Examination Board: Edexcel 9PYO
What is the course about?
The photography course is a two-year linear A Level with an emphasis on digital photography and Photoshop. You will be introduced to a variety of photography techniques, media and processing. Within this course, photography can include works in film, video, digital imaging and light-sensitive materials.
Like the masters, pupils will use photography to record, document and present examples of everyday life in ordinary and extraordinary ways. Photography has also been used as a vehicle for artistic expression and a way of communicating personal ideas about the world around us. Photography is used to convey personal identity more widely than any other art form and is also widely used in social, commercial and scientific contexts.
How is the course assessed?
Unit 1 (Coursework (NEA), 60% of A Level)
Marked by the centre and marked and moderated by Edexcel. Overview of assessment:
- Incorporates three major elements: supporting studies, practical work, and a personal study.
- Supporting studies and practical work will comprise a portfolio of development work and outcomes based on themes and ideas developed from personal starting points.
- The personal study will be evidenced through critical written communication showing contextual research and understanding in a minimum of 1,000 words of continuous prose, which may contain integrated images.
The personal study is 12% of the total qualification and is marked out of 18. Work must cover all four assessment objectives and be marked using the assessment grid.
Coursework marks available: 90.
Unit 2 (15-hour exam, 12 weeks preparation time, 40% of A Level)
Marked by the centre and marked and moderated by Edexcel.
Externally set assignment incorporating two major elements: preparatory studies and the 15-hour period of sustained focus.
- Preparatory studies will comprise a portfolio of practical and written development work based on the externally set assignment.
- During the 15-hour period of sustained focus under examination conditions, pupils will produce final outcome(s) from their initial photographs into developed final outcomes in response to the externally set assignment.
- The externally set assignment is released on 1st February and contains a theme and suggested starting points.
- Pupils have from 1st February until the commencement of the final 15-hour period of sustained focus to develop preparatory studies.
- The 15-hour period of sustained focus under examination conditions may take place over multiple sessions.
Assessment objectives are the same as for art A Level.
What can the course lead to in terms of higher education and future careers?
Fine art, design, architecture, graphic design, visual effects and animation, history of art, education, illustration, illustration and animation, computer game design, interior design, creative technologies, product design, industrial design, textiles, graphic communication, interactive design, photography, motion graphics, art therapy, psychology, design engineering, visual communications.
