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Why study Art and Design?
Art and Design features in many aspects of our everyday lives, from the advertising posters we see on our streets to the special effects we see in films. Almost everything we see or touch has been designed to be visually attractive including mobile phones, clothes, cars, buildings and websites.
The skills that you develop in Art and Design are useful in many different careers, such as architecture: interior design, fashion and textiles, graphics, web design and photography.
What do I need to get in?
Entry is at the discretion of the school or college, but you would normally be expected to have:
What will I study?
This course is designed to give you the opportunity to use your detailed understanding of art and design work and practice as you experiment with using a range of selected art and design materials, techniques and/or technology to develop your own creative ideas. You will develop a range of complex problem solving skills, and a critical understanding of the impact social, cultural and other external factors on artists' and designers' work and practice.
The course consists of two compulsory units and the course assessment unit.
Art and Design: Expressive Activity (9 SCQF credit points)
In this unit you will:
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develop your personal thoughts and ideas in visual form
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develop critical understanding of artists’ working practices and the social and cultural influences impacting their work
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select stimuli and produce investigative drawings and studies
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develop and refine your expressive ideas and art work, experimenting with and using a range of materials, techniques and/or technology in 2D and/or 3D formats in response to the stimuli.
Art and Design: Design Activity (9 SCQF credit points)
In this unit you will:
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plan, research and develop creative design work in response to a design brief
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develop your creativity, problem solving and critical thinking skills as you consider complex design opportunities, and work to resolve design issues and constraints
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develop critical understanding of designers’ working practices and the social and cultural influences impacting their work
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develop and refine your design ideas by experimenting with and using a range of materials techniques and/or technology in 2D and/or 3D formats.
Note: Both of these units may be taken with a Scottish Context option, which contributes towards the Scottish Studies Award.
How will I be assessed?
Course Assessment (6 SCQF credit points)
The course assessments has two components:
- a portfolio of work (worth 160 marks)
- a question paper (worth 40 marks).
In the portfolio you will produce one piece of expressive art work (80 marks) and one design solution (80 marks). This will be externally marked by SQA.
The question paper will assess your knowledge and understanding of art and design practice. You will be asked to critically analyse and evaluate the work of artists and designers, showing awareness of the visual qualities and/or impact of their work. The question paper will be set and externally marked by SQA.
Your work will be assessed by your teacher on an ongoing basis throughout the course. You must pass all three units and the course assessment to gain the course qualification.
The course assessment is graded A-D. Your grade will depend on the total mark for all the units in your course.
What can I go on to next?
If you complete the course successfully, it may lead to:
Further study, training or employment in:
Which jobs are related to this subject?
Where can my parents find out more?
Your school will give your parents an Options or Choices information booklet, which has detailed information on the curriculum and the individual subjects or courses you can study. It will also invite them along to a Parents’ Information Evening.
They can also read the information leaflet(s):
Highers in a Nutshell - Art and Design (CfE Higher)