AS and

A Level
Art and
Design

COURSE PLANNER
Guidance on planning your course(s)

Course planner

GCE Art and Design course planner

Guidance on planning your course(s)
From September 2015, AS Art and Design is a stand-alone qualification. That
means it no longer counts towards the full A level in Art and Design. This is a
regulatory change affecting all AS qualifications in England.
AS and A level Art and Design are completely separate qualifications: if a student
takes AS Art and Design and then decides to take A level Art and design, the marks
achieved at AS will not contribute in any way to the A level marks and grade.
However, work completed and assessed as part of a students AS Personal
Investigation can form part of a students Personal Investigation submission for
A level Art and Design.
It is important to bear in mind that:

The A level standard is higher than the AS standard, so the performance

expected of students at A level is different to the performance expected of
students at AS.

Any AS work that forms part of an A level submission will be assessed at

the A level standard.
We are creating a bank of AS and A level exemplar materials to exemplify the
different AS and A level standards. These will be available on our website from
May 2015.
The option to submit AS work as part of a students A level Personal Investigation
submission means that the AS and A level courses are truly co-teachable, giving
you greater flexibility in how you structure and resource the courses.
Either course can be delivered over one or two years, but we do not recommend
delivering either course in fewer that the recommended guided learning hours (180
for AS and 360 for A level).
The following pages show high level course plans for AS and A level Art and Design.
They are not intended to prescribe a particular course structure, and should be
adapted to fit the needs of your department.
We also provide detailed schemes of work, which you can download from the
Edexcel website.

Guidance on co-teaching your courses

Centres intending to offer the AS alongside the A level will need to decide whether
to teach students together or separately.
Centres delivering the AS in one year will easily be able to co-teach students if
delivering an A level course whose first year is based on the 1-year AS course
structure (A level options 2 and 3).
Centres planning to deliver an A level course whose first year is not based on the
AS course structure (A level option 1) may find it easier to offer separate AS and
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A level classes, although this will depend on your students and the resources in

your department.

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Course planner

course1 yearOPTION 1:

AS
Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Induction period

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Students complete
the Externally Set
Assignment

N/A

N/A

N/A

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory period
begins in January

Students finish their

Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students given opportunities to

develop their knowledge,
understanding and skills, to
include:

generating and developing

ideas

researching primary and

contextual sources

recording practical and

written observations

exploring materials,
processes, technologies
and techniques

Students start work

on preparatory
studies in response
to the theme

Students start work on

Personal Investigation

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Course planner
Autumn term

Induction period

OPTION 2: 2 year course

Students explore materials,

processes, technologies and
techniques to develop their
knowledge, understanding and
skills

Students generate and develop

ideas by completing small,
discrete projects

Spring term

Students given
opportunities to
research primary
and contextual
sources

Summer term

Students start work

on Personal
Investigation

Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory period
begins in January

Students complete
the Externally Set
Assignment

Students start work

on preparatory
studies in response
to the theme

Students finish their

Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students research
appropriate artist
references, and
record practical and
written observations

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Course planner

structure)on ASnot based(first yearcourse 2 yearOPTION 1:

A level
Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Induction period

Students given
further
opportunities to
develop their
knowledge,
understanding
and skills

Students given
further
opportunities to
develop their
knowledge,
understanding
and skills

Recap of the
Personal
Investigation

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Students complete
the Externally Set
Assignment

Students continue
with Personal
Investigation

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory
period begins in
February

Students finish
their Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students given opportunities to develop

their knowledge, understanding and
skills, to include:

generating and developing ideas

researching primary and contextual

sources

recording practical and written

observations

exploring materials, processes,

technologies and techniques

Introduction to research skills and

analysis of sources

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Students start
work on Personal
Investigation

Students plan and

undertake a
contextual
enquiry relevant
to their ongoing
practical work

Students start
work on
preparatory
studies in
response to the
theme

Course planner
Autumn term

Induction period
Students given opportunities to develop
their knowledge, understanding and
skills, to include:

generating and developing ideas

researching primary and contextual

sources

recording practical and written

observations

exploring materials, processes,

technologies and techniques

2: 2 year course (first year based on AS 1 year

Students start work on Personal

Investigation

Spring term

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation
AS Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory
period begins in
January
Students can use
the AS ESA paper
as a mock ESA or
as a Personal
Investigation
project

Summer term

Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Students
complete the
Externally Set
Assignment as a
mock ESA or as a
Personal
Investigation
project

Recap of the
Personal
Investigation

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Students complete
the Externally Set
Assignment

Students continue
with Personal
Investigation

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory
period begins in
February

Students finish
their Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students devise a
summer vacation
project based on
their strengths
and current
interests

Students plan and

undertake a
contextual
enquiry relevant
to their ongoing
practical work

Students start
work on
preparatory
studies in
response to the
theme

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year)level in firstenter for AS(studentscourse 2 yearOPTION 3:

Course planner
Autumn term

Spring term

Induction period

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Students given opportunities to develop

their knowledge, understanding and
skills, to include:

generating and developing ideas

researching primary and contextual

sources

recording practical and written

observations

exploring materials, processes,

technologies and techniques

Students start work on Personal

Investigation

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory
period begins in
January
Students start
work on
preparatory
studies in
response to the
theme

Summer term

Autumn term

Spring term

Summer term

Students
complete the
Externally Set
Assignment

Recap of the
Personal
Investigation

Students continue
work on Personal
Investigation

Students complete
the Externally Set
Assignment

Students continue
with Personal
Investigation
(drawing on and
developing AS
level work as
appropriate)

Externally Set
Assignment
preparatory
period begins in
February

Students finish
their Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students finish
their Personal
Investigation and
select work for
submission

Students plan and

undertake a
contextual
enquiry relevant
to their ongoing
practical work

Students start
work on
preparatory
studies in
response to the
theme

*The AS course will provide a solid foundation for A level study, whether or not students are entered for the AS qualification.

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