the work.

The Learning Journey

Design Technology

This is currently being updated, please check back soon.

Key stage 5

AQA A-Level Design and Technology Product Design (3-D Design)

Course Information
The exam board provides details of the course and assessment details: Nelson Thornes
The Nelson Thorne VLE is used to support the delivery of this course and access is provided once a student joins the course.
Moodle has also got a lot of very useful information, revision and videos to help you through the course.

A/S Year 1

Students study the course for 5 hours per week. They undertake a variety of skills, knowledge and practical based units of work:

• Developing an understanding of the physical and mechanical properties in a broad range of materials and components;
• The broader issue for the designer including the environmental sustainability of products and their manufacture;
• Methods in which materials and components can be manipulated to manufacture products;
• Health and safety issues relevant to working with materials;
• Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aid Manufacture (CAM);
• Ergonomics and anthropometrics, inclusive design, and consumer safety;
• The life cycle of product including manufacturing, use and functional aspects and final disposal.

Assessment Details:

• NEA (Non-Examined assessment);
• Assesses practical application of technical principles and designing and making principles. Substantial design and make project.
• Written or digital portfolio not exceeding;
• 45 pages. Candidate developed brief;
• 50% of the A-level qualification;
• Combined written paper weighting – 50% of the A-level;
• Paper 1 – 30% of A-level: Technical principles: 2.5 hours 120 marks;
• Paper 2 – 20% of A-level: Design and making principles: 1.5 hours 80% marks.

The Learning Journey

Design Technology

This is currently being updated, please check back soon.