Design & Technology
Design and technology is about designing and making things that people want and that work well. It is a challenging subject as it requires an enquiring mind, initiative, determination, the careful management of time and resources and a sense of responsibility for making decisions and taking action. An important feature is that it makes immediate and practical use of knowledge and skills from other subjects. It is linked directly with Art, Mathematics, Science and Computing and also covers issues which are part of PDC and Geography. Through studying Design and Technology, all students can become discriminating and informed users of products as well as potential innovators of the future.
At Waldegrave we combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetics, function, and social and environmental issues. All students have the opportunity to work with a range of materials including food, textiles, timbers, papers & boards, plastics and electronics. Our aims are to set challenging targets with high expectations for all pupils. We offer a variety of approaches to teaching and learning to engage and motivate pupils and demand active participation. Enrichment opportunities outside the curriculum further enhance pupils’ understanding and enjoyment of Design & Technology as well as showcasing the vast range of further / higher education and employment possibilities there are.
At the end of their KS3 curriculum, each student will be able to: use ICT to enhance their Design & Technology work; choose and manage resources effectively; critically analyse their work and that of others; use verbal, graphical and modelling skills in the process of designing; select and use appropriate tools and equipment safely and with growing competency. They will also disassemble and evaluate products and their applications and explore values and attitudes to the made world and how we live, work and interact within it.
At KS4 Design & Technology students will deepen further their skills and knowledge in all of the above through short, focussed tasks, group and individual projects and practise NEAs. Whilst continuing to study about all materials, students choose to specialise in either Textiles, Timbers or Paper & Boards. This becomes the focus for their NEA which is worth 50% of their GCSE and for certain sections of the written paper.
Food & Nutrition is an integral part of the KS3 curriculum but KS4 breaks away to become a separate GCSE - ‘Food Preparation and Nutrition’. This course focuses on developing a strong understanding of nutrition and food science alongside practical food preparation and cooking skills.
At KS5, Fashion & Textiles is delivered through A Level Art & Design: Textile Design (Fashion). As this is an Art & Design course, the work is mostly of a practical nature, although students are required to write a related study of around 2000 words. Students study the fundamental Art & Design principles and use this understanding to develop their work and apply it to different contexts, experimenting with a wide range of techniques to make highly creative and personal final pieces that relate to their research and developmental work. Most students go on to either art/fashion foundation courses or textiles design related degree courses. However, throughout the course students develop a wide range of skills transferable to any higher education course, such as: attention to detail; problem-solving; information gathering; organisation; evaluation /appraisal; time management and planning; ability to cope with the pressure of deadlines; patience and perseverance.
