GCSE Art and Design Textiles
Overview
In GCSE Art and Design Textiles we complete two submitted units of work over the two year course.
Unit one is a personal investigation within the broad theme of 'Structure and Form' in which students undertake research and experimentation using textiles and art materials to develop their ideas into a final piece. The journey is recorded in the form of a portfolio and culminates in a final piece of work for exhibition. This is worth 60% of the final GCSE grade.
Unit 2 is an Externally Set Assignment where the exam board will set the topic in January of year 10 and a second, shorter, project is undertaken to showcase the skills and knowledge acquired during the process of completing unit 1. This culminates in a 'period of sustained focus' in which a final piece for the project is completed under exam conditions. This is worth 40% of the final GCSE grade.
Skills Development
We start year10 by completing a skills development module to introduce and develop skills that are further honed throughout the course. Students will have the opportunity to learn skills both traditional and modern, such as: knitting, printing, silk and fabric painting, laser cutting, layering fabrics, applique, heat fusing fabrics, and many more. These skills form the basis of the way in which the final piece of the project is made and comes together, being developed and, where appropriate, specialised further.
Life
This course is ideal as a 'gateway' to creative further education courses, and ultimately higher education creative courses. The general skills are numerous and include: time management, perseverance, resilience, creativity, divergent thinking, problem solving, safe working practise, and independence. All of these skills can be applied to all other areas of life and study as students complete the course and move on to their next challenges.