A-level Design and Technology: NEA changes for 2022 exams
Published: Monday 12 Jul 2021
Ofqual has published the arrangements for non-exam assessment (NEA) and fieldwork for students entering for exams in 2022. Here are the changes to A-level Design and Technology for summer 2022.
A-level Design and Technology: Fashion and Textiles (7562)
A-level Design and Technology: Product Design (7552)
All sections of the NEA up to and including ‘Development of design proposal’ will remain the same for 2022.
For 2022:
Development of design prototype
- This section has been reduced from 25 to 15 marks at A-level.
- Students will no longer be assessed on the skill of making but are required to show their ‘intentions of prototypes’ and demonstrate their understanding of the processes involved in making.
- The assessment no longer requires students to make a final prototype – instead, they can show their understanding of the processes involved in making by writing about them. However, making skills are important for progression to future study, and for students understanding, so we’d encourage you to continue to allow students to make wherever possible. This is one way of demonstrating the knowledge tested in the 2022 ‘Development of design prototype’ section and is the best way to inspire and enthuse students in the subject.
Analysing and evaluation
- This section has been reduced from 20 to 15 marks at A-level.
- Analysis and evaluation throughout the design process can take place in relation to prototype ideas and models.
- There’s no expectation to test a final made prototype but students should find ways of testing prototype designs.
NEA will still count as 50% of the overall A-level qualification.
We’ve further NEA guidance for Fashion and Textiles and Product Design on our website.
Ofqual is planning a consultation on summer 2022 towards the end of this term. We’ll provide further updates and guidance about the summer 2022 exams as soon as we are able to.
