Design and Technology

Intent

“As a family of schools inspired by Christ, we aim to enable each individual to fulfill their God given potential.

Excellence for everyone through learning,respect and partnership is at the heart of our Trust.”

Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust

Introduction

As part of the Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, The Design and Technology Department at St. Anthony’s is deeply rooted in Catholic Faith, providing young women in Sunderland with an invaluable opportunity to experience an education rich in local Catholic Heritage. The priority of the trust is one of achieving “Excellence for All” and our D&T department aims to impart opportunities for all our learners to become “The best possible version of themselves.”

Within the Design & Technology Department, at Key Stage 3, all learners are given the opportunity to study all disciplines of Design & Technology including Product Design, Textiles, CAD/CAM, Electronics and Graphic Design. Learners will also study Cooking& Nutrition and Computer Science.

At Key Stage 4, learners must then opt to study for a GCSE in either Design & Technology; specialising in Product Design or Textiles or study Food Preparation & Nutrition. They will also have the opportunity to select Computer Science, from a suite of subjects, as one of their option choices.

Design and Technology Curriculum Intent

“Design and Technology should be the subject where mathematical brain boxes and science whizzkids turn their bright ideas into useful products.”

James Dyson

Here at St. Anthony’s, the Design & Technology curriculum prepares pupils to participate in rapidly changing technologies. They learn to think and intervene creatively to improve quality of life. The subject calls for pupils to become autonomous and creative problem solvers, to learn key skills and become effective team members. This in turn helps prepare them for their future careers. They look for needs, wants and opportunities and respond to them by developing a range of ideas and making products and systems using a variety of materials. They combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetics, social and environmental issues, taking into account function and industrial practice.As they do so, they reflect on and evaluate present and past Design and Technology, its uses and effects on society. Through Design and Technology, all pupils can become discriminating and informed users of products, and become innovators in all aspects of life.

In Design & Technology,we aim to:

Develop in our students the creative and technical skills alongside the practical expertise needed to perform in a world full of ever changing technology.
Develop in our students a wide range of knowledge and the skills to apply this knowledge to real world situations
Develop in our students the ability to grow an understanding of processes and skills needed to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users.
Develop in our students the ability to evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others.
Highlight the importance of STEM and STEM careers so students can make informed decisions and gain access to the next stage of work life after education.

Key Stage 3 Design & Technology is taught in Year 7, 8 and 9. Learners will study Product Design as well as Textiles giving them the opportunity to experience a range of exciting Design and Manufacture projects. Within Product Design, pupils will experience working in a number of specialist areas including Materials Technology, Graphics, CAD/CAM and Electronics. All of the projects offered at KS3 are intended to encourage learners to become inquisitive about design, gain confidence working individually and in teams/groups and develop their initiative by becoming innovative, creative learners.

In Key Stage 4,learners follow the AQA Design and Technology specification and focus on the material areas of Papers and Boards, Woods, Metals, Polymers and Textiles. GCSE Design and Technology will prepare students to participate confidently and successfully in an increasingly technological world. Students will gain awareness and learn from wider influences on Design and Technology including historical, social, cultural, environmental and economic factors. Students will get the opportunity to work creatively when designing and making and apply technical and practical expertise. Our GCSE allows students to study core technical, designing, and making principles, including a broad range of design processes, materials techniques and equipment. They will also have the opportunity to study specialist technical principles in greater depth.

Key Stage 5 students follow the Edexcel A-Level Art and Design specification focusing explicitly in the fields of 3D-Design or Textiles Design.The aims and objectives of the Edexcel Level 3 Advanced GCE in Art and Design are to enable students to develop:

Intellectual, imaginative, creative and intuitive capabilities.
Investigative, analytical, experimental, practical, technical and expressive skills, aesthetic understanding and critical judgement.
Independence of mind in developing, refining and communicating their own ideas, their own intentions and their own personal outcomes.
An interest in, enthusiasm for and enjoyment of art, craft and design.
Their experience of working with a broad range of media.
An understanding of the interrelationships between art, craft and design processes and an awareness of the contexts in which they operate.
Knowledge and experience of real-world contexts and, where appropriate, links to the creative industries.
Knowledge and understanding of art, craft, design and media and technologies in contemporary and past societies and cultures.
An awareness of different roles, functions, audiences and consumers of Art, Craft and Design.

Food Preparation and Nutrition Curriculum Intent

“Good food should be at the heart of a school”

Prue Leitht

At St. Anthony’s, Food Preparation & Nutrition prepares pupils to understand the role of food throughout life from the importance of nutrition to the role of consumers and ethical food choices. It develops self-confidence through independent and team practical opportunities. The subject calls for pupils to learn a wide range of key life skills and become inquisitive, enthusiastic and informed about nutrition and health for life.

In Food Preparation & Nutrition, we aim to:

Develop in our students the ability to understand and apply the principles of nutrition in their own food choices.
Develop a healthy understanding of the importance of good diet and healthy eating choices.
Develop independent practical skills, which they can use to help them prepare healthy, nutritious food for themselves and their families throughout life.
Help pupils to navigate the complex world of food information, labeling and health advice.
Develop an understanding of ethical food issues and help them to understand their role as consumers.
Highlight the importance of STEM and STEM careers so students can make informed decisions and gain access to the next stage of work life after education.

