Subject Vision & Intent

Design and Technology

Design and Technology is an exciting and innovative subject that involves applying knowledge and skills when designing and making products. At Key Stage 3 we want to set the foundation for students to be able to explore and investigate in a similar way to real life designers.

We want to develop problem solvers that can explore a context and seek out the opportunities to create products.

The subject of Design and Technology has changed we are no longer focusing on the end product and its aesthetics. Instead, we want students to look at the design problems we can solve. And in doing this we will look at learning outcomes not projects. We want students to be able to define design problems for themselves and address the solutions to them. The designing activities undertaken will enable our students to consider the needs of individuals and society within both our own community and the wider world. will give our students opportunities to use a wide range of materials and processes and to work both independently and as part of a team.

Design and Technology is a subject that is also at the forefront of the use of new technologies which we need to embrace and utilise to our full advantage. Teaching students to become fluent in these new technologies will be an essential ingredient of the new Design and Technology curriculum.

Designing is a process that needs to be taught; one methodology of this is the iterative design process. This is a cyclical approach of investigation, designing, prototyping, testing analysing and then refining the design. This process enables students to become more expansive, evaluative thinkers and learn from their mistakes. We want to develop and encourage innovative designers and develop their critical thinking skills. Not only this we want students to become independent in their approach to designing and be able to select their own strategies and methods of creating their prototypes.

Modelling and prototyping skills and knowledge need to also be central to the process to be able to visualise, test and fully explore their ideas.

Food

In food preparation and nutrition, we aim to equip all our students with the knowledge, understanding and skills required to cook and apply the principles of food science, nutrition and healthy eating. We encourage students to cook and enable them to make informed decisions about a wide range of further learning opportunities and career pathways as well as develop vital life skills that enable them to feed themselves and others affordably, safely and nutritiously, now and later in life. The dishes produced will be predominantly savoury with some sweet elements so students can make informed decisions on their dietary choices. We encourage discussion and the whole-hearted engagement of students, without an over-concentration on outcomes and with a far greater emphasis on processes. We instil a passion for cooking, and we have strong cross curricular links with humanities, science, religious studies and history.

Studying food preparation and nutrition, students will:

• demonstrate effective and safe cooking skills by planning, preparing and cooking using a variety of food ingredients, cooking techniques and equipment.

• develop knowledge and understanding of the functional properties, chemical processes as well as the nutritional content and sensory qualities of food and drinks.

• understand the relationship between diet, nutrition and health, including the physiological and psychological effects of poor diet and health.

• understand the economic, environmental, ethical, and socio-cultural influences on food availability, production processes, and diet and health choices.

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of microbiological food safety considerations when preparing, processing, storing, cooking and serving food.

• understand and explore a range of ingredients and processes from different culinary traditions (traditional British and international), to inspire new ideas or modify existing recipes.

We encourage discussion and the whole-hearted engagement of students, without an over-concentration on outcomes and with a far greater emphasis on processes. We instil a passion for cooking, and we have strong cross curricular links with:

• humanities subjects on topics such as sustainability and provenance, or global food culture.

• science with food chemistry and properties, microbiology and nutrition, and food technology.

• religious studies with food beliefs and choices.

• history on changes to eating patterns and food availability.

Aims & Expected Impacts

Termly Curriculum Overview

Assessments / Examinations

Home Learning

Enrichment / Personal Development

Careers