Students will study and will be able to:

• Analyse selections from a range of non-fiction texts, develop the skills of interpretation and analysis.
• Rread a variety of high-quality, challenging non-fiction texts, of a range of non-fiction forms, such as journalism (for example articles and reviews), speeches, journals and reference book extracts. Text types should also include literary non-fiction texts, such as selections from autobiography, letters, obituaries and travel writing,
• Read and understand a variety of texts, selecting and interpreting information, ideas and perspectives.
• Understand and analyse how writers use linguistic and structural devices to achieve their effects.
• Explore links and connections between writers’ ideas and perspectives, as well as how these are conveyed.
• Explore and develop transactional writing skills: students should be introduced to, and be given the opportunity to practise, a range of non-fiction writing techniques, planning and proofreading skills.
• Communicate effectively and imaginatively, adapting form, tone and register of writing for specific purposes and audiences.
• Write clearly, using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures, with appropriate paragraphing and accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation.

Pearson Edexcel International GCSE English Anthology

Part 1: Non-fiction Texts

• From The Danger of a Single Story, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
• From A Passage to Africa, George Alagiah
• From The Explorer’s Daughter, Kari Herbert
• Explorers, or boys messing about? Either way, taxpayer gets rescue bill, Steven Morris
• From 127 Hours: Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Aron Ralston
• Young and Dyslexic? You’ve got it going on, Benjamin Zephaniah
• From A Game of Polo with a Headless Goat, Emma Levine
• From Beyond the Sky and Earth: A Journey into Bhutan, Jamie Zeppa
• From H is for Hawk Helen Macdonald From Chinese Cinderella, Adeline Yen Mah

Students will study and will be able to:

• Analyse selections from a range of fictional poetry and prose texts.
• Read substantial pieces of writing (extended texts) that make significant demands on them in terms of content, structure and the quality of language.
• Develop the skills of inference and analysis.
• Read a variety of additional prose fiction from a range of genres and cultures, selecting and interpreting information, ideas and perspectives.
• Understand and analyse how writers use linguistic and structural devices to achieve their effects.
• Explore and develop imaginative writing skills.
• Develop a range of creative writing techniques, planning and proofreading skills.
• Communicate effectively and imaginatively, adapting form, tone and register of writing for specific purposes and audiences.
• Write clearly, using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures, with appropriate paragraphing and accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation.

Pearson Edexcel International GCSE English Anthology

Part 2: Poetry and Prose Texts Disabled, Wilfred Owen

• «Out, Out–», Robert Frost
• An Unknown Girl, Moniza Alvi
• The Bright Lights of Sarajevo, Tony Harrison
• Still I Rise, Maya Angelou
• he Story of an Hour, Kate Chopin
• The Necklace, Guy de Maupassant
• Significant Cigarettes (from The Road Home), Rose TremainWhistle and I’ll Come to You (from The Woman in Black), Susan HillNight, Alice Munro

Topic Forces and motion:

• Movement and position
• Forces and shape
• Forces and movement
• Density
• Momentum
• The turning effect of forces

Skills:

• Understand the relationships between average speed, distance moved, acceleration, change in velocity and time taken, plot and explain velocity-time graphs.
• Describe the effects of forces between bodies, identify different types of forces, understand the difference between vector quantities and scalar quantities, calculate the resultant force, identify friction, balanced and unbalanced force, calculate the stopping distance, describe the forces acting on falling objects, know the Hooke’s law, describe elastic behaviour, determine the density of a liquid and of a regularly shaped solid, calculate the density.
• Know and use the relationship between momentum, mass and velocity, use the idea of momentum to explain safety features, demonstrate an understanding of Newton’s third law, apply the principle of forces and motion to solve problems.

Topic Electricity:

• Current and voltage in circuits
• Electrical resistance
• Electric Charge

Skills:

• Know and use the relationship between power, current and voltage, understand how the use of insulation, double insulation, earthing, fuses and circuit breakers protects the device or user in a range of domestic appliances, know the principles of series and parallel circuit.
• Describe how current varies with voltage in wires, resistors, etc, know and use the relationship between voltage, current and resistance, charge, current and time, know the definition of electric current , its main characteristics, calculate the currents, voltages and resistances of two resistive components connected in a series circuit , identify common electrical conductors or insulators.
• Explain how positive and negative electrostatic charges are produced, know how forces of attraction and repulsion are formed, explain electrostatic phenomena in terms of the movement of electrons, and explain the potential dangers and uses of electrostatic charges.

Topic Waves:

• Properties of waves
• The electromagnetic spectrum
• Light waves
• Sound waves

Skills:

• Know the definitions of amplitude, wave front, frequency, wavelength, period of a wave, longitudinal and transverse waves, understand that waves transfer energy and information without transferring matter, know and use the relationship between the speed, frequency and wavelength; frequency and time period, explain reflection and refraction, know the properties of light and sound waves.
• Know that light is part of a continuous electromagnetic spectrum; explain some of the uses of electromagnetic radiations and the effects of excessive exposure of the human body to electromagnetic waves.
• Know the characteristics of sound waves.