Key Stage 3 Food is taught during years 7, 8 and 9 giving pupils the opportunity to experience a wide range of practical opportunities which take them through a range of skills including use of the hob, oven and grill, knife skills, time management, recognising when different food is ‘ready’, hygienic working practices, accurate weighing & measuring, and the ability to independently follow a method; all through the production of everything from Homemade Chicken Nuggets to Piped Meringues. All of the Food work offered at KS3 is intended to encourage learners to become inquisitive about food and nutrition, gain confidence working individually and in teams/groups and develop their initiative by becoming independent, creative learners.

In Key Stage 4,pupils follow the AQA Food Preparation & Nutrition specification. The course requires pupils to develop knowledge & understanding of nutrition throughout life whilst also developing a wide repertoire of skills from choux pastry to roux sauce. Students will then use their knowledge and skills to produce excellent products of their own choice independently to suit a particular brief given by the exam board. Choices are typically around a particular country, a life stage or a specific food choice. Food Preparation & Nutrition teaches and develops so many different skill areas that it lends itself well to careers as diverse as environmental health, nutrition and marketing.

Topics include:

Food, Nutrition & Health –understanding the link between diet and good health, and diet and disease.
Food Science –exploring the properties of ingredients used in cooking, allowing students to understand through practical opportunities how and why certain ingredients work, and why others do not.
Food Safety –an interesting look at how simple hygiene practices in the kitchen are also used on a wider scale in the food & catering industries.
Food Choice –a tour around the cultural and religious reasons behind food choices. Also looking at the ever-emerging world of food allergies and intolerances.
Food Provenance –a very prevalent topic! Where does our food come from? What are the environmental impacts of food production, food transportation, food packaging? How can we eat more ethically?

Computer Science Curriculum Intent

“Everybody should learn to program a computer,because it teaches you how to think.” Steve Jobs

The Computer Science curriculum at St. Anthony’s enables students to design, use and evaluate computational abstractions that model the state and behaviour of real-world problems and physical systems. They can understand several key algorithms that reflect computational thinking for example sorting and searching. Learners are able to compare alternative algorithms for the same problem. Learners can use different programming languages, at least one of which is textual, to solve a variety of computational problems; make appropriate use of data structures for example, lists, tables or arrays; design and develop modular programs that use procedures or functions. They can then understand simple Boolean logic for example, AND, OR and NOT and some of its uses in circuits and programming; understand how numbers can be represented in binary, and be able to carry out simple operations on binary numbers for example, binary addition, and conversion between binary and decimal. Learners can understand the hardware and software components that make up computer systems, and how they communicate with one another and with other systems. They can then begin to understand how instructions are stored and executed within a computer system; understand how data of various types (including text, sounds and pictures) can be represented and manipulated digitally, in the form of binary digits. Learners can undertake creative projects that involve selecting, using, and combining multiple applications, preferably across a range of devices, to achieve challenging goals, including collecting and analysing data and meeting the needs of known users. They can then understand a range of ways to use technology safely, respectfully, responsibly and securely, including protecting their online identity and privacy; recognise inappropriate content, contact and conduct, and know how to report concerns of others.

In Key Stage 3 Computer Science, learners are taught to use technology safely, respectfully, responsibly and securely, including protecting their online identity and privacy. In Year 8 and 9; pupils follow and complete booklets / projects on How to Stay Safe Online; Understanding Computer Hardware & Software; Data Handling & Manipulation Projects; Computational Thinking Principles; Understanding Computers & Binary; Computer Animation; and Website Development.

Pupils will learn a range of programming skills in HTML, Scratch, Python and Website Development across years 8 & 9. Firstly learning basic skills in Year 8 then progressing in year 9 to use this knowledge and understanding to create programs and systems over a range of project scenarios to enable pupils to become independent programmers of the future.

In Key Stage 4, pupils will study OCR J277 GCSE Computer Science; this is broken down into two distinct parts.

Component 01: Computer systems – Introduces students to the central processing unit (CPU), computer memory and storage, data representation, wired and wireless networks, network topologies, system security and system software. It also looks at ethical, legal, cultural and environmental concerns associated with computer science.

Component 02: Computational thinking, algorithms and programming-Learners develop skills and understanding in computational thinking: algorithms, programming techniques, producing robust programs, computational logic and translators. Students are to be given the opportunity to undertake a programming task(s) during their course of study, which allows them to develop their skills to design, write, test and refine programs using a high-level programming language.

In Key Stage 5, pupils are studying OCR H446 A Level Computer Science, this is broken down into two distinct parts

Component 01: Computing principles-Students are introduced to the fundamental technical principles of computing.This component covers the characteristics of contemporary processors, input, output and storage devices. Types of software and the different methodologies used to develop software in the software development life cycle. Looks at how Data is exchanged between different computer systems using different data types, data structures and algorithms. Pupils learn about legal, moral, cultural and ethical issues surrounding the manufacturing and use of computers.

Component 02: Algorithms and programming- This builds on component 01 to include computational thinking and problem-solving, covering: Computational thinking (thinking abstractly, thinking ahead, thinking procedurally and concurrently). The use of algorithms and how they can be used to describe and design solutions to problems. Problem solving and programming –how computers and programs can be used to solve problems in the real world.

Implementation

Year 7 – 13 Design and Technology Curriculum Map

Year 7 – 11 Cooking and Nutrition Curriculum Map

Year 7 – 13 Computer Science Curriculum Map

Year 7 – 13 Design and Technology Progression Model

Year 7 – 11 Food Progression Model

Year 7 – 13 Computer Science Progression Model