Design Technology
Design Technology at Warwick School will provide your son with an opportunity to understand the scope and breadth of this creative and intellectually challenging subject.
Design is ever present in both subtle and imposing ways in all facets of our existence; we expect our students to both appreciate and also add to this fast moving world of creativity and problem solving. Your son will gain a theoretical and practical knowledge of what it takes to nurture an idea from concept through to the realisation of a finished piece. It is imperative that as young designers the boys at Warwick School see design as an opportunity to add to life in a manner that supports society and does not infringe on it. We support the idea that new designs should exist in harmony with the environment and the cultures that they are intended for.
Course Specification
Year 7 and Year 8
These are the foundation years for our pupils where they will rotate through the various areas of the curriculum. The pupils will all experience working with resistant materials (wood, metal and plastic) as well as building a theoretical knowledge of the subject within these areas. Pupils will use traditional manufacturing methods such as sand casting with aluminium through to advanced CAD/CAM principles and practise where they will use ‘Solidworks’ (CAD software) and can link this to a 3D printer and CNC milling machine. We emphasise the importance of hand drawing skills and teach this alongside all projects.
Year 9
Students in this year have opted to take the subject further and they will begin to be exposed to ever more challenging areas of both manufacture and creativity. There is an emphasis on developing the range of skills necessary to produce high quality practical and design work needed for the following GCSE years. Pupils also make more decisions about the design direction of their work as they become more independent.
IGCSE
The pupils will begin their coursework project early in Year 10 and this will be completed by the end of the Michaelmas term in Year 11. There are theory lessons taught for the duration of the course.
Specification: Cambridge IGCSE Design and Technology - Resistant materials
The course comprises a coursework project and two exams at the end of the Year 11.
The Design and Technology syllabus enables students to identify, consider and solve problems through creative thinking, planning and design, and by working with different media, materials and tools. Students gain technical and design awareness as a result, and develop skills such as initiative, resourcefulness, enquiry and ingenuity. They also develop the communication skills central to design making and evaluation. Cambridge IGCSE Design and Technology provides an ideal basis for further study and prepares learners for their future within a rapidly changing technological society.
A Level
Pupils study the Pearson EdExcel Product Design course at A Level. It is a linear course over two years. This course will suit pupils who have developed a real interest and appreciation of design and technology in the modern world. We expect the pupils to be highly effective independent scholars who thrive on the challenge of researching and providing solutions to identified needs. By the end of the two years, pupils will be well-placed to apply for university courses in such disciplines as: industrial/product design, architecture, interior design, furniture design, graphic design and many more career paths that this subject can lead to.
The course consists of one externally-examined paper and one non-examined assessment component.
Pupils must complete all assessment in May/June in any single year.
- Component 1: Principles of Design and Technology (Paper code: 9DT0/01)
Written examination: 2 hours 30 minutes - 50% of the qualification / 120 marks - Component 2: Independent Design and Make Project (Paper code: 9DT0/02)
Non-examined assessment: 50% of the qualification / 120 marks