Topic Energy resources and energy transfer:

• Energy transfers
• Thermal Energy
• Work and power
• Energy resources and electricity generation

Skills:

• Describe energy transfers, use the principle of conservation of energy, describe devices and situations, explaining the transfer of energy, describe how thermal energy transfer may take place by conduction, convection and radiation, explain the role of convection in everyday phenomena.
• Explain how emission and absorption of radiation are related to surface and temperature, explain ways of reducing unwanted energy transfer.
• Know and use the relationship between work done, force and distance moved in the direction of the force, describe the energy transfers involved in generating electricity, describe the advantages and disadvantages of methods of large-scale electricity production from various renewable and non-renewable resources.

Topic Solids, liquids and gases. Density and pressure

Skills:

• Know and use the relationship between density, mass and volume, explain the changes in density and pressure occurring when heating a system, when a solid melts to form a liquid, and when a liquid evaporates or boils to form a gas, describe the arrangement and motion of particles in solids, liquids and gases, understand why there is an absolute zero of temperature which is –273 °C.

Topic Magnetism and electromagnetism. Electric motors and electromagnetic induction

Skills:

• Know the properties of magnets, understand the term magnetic field, know that an electric current in a conductor produces a magnetic field around it, describe the construction of electromagnets.
• Know that there is a force on a charged particle when it moves in a magnetic field, use the left-hand rule to predict the direction of the resulting force, describe how the force on a current-carrying conductor in a magnetic field changes with the magnitude and direction of the field and current, describe the generation of electricity by the rotation of a magnet.
• Describe the structure of a transformer and understand that a transformer changes the size of an alternating voltage by having different numbers of turns on the input and output sides.

Topic Radioactivity and particles:

• Atoms and radioactivity
• Radiation and half-life
• Application of radioactivity

Skills:

• Describe the structure of an atom in terms of protons, neutrons and electrons, know the terms atomic (proton) number, mass (nucleon) number and isotope, describe the nature of alpha (α) particles, beta (β−) particles, and gamma (γ) rays, and recall that they may be distinguished in terms of penetrating power and ability to ionize.
• Describe the effects on the atomic and mass numbers of a nucleus of the emission of each of the four main types of radiation (alpha, beta, gamma and neutron radiation), understand how to balance nuclear equations in terms of mass and charge, explain the sources of background radiation from Earth and space, know the definition of the term half-life and understand that it is different for different radioactive isotopes, know that nuclear reactions can be a source of energy.

Topic Astrophysics:

• Motion in the Universe
• Stellar Evolution
• Cosmology

Skills:

• Understand that the universe is a large collection of billions of galaxies and our solar system is in the Milky Way galaxy.
• Understand why gravitational field strength, g, varies and know that it is different on other planets and the Moon from that on the Earth, describe the differences in the orbits of comets, moons and planets, use the relationship between orbital speed, orbital radius and time period, understand how stars can be classified according to their colour.
• Describe the evolution of stars, understand how the brightness of a star at a standard distance can be represented using absolute magnitude, and explain the Big Bang theory and red-shift in the light of galaxies.

• Rivers
• Natural disasters
• Economical geography
• Urban environment
• Global issues (climate change, globalization and migration, improving human well-being)

• Describe the components of the hydrological cycle; stores and transfers, name and describe the features of a drainage basin.
• Describe and label the component s of a hydrograph, explain the discharge of contrasting river regimes.
• Describe and explain weathering processes (e.g. chemical, biological and mechanical).
• Link these processes to differences in climate, stream velocity, slopes and geology considering how the relative importance of the processes varies from source to mouth, describe landform change along a river long profile, explain how the named landforms are formed by physical processes.
• Explain why water quality varies due to pollution, how clean water is supplied, and how it is stored.
• Explain the causes of river flooding, outline ways in which flooding can be controlled.
• Define and classify different types of natural hazard (climatic, tectonic); describe and explain the global distribution of tropical storms, earthquakes and volcanoes.
• Explain the physical causes of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes (plate tectonics, plate margin types) and the causes and development of tropical storms, outline a range of methods to monitor weather conditions (satellites, radar).
• Explain how some hazards can be predicted (volcanic eruptions, tropical storm landfall) using early warning systems, outline the role of education, shelters and defenses in hazard preparation.
• Explain how places cope during hazard events using evacuation and mitigation measures, outline the consequences of hazards both short term (emergency aid & disaster relief) and long term (risk assessment, rebuilding, view and adjustment; improving prediction and preparation).
• Define and illustrate primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary sectors, give example of different jobs types, describe variations in sectoral balance between countries.
• Describe how sectoral balance has changed over time, explain the causes of informal employment and its characteristics, describe and explain the growth of tertiary and quaternary sectors with reference to causal factors (prosperity, new technology, accessibility, transport, government policy), describe and explain global shifts in manufacturing.
• Define primary, secondary, renewable, non–renewable and sustainable energy, describe trends in global energy demand, and the pattern of global energy production and consumption, explain the need for energy efficiency, outline the nature of non–renewable energy resources (wind, tidal, solar).
• Define urbanisation and urban areas, outline the factors causing urbanisation (and suburbanisation; counter–urbanisation) and affecting its rate, explain the emergence of megacities, outline a range of problems linked to rapid urbanisation (congestion, transport problems, employment issues, crime and environmental quality).
• Outline the factors causing some land uses to concentrate (locational needs, accessibility, land values in the CBD), illustrate the processes and consequences of segregation e.g. by socio–economic group and ethnicity.
• Outline the changes taking place at the edge of HIC cities (retail complexes, business parks, industrial estates) (CS), explain the advantages and disadvantages of Greenfield and Brownfield sites, use OS or similar maps, or Google Earth, to view the edge of an HIC city and examine the mixed nature of the land use.
• Describe the pattern of deprivation/poverty in an HIC city, explain the symptoms and locations of deprived areas, examine the factors leading to inner city decline and change.

Topic The nature and variety of living organisms:

• Characteristics of living organisms
• Variety of living organisms

Skills:

• Understand how living organisms share the following characteristics: they require nutrition, they respire, they excrete their waste, they respond to their surroundings, they move, they control their internal conditions, they reproduce, they grow and develop.
• Describe the common features shown by eukaryotic organisms: plants, animals, fungi and protoctists.

Topic Structures and functions in living organisms:

• Level of organisation
• Cell structure
• Biological molecules
• Movement of substances into and out of cells
• Nutrition
• Respiration
• Gas exchange
• Transport
• Excretion
• Co-ordination and response

Skills:

• Describe the levels of organisation in organisms: organelles, cells, tissues, organs and systems.
• Describe cell structures, including the nucleus, cytoplasm, cell membrane, cell wall, mitochondria, chloroplasts, ribosomes and vacuole, describe the functions of the nucleus, cytoplasm, cell membrane, cell wall, mitochondria, chloroplasts, ribosomes and vacuole, know the similarities and differences in the structure of plant and animal cells.
• Identify the chemical elements present in carbohydrates, proteins and lipids, describe the structure of carbohydrates, proteins and lipids.
• Understand the processes of diffusion, osmosis and active transport by which substances move into and out of cells, understand how factors affect the rate of movement of substances into and out of cells.
• Understand the process of photosynthesis and its importance in the conversion of light energy to chemical energy, describe the structure of the leaf and explain how it is adapted for photosynthesis.
• Understand how the process of respiration produces ATP in living organisms, know that ATP provides energy for cells, describe the differences between aerobic and anaerobic respiration.
• Understand the role of diffusion in gas exchange, understand gas exchange (of carbon dioxide and oxygen) in relation to respiration and photosynthesis, understand the role of the intercostal muscles and the diaphragm in ventilation, explain how alveoli are adapted for gas exchange by diffusion between air in the lungs and blood in capillaries, understand the biological consequences of smoking.
• Understand the diffusion in unicellular and need for a transport system in multicellular organisms, describe the role of phloem in transporting sucrose and amino acids between the leaves and other parts of the plant, describe the role of xylem in transporting water and mineral ions, understand the role of plasma in the transport of carbon dioxide, digested food, urea, hormones and heat energy, understand how the immune system responds to disease, understand the general structure of the circulation system.
• Understand the origin of carbon dioxide and oxygen as waste products of metabolism and their loss from the stomata of a leaf, know the excretory products of the lungs, kidneys and skin (organs of excretion).
• Understand how organisms are able to respond to changes in their environment, understand that homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant internal environment, understand that a co-ordinated response requires a stimulus, a receptor and an effector.

Topic Reproduction and Inheritance:

• Reproduction
• Inheritance

Skills:

• Understand the differences between sexual and asexual reproduction, understand that fertilisation involves the fusion of a male and female gamete to produce a zygote that undergoes cell division and develops into an embryo, describe the structures of an insect-pollinated and a wind-pollinated flower and explain how each is adapted for pollination, understand that plants can reproduce asexually by natural methods and by artificial methods.
• Understand that the genome is the entire DNA of an organism and that a gene is a section of a molecule of DNA that codes for a specific protein, understand that the nucleus of a cell contains chromosomes on which genes are located.
• Understand the meaning of the terms: dominant, recessive, homozygous, heterozygous, phenotype, and genotype, explain Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.

Topic Ecology and the environment:

• The organism in the environment
• Feeding relationships
• Cycles within ecosystems
• Human influences on the environment

Skills:

• Understand the terms population, community, habitat and ecosystem, understand the term biodiversity, understand how abiotic and biotic factors affect the population size and distribution of organisms.
• Understand the names given to different trophic levels, including producers, primary, secondary and tertiary consumers and decomposers, understand the concepts of food chains, food webs, pyramids of number, pyramids of biomass and pyramids of energy transfer, understand the transfer of substances and energy along a food chain.
• Describe the stages in the carbon cycle, including respiration, photosynthesis, decomposition and combustion, describe the stages in the nitrogen cycle.
• Understand the biological consequences of pollution of air, know greenhouse gases, understand how human activities contribute to greenhouse gases, understand the biological consequences of pollution of water by sewage, eutrophication, deforestation.

Topic Use of biological resources:

• Food production
• Selective breeding
• Genetic modification (genetic engineering)
• Cloning

Skills:

• Describe how glasshouses and polythene tunnels can be used to increase the yield of certain crops, understand how the use of fertiliser can increase crop yield, understand the reasons for pest control, understand the role of bacteria in the production of yoghurt, understand the methods used to farm large numbers of fish to provide a source of protein.
• Understand how selective breeding can develop plants and animals with desired characteristics.
• Understand how restriction enzymes are used to cut DNA at specific sites and ligase enzymes are used to join pieces of DNA together, understand how human insulin can be manufactured from genetically modified bacteria, how genetically modified plants can be used to improve food production, understand the term transgenic.
• Describe the process of micropropagation (tissue culture) in which explants are grown in vitro, describe the stages in the production of cloned mammals, understand how cloned transgenic animals can be used to produce human proteins.

Topic Principles of Chemistry:

• States of matter
• Elements, compounds and mixtures
• Atomic structure
• The Periodic Table
• Chemical formulae, equations and calculations
• Ionic bonding
• Covalent bonding
• Metallic bonding
• Electrolysis

Skills:

• Understand the three states of matter in terms of the arrangement, movement and energy of the particles, understand the interconversions and explain the results of experiments, get the idea of solvent, solute, solution, saturated solution.
• Classify a substance as an element, compound or mixture, differentiate between the melting and boiling point of a pure substance and a mixture, describe simple distillation, fractional distillation, filtration, crystallization, paper chromatography.
• Know the terms atom and molecule, structure of an atom, atomic number, mass number, isotopes and relative atomic mass, be able to calculate the relative atomic mass of an element.
• Understand how elements are arranged in the Periodic Table, identify an element as a metal or a non-metal according to its position in the Periodic Table.
  write word equations and balanced chemical equations, calculate relative formula masses, calculate reacting masses and percentage yield, know what is meant by the terms empirical and molecular formula.
• Understand how ions are formed, know the charges of these ions, write formulae for compounds, draw dot-and-cross diagrams, understand ionic bonding.
• Understand covalent bonds, explain how the melting and boiling points of substances change.
• Understand metallic bonding and know how to represent a metallic lattice by a 2-D diagram, explain typical physical properties of metals.
• Understand why different compounds do not conduct/conduct electricity, describe experiments to investigate electrolysis, write ionic half-equations representing the reactions at the electrodes during electrolysis.

Topic Inorganic Chemistry:

• Group 1 (alkali metals) – lithium, sodium and potassium
• Group 7 (halogens) – chlorine, bromine and iodine
• Gases in the atmosphere d) Reactivity series
• Extraction and uses of metals
• Acids, alkalis and titrations
• Acids, bases and salt preparations
• Chemical tests

Skills:

• Understand the differences and similarities between the reactions of the elements, use knowledge of trends in Group 1 to predict the properties of other alkali metals.
• Know the colours, physical states and trends in physical properties of elements of group 7, predict the properties of other halogens.
• Know the approximate percentages by volume of the four most abundant gases, understand how to determine the percentage by volume of oxygen in air using experiments involving the reactions of metals and non-metals, describe the combustion of elements, describe the formation of carbon dioxide.
• Understand how metals can be arranged in a reactivity series, know the order of reactivity, understand how the rusting of iron may be prevented.
• Know that most metals are extracted from ores found in the Earth’s crust, explain how the method of extraction of a metal is related to its position in the reactivity series, be able to comment on a metal extraction process.
• Describe the use of litmus, phenolphthalein and methyl orange to distinguish between acidic and alkaline solutions, understand how to use the pH scale, describe the use of universal indicator to measure the approximate pH value of an aqueous solution.
• Know the general rules for predicting the solubility of ionic compounds in water, understand acids and bases in terms of proton transfer.
• Describe tests for some gases, describe how to carry out a flame test, know the colours formed in flame tests for these cations.

Topic Physical Chemistry:

• Energetics