HIGH RIDGE SCHOOL SPORTS SPECIALIST COLLEGE

GCSE in Applied Information and Communication Technology (Double Award)

FIRST AWARD First Award – August 2004 Two year course Based on 3 Units of work Intended to be ‘vocationally’ based training (see ‘Broad Objectives’) Preparing students for the ‘world of work’

Rationale – main points Introduce students to work related learning Provide students with an overview of the sector Equip students with some of the skills needed in the workplace or in further education Empower students to take charge of their own learning and development

3 UNITS of WORK Unit 1 – ICT Tools and Applications Unit2 – ICT in Organisations Unit 3 - ICT in Society

UNIT 1 How ICT Tools and applications are used by different organisations together with An investigation of what applications are available to those organisations. The applications used should include word- processing, spreadsheets, databases, web- browsers, CAD software and multimedia packages. Assessment – A two and a half hour examination – computer based.

UNIT 2 How and why organisations use ICT; investigation of the main hardware components of an ICT system; how ICT systems are designed and implemented for a given situation. Assessment – an investigation into how the hardware and software requirements of an organisation can be met. Report on the design and implementation of an ICT system.

UNIT 3 Learn how ICT affects everyday life including your own use of ICT. Investigation of how technology has influenced working styles, legislation, entertainment and leisure and personal communications Assessment – an investigation into how ICT affects and influences yourself and your local community.

Recommended Prior Learning Basic proficiency in literacy Basic proficiency in numeracy Some aptitude for computers Some motivation to work independently