1. Art and Design National 3 to National 5
QDC - Sandra-Jane Grier
Introduce yourself (if this has not been done already).
Explain your role in relation to the new qualifications – QDC for Expressive Arts subject (s).
Describe the purpose of this part of the programme eg to provide further information on Unit Assessment Support for Art and Design.
First of all, a reminder of the key features of Unit assessment for the new National Qualifications (NQs)….

2. Main features of the new Courses
encourage integration of art and design knowledge and practical art and design skills
creative experimentation and development of ideas
more explicit focus on reflection (creative process)
standards of practical art and design skills are comparable to existing qualifications

3. Unit assessment – key features
Flexible and open Assessment Standards and Evidence Requirements in Units
Unit assessment is based on assessing the learner’s ability to develop investigative research and a variety of development ideas in response to an expressive theme/stimuli or design brief
Unit assessment therefore ends at the development stage for all Units *except for the Added Value Unit
Unit assessment support packages (SQA secure site)
More flexibility in Units - Unit Specifications are more open – there is more flexibility in Assessment Standards and Evidence Requirements. More scope for tailoring to suit the needs of different learners. Assessment method(s) not prescribed in Unit Specifications. Content/contexts are not prescribed.
Greater range of techniques and methodologies – teachers/lecturers may vary assessment approaches for different learners to suit individual needs and to create more personalisation and choice. More variety in assessment approaches is encouraged.
Unit assessment – follows principles in Building the Curriculum 5. Combined approaches across Units encouraged:
Makes learning and assessment more meaningful
Can make the assessment part of the learning
Can reduce the overall amount of assessment and make it more efficient
Needs to be carefully managed.
Evidence – use of naturally occurring evidence encouraged. Unit Support Notes give advice on how this can apply in Units and how it can be managed.

4. Unit Assessment Support Packages N3, N4 and N5
Valid from August designed to encourage professional judgement
Provide broad-based exemplar tasks/briefs
Allow assessors to choose appropriate context and forms of evidence
Show range of approaches to generating assessment evidence
Give information on the type of evidence which could be gathered and how this is to be judged against Assessment Standards (Judging Evidence Table – columns 3 and 4)
Unit Assessment Support Packages are valid from August They are not learning and teaching packages - but designed to complement and support the learning and teaching. The packages give information on:
The type of assessment eg Unit by Unit, Portfolio, Combined, and the Unit(s), Outcomes and Assessment Standards that the package covers
The assessment section which includes the purpose, the overview of the assessment including a description of the task, and assessment conditions
Evidence including evidence to be gathered and how it may be judged
Re-assessment arrangements
Examples of candidates’ responses (this section is not mandatory but most packages provide this)
Examples of recording documentation (this section is not mandatory but most packages provide this)
An appendix which has the assessment for the candidate and may be detached and given to the candidate.
Professional judgement - They are also designed to encourage professional judgement and to support learning and assessment that will motivate and challenge learners.
Provide broad-based tasks – the packages allow assessors some choice regarding appropriate contexts and forms of evidence. Contexts may be changed to suit or be made more relevant to candidates, but have to be of the same level of demand or difficulty.
Generating evidence – the assessment information in the packages can show a range of approaches to generating evidence
Evidence - packages provide information on gathering evidence. This may include different kinds and amounts of evidence that would be valid for allowing the candidate to demonstrate achievement of the Unit/Outcomes/Assessment Standards. Information about gathering evidence must be consistent with information given in the Evidence Requirements section of the Unit Specification and any further information given in the Course and Unit Support Notes. It may also include information about the type and amount of evidence that should be retained for quality assurance. The Evidence section also has information on judging evidence against the Outcomes and Assessment Standards.

5. Key updates to published documents
Changes made in June recorded on the History of Changes pages
Unit Specifications - N3 level one artist/ designer not two
Course Specifications
Course Assessment Specifications
Unit Assessment Support packs/Unit and Course Support Notes
Unit assessment support packages are:
for assessors
located on an SQA secure, electronic website
confidential documents and should be held in a secure, electronic environment
Packages may be used as they are, adapted or modified, and/or used by assessors to help them develop their own Unit assessments. They have been made available in Word format for this purpose.

