AQA AS/A-Level Design and Technology: Product Design

Product Information

Create, innovate, solve problems and shape our future with Product Design. Explore through iterative design, the world of aesthetic & ergonomic commercial products. Students study the principles of Product Design to design a product or building as a major coursework project. Apply their technical knowledge and understanding of materials, product functionality, manufacturing processes and techniques

demonstrating an excellent understanding of material properties to ensure excellent quality prototype(s) that are fit for purpose. The individual Product Design coursework (NEA) will begin in year 12, allowing students to choose an area of interest and investigate, create, test and refine the functionality of a chosen 3D product to solve a real life problem. Students are supported to become independent learners and will gain an understanding of, and simulate the work of professional designers in their project work by project managing their own coursework. This is a challenging activity including independent research visits and conducting interviews with specialists who can guide their project, as well as managing a high workload, but will reward students with confidence and life skills to take into the workplace or university in the future. and section ‘Digital design and manufacture’); Business Studies (section ‘Enterprise and marketing inIn our modern and developing Design and Technology facilities, you'll apply technical skills to test and create 3D models of products through various design approaches including hand sketching, CAD and 3D model making including laser cutting and 3D printing. Undertake case studies to enable them to demonstrate their understanding of design thinking and wider social, moral and environmental issues that impact on the design and manufacturing industries There is distinct content for each of endorsed titles, covering underlying core principles of design and technology. The examined content is assessed in components 01. The content for the product development, component 02/03, is more generic but specific application will be determined by the focus of the endorsed title selected: Fromthepracticalside(thismakesup50%andthetheoryexammakesup50%).Inyear12theprojectreallydependsontheschool,someschoolstaketheapproachofminiprojectstoteachyouarangeofmachineryskillsandthingslikethat,itisunlikelyyouwillhaveoneprojectyouholdfortheentireyearinyear12.

There is distinct content for each of the endorsed titles. Much of this content takes an endorsed approach to underlying core principles of design and technology. The examined content is assessed in components 01 and 02. The content for component 03/04, the iterative design project, is more generic but specific application will be determined by the focus of the endorsed title selected:Students will explore the real world of design in its widest sense, through a range of tasks including design projects, theory lessons, Maths questions, some short practical tasks and 4 ½ hours home learning per week. Thisisagoodwaytoincreaseyourproductknowledgeandtheknowledgeofthemanufacturingprocessesistakestocreatethesethings. Students demonstrate their ability to critically analyse a current product in relation to a given context and propose realistic improvements or adaptations in response to the needs of stakeholders. They design and develop further iterations of it, enabling them to fully appreciate how the life-cycle of a product is reviewed, developed and extended for the relevant marketplace to their endorsed title.