Students are able to opt to study ICT at GCSE level. The following course is available to students wishing to study ICT at this level.

Year 10: AiDA Unit 1 (Using ICT) – Level 2 Award in Digital Applications (1 GCSE equivalent)
Year 11: CiDA Unit 4 (Multimedia) – Level 2 Certificate in Digital Application (2 GCSE equivalent)

Further information on this course can be found at: http://dida.edexcel.org.uk/home/

AiDA / CiDA is a revolutionary paperless qualification from Edexcel that focuses on the practical application of technology. AiDA is equivalent to one GCSE and CiDA is equivalent to two GCSE’s. Both are part of a suite of four modular qualifications on offer from EdExcel called DiDA (Diploma in Digital Applications). This qualification is designed to prepare students for the real world of work or further education, stimulating students’ creativity and developing real-world, practical skills that will motivate learning across a wide range of subjects.

This course aims to:

• develop students’ ability to select and use digital applications appropriately and produce high quality outcomes
• promote the use of digital applications for achieving a goal, rather than for their own sake
• enhance creativity and communication
• equip students with some of the skills they will need in the workplace or in further education or training
• develop project management skills
• free students’ work from paper, making it organised, searchable, dynamic and transportable
• encourage students to reflect critically on their own and others’ use of digital applications

Assessment Requirements

AiDA / CiDA is a paperless examination. Students complete a Summative Project Brief (SPB) set by Edexcel and present their evidence in an e-portfolio which is internally assessed and externally moderated.

The project involves planning and producing a number of IT solutions for a fictional company. For example, students may be asked to create a website, design an online newsletter and create a database or spreadsheet model to keep track of stock and costs, all of which are presented for marking in an online e-portfolio.

There are four assessment objectives for this qualification.

1 Ability to establish the objectives of a project and plan for their achievement within a given timescale
2 Practical capability (ability to apply knowledge and skills purposely) in gathering and selecting information from appropriate sources
3 Practical capability in using digital applications to support creative processes and produce outcomes that match requirements
4 Ability to reflect critically on their own and others’ use of digital applications and make constructive use of evaluative comments

Students are expected to spend a minimum of 30 hours of classroom time working on their project and are expected to work independently to produce their solutions. To view an example project set by EdExcel visit: http://dida.edexcel.org.uk/home/spb. 

The school is presently OSCA accredited for AiDA Unit 1 (Using ICT) Level 2.