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HEAD OF CAT Department

Mr C Sandland

Vision:

• Using creativity and imagination, pupils design and make products that solve real and relevant problems.
• Develop technical and practical expertise to solve real world problems
• Students learn how to take risks, becoming resourceful, innovative and enterprising

Creative Arts and Technology (Design Technology, Food Technology, Textiles Technology and Art & Design) at the Khalsa Academy Wolverhampton is a very successful faculty, which is forward thinking in its delivery from key stage 3 to 5. We have high expectations of all our students and lead by example. Creative Arts and Technology is delivered through a consistent and co-ordinated approach.
Creative Art and Technology are inspiring, rigorous and practical subjects. Using creativity and imagination, pupils design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others’ needs, wants and values. They acquire a broad range of subject knowledge and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art. Students will develop a broad range of standard and digital literacy skills. Students learn how to take risks, becoming resourceful, innovative, enterprising and capable citizens. Through the evaluation of past and present design and technology, they develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world with an understanding local labour market and future career opportunities. High-quality design and technology education makes an essential contribution to the creativity, culture, wealth and well-being of the national curriculum.

Key Stage 3:
Creative Arts and Technology is taught throughout the year, with students receiving 2 hours of lesson time a cycle in KS3. Students focus on an iterative learning approach covering National Curriculum programmes of study ensuring that all pupils; Develop the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently and to participate successfully in an increasingly technological world with functional use of digital skills (in line with the TKAW digital vision). Build and apply a repertoire of knowledge, understanding and skills in order to design and make high-quality prototypes and products for a wide range of users. Critique, evaluate and test their ideas and products and the work of others. Understand and apply the principles of nutrition and learn how to cook. All students will have the chance to work in specialist rooms and materials areas each year.

Key Stage 4:
Year 10 students will be exploring a wide range of theory, materials, processes and skills throughout their first year of the DT/Art/H&C GCSE’s. Students will develop investigative, problem solving, design and making skills in order to prepare them for their non-examined assessment (NEA) and portfolios.
Year 11 students will continue working on their non-examined assessment (NEA) before revisiting their theory in preparation for the summer exams and Art students for the completion of their two components.
The KS4 Design Technology, Art GCSE and Hospitality and Catering BTEC at the Khalsa Academy Wolverhampton have been carefully selected from a range of examining bodies to provide flexibility, enjoyment and the right level of challenge to match the needs of the individual student.

Key Stage 5:
At present KVI students choose A-Level Product Design and/or Art and Design which builds on the legacy of GCSE specifications. Students develop high level skill sets in technical principles, design and manufacture with a bias towards commercial suitability. Students follow the same examining board to ensure consistency of content style and approach. Students are empowered to make individualised decisions based on knowledge attained throughout the course and apply this to a final NEA of their choice. Art students are inspired to create a coherent body of work resulting in a finalised outcome that shows a clear development of ideas and methodology based on their specialism.

Leadership:
Effective leadership is achieved through staff focussed CPD with a focus on training as opposed to performance management. A culture of staff wellbeing and support is inherent in providing a positive work- life balance that encourages the permeation of ideas and time to develop the individual needs of staff for benefit of the department.
Improving Standards
Following the review of the new Ofsted Framework 2019 the Faculty of Creative Arts & Technology (Design Technology) has extensively reviewed our Curriculum Intent and Vision as follows: -

Intent:
Our aim is to provide an excellent education for all our students; an education, which brings out the best in all of our students and prepares them for success in life.  Our curriculum is designed to provide students with the core knowledge they need for success in education and later life, to maximise their cognitive development, to develop the whole person and the talents of the individual and to allow all students to become active and economically self-sufficient citizens. Our students will be exposed to out of school activities that enrich and develop their understanding the wider world. By drawing on the best that has been taught, said and done in each subject, we hope that our curriculum enables our students to appreciate and participate in the full richness of all experiences. We aim to celebrate the diversity of the school and embrace universal Sikh values and British values to provide a balanced, cultural and knowledge rich curriculum. Creative Arts and Technology embeds the ‘Together as One’ school ethos and the TKAW sikh values (Sat, Santokh, Daya, Dharam, Himmat, Pyaar and in particular Chardi Kala; initiative, innovation and self-improving) using these to provide positive student feedback and rewards.
This is achieved by following core curriculum points: 

• Entitlement - We believe that all students have right to learn what is in the TKAW Curriculum; TKAW have a duty to ensure that all children are taught every aspect.
• Mastery - We want all students to achieve a full understanding of the knowledge specified in the curriculum for each year, and teaching should not move on until this is achieved.
• Consistency - The curriculum will not be constantly amended: while we should make occasional adjustments in the light of feedback and experience, we will aim for a consistent approach over many years, so that teachers can develop expertise, and we constantly build assessments and teaching materials to support the curriculum.
• Concepts not context -The curriculum is intended as a concise specification of knowledge and content to be taught and learned; it is for schools and teachers to decide how to teach and bring it to life. However, curriculum leaders to ensure consistency in approach and content should guide all subject teachers, including non-specialists.

Implementation:
Subject specialism is at the heart of our curriculum The stability of our curriculum allows subject expertise to develop over time, and we are careful to provide sufficient time for teachers within the same subject to meet together. 
As a mastery curriculum, our students study fewer topics in greater depth, with the expectation that we do not move on to the next topic until all pupils have a secure understanding of the current topic.  A 3-year Key Stage 3 provides pupils with the time and space to gain this secure understanding. In our lessons, you will typically see all pupils grappling with the same challenging content, with teachers providing additional support for pupils who need it.  Rather than moving on to new content, our higher attainers are expected to produce work of greater depth and flair.
Embracing the ‘Digital Vision’ at TKAW is embedded in the teaching and learning strategy within the CAT faculty. The development of subject specific google sites facilitate an independent approach to learning by providing student access to all teaching resources 24/7.

Teaching and Learning:
Our approach to teaching and learning supports our curriculum by ensuring that lessons build on prior learning and provide sufficient opportunity for guided and independent practice. We use Barak Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction (2012) and Cognitive Load theory to develop our teaching practice.
 

Impact:
Common assessments have been developed to provide a consistent and standardised approach to testing.  These are summative assessments, which allow students to demonstrate their growing understanding of their subjects and teachers to assess the impact of their teaching. These summative assessments are typically taken at suitable junctures following either completion of topics or units of learning, enabling teachers to focus on formative assessment from lesson to lesson. Moderation is embedded.
Our formative assessments are designed to support students in achieving fluency in the subject. This means that in lessons students are quizzed on prior knowledge in order to embed this knowledge in their long-term memory, supporting cognitive load theory. This frees up their working memory to attend to current learning. We are particularly conscious of the role that literacy and vocabulary plays in unlocking the whole curriculum, embedding oracy and literacy throughout. The Creative Arts and Technology staff explicitly teach the meaning of subject-specific language, and we expect lessons to contain challenging reading and writing. Knowledge organisers provide students with key information in each subject, enabling them to develop their understanding of key concepts outside of their lessons. We also encourage all students to read widely.
Every child has an equal right to a challenging and enlightening curriculum. By teaching this curriculum well, and developing effective habits in our pupils, we bring out the best in everyone.