Examination Board: AQA (GCSE 8552, Fashion & Textiles A-level 7562)
Design & Technology Department (D&T) is one subject, which umbrellas the three specialisms: resistant materials, graphics and textiles.
Design & Technology: Textiles Specialism
Textiles design is an integral part of daily life: it encompasses all aspects of the design and make process on a 2 and 3dimensional plane. Without textiles life would be pretty dull, uninspiring, and all together less functional.
Textiles at GCSE is a subject that develops research skills, problem solving, and improves independent learning. Students learn to communicate and work as a team. The practical skills of design, sketching, use of digital media, CAD/CAM, materials and manufacture are introduced and developed.
The focus on the textiles gives students the chance to discover the wonder of design and technology. A good design attracts attention and provides pleasure; a textile product can protect, promote and inspire all at the same time; an intelligent design can deliver a powerful message, whilst making someone’s life easier; a sympathetic design can be a force for good in the world and can support the need to act in a sustainable way.
In our curriculum we aim to:
- explore design and technology as a whole, to a foundation level
- focus on textiles as a specialism within the subject
- give students confidence to work with different textile based materials
- allow students to discover ways to develop their creativity in order to satisfy the needs of user centred design
- encourage a life-long interest in the subject of design and fashion, and a greater appreciation of design decisions that have formed the world around us.
- foster a deeper understanding of sustainability and the responsibility of the designer in ways of working that enhance the longevity of the planet, and combat the damage of the past
D&T Textiles is a popular subject at KS4 because it allows students to work in a different environment: it draws on a spectrum of learning styles, and develops knowledge and skills, which can genuinely be applied to make a change in the world. Most of these skills are cross curricular, meaning they can support the learning in other subjects across the school. The department understands the need to embrace traditional hand skills with drawings and the making of prototypes, whist also accessing modern technology by utilising 2D and 3D CAD software and CAM manufacturing machinery. Students who study design and technology can move on to further study within their specialism, or enter into apprenticeships or careers in the plethora of opportunities that are design related both in this country and abroad.