6. Added Value – National 4, National 5 Courses
Each Course at National 4 and National 5 includes assessment of Added Value
For National 4, the added value is assessed in the Added Value Unit – no grade, pass/fail
For National 5, the added value is assessed through two Course Assessment components a question paper and a portfolio of art and design work - graded A - D (as at present)
Added value – this is not a new concept – it is used in the Course assessment of current National Courses at Intermediate 1 and above. It is normally described in the current Arrangements documents. In the new Courses, added value is assessed in Courses at National 4 and above.
National 4 – in the new National Courses, the assessment of added value in National 4 Courses is different from that at National 5 and above. In National 4 Courses, the assessment of added value is based on the Added Value Unit. This Unit is like other Units in many ways. For example, like other Units, the Added Value has Outcomes and Assessment Standards and is ungraded. However, a key difference is that the Added Value Unit is more prescriptive than other Units, for example:
It will state an assessment method (in a few cases, this may be two methods)
The assessment method will be one of the seven agreed assessment methods for assessing added value (however, in Added Value Units, a Question Paper is called a Test of Knowledge and Understanding)
The Added Value Unit Specification has a mandatory section on Further information on course coverage for the Course
It will have fuller Evidence Requirements which will give information on eg controlled assessment, judging the evidence, re-assessment.
National 5 – in National 5 Courses, added value is assessed in the Course assessment. Performance in the Course assessment is graded A-D as at present. Course assessment for National 5 Courses (and above) is based on one (or often two) of the seven agreed assessment methods. These are:
Assignment; Case Study; Performance; Portfolio; Practical Activity; Project; Question Paper

7. National 5 – Portfolio
equally weighted portfolio of art and design work (160 marks – 80/80)
submitted to SQA for marking/presented on sheets for external assessment
the development and realisation of one single line of expressive enquiry and one single line of design enquiry 
- shows the creative starting point and the further development and realisation of the chosen ideas
- development work will be used to produce one final piece of expressive art and one final design solution, before evaluating the final piece of expressive art and final design solution

8. National 5 – Question paper
set and marked by SQA
conducted in centres under conditions specified for external examinations by SQA
two equally weighted sections (Expressive /Design) – 40 marks in total (20/20)
extended response questions
2 mandatory questions drawing on their knowledge of artists and designers work and practice (Q1 and Q7)
+ 2 optional questions where learners will be asked to respond to one from a choice of five images in each section of the question paper

9. National 4 Added Value Unit
internally marked by centre staff on a pass/fail basis
assessment subject to quality assurance by SQA
Unit assessment focuses on both the process and products of learning
- selecting two development ideas from their previous work
- planning/thinking about how they will realise the chosen ideas
- developing and refining the chosen development ideas when producing the art and design work
- reflecting on their art and design work
Ideas selected from previous Unit work where candidates are completing this Unit as part of the National 4 Art and Design Course. Guidance from the assessor – eg. structured discussion/prompts used to review earlier Unit work/development ideas.
Planning process evidence – use naturally occurring evidence where possible
Producing /developing and refining their chosen idea.s. No new development work required. The development of the ideas/creative problem solving process should happen naturally as candidates are realisng their ideas.
Reflecting on their work- AV Unit end of Unit activity- comparing their design idea against the requirements of the design brief/ reflecting on the visual qualities of their piece of expressive art ( use of colour/composition/ subject choice/ media handling etc) promoting aesthetic awareness and discrimination

10. New Higher Photography Course
closely modelled on and builds upon the strengths of the existing PBNC
practical and experiential learning focus
development of both technical skills and creativity
new 2 Unit structure – no optional Units
Added Value is assessed through one Course assessment component - a Photography project

11. Subject questions?