Design and Graphics (A/T)
In this course students will develop their graphic communication and design skills in order to understand and create real world products. Using the design process, Adobe software and printing processes, students will produce a variety of items including magazines, t-shirts, packaging, websites, posters, pamphlets, logos, book covers and folios.
Design and Graphics can also be combined with Designed Environments, Design and Textiles or Engineering to achieve a major, major-minor or double major in Design and Technology.
There is also a unit of Negotiated Study available to students in Semester 2 of Year 12, which produces a professional portfolio of all work undertaken in the course that students can use to apply for courses at university or CIT/TAFE.
The following units can be used to make up a Design and Graphics course.
Design Applications
In this unit, students learn graphic design principles which focus on solving design problems, presenting ideas and solutions as graphical products. They explore a range of mediums to create practical solutions to design problems. The purpose of this unit is to build skills such as sketching and modelling. Students create a finished product for a specified purpose. They create solutions using a range of processes, applying industry conventions and standards where applicable.
Design for a Client Brief
In this unit, students learn how to interpret a design brief based on needs analysis and task identification. They research the client’s and target users/audience needs considering ethical considerations, financial constraints and affordances, meeting deadlines and deliver a product that is fit for purpose. This unit develops the knowledge and skills to generate concepts and solutions in response to design briefs in a range of real-world contexts.
Visual Communication
In this unit, students learn to use graphics to inspire, inform or persuade a target audience using a range of graphical techniques. Drawing on current issues in society, students create a visual campaign in response to a design brief.
They learn to create graphic images using colours, textures, contours and shapes to communicate emotions, attitudes and experiences.
Design for Screen & Media
In this unit, students learn to develop designs for a range of platforms including social media, video sharing, digital newspapers and mobile platforms. They use research to understand how the relevant technology can be used to meet the requirements of the given brief. Students develop skills to solve problems in converting products across multiple platforms. Students build knowledge of data conversion, data storage and data manipulation. They create media files, drawing on the technical aspects of design within a digital framework.