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Students it is not far until those Design Technology exams happen in May – and so here is a reminder of the examiners tips from the last examination session. Remember do what they say and you will gain more marks!
Paper 2
For Paper 2 examiners suggested the following:-
- Check the glossary in the subject guide – as you should know the definitions. Seems simple but often forgotten – examiners can write “WTTE” meaning words to that effect – BUT they are expecting as close as possible to the definitions set out in the syllabus.
- An example from last session was the question to define “toughness” – which many candidates got wrong – and yet the definition is clear and in the glossary for this DT course – so USE IT!
- “For Question 1 candidates should spend time assimilating all the data supplied before looking at individual questions and considering which aspects of the data is relevant.” – so simply do not rush into your answers – read the question and think through the data before trying to answer!
- Candidates should avoid generalisations throughout the paper – be specific in your answers.
- “Candidates should read each of the Section B questions carefully before deciding which one to tackle. Some candidates just choose the design context they feel more comfortable with rather than analysing the requirements of the various aspects of the questions and considering the nature of the responses that should be made. The Section B questions are designed to cover different topics in the syllabus though the nine mark question will have most impact on the final mark achieved. In many instances candidates perform well on the shorter questions but relatively poorly on the final question.” – DOES THAT MAKE SENSE – do not choose the section B questions based on the short answer questions when the long answer get you more marks!
- “Candidates should take into account the amount of marks allocated to each question which matches the depth of response required.” – so think and understand the command terms and how many marks they should receive.
- “Careful planning and better structuring of responses is required especially in the final question of the paper.” – especially with the long answer questions you ahve the time to structure these questions so create a plan to avoid repeating yourself!
Paper 3
For Paper 3 the examiners suggested the following – which simply means READ THE QUESTION and DO NOT IGNORE IT :-
“A general comment that can be made about candidate performance is that too many times the detail in the stem of the question is ignored e.g. outline one advantage, or the focus is missed e.g. the consumer.”
Good luck in those examinations 🙂
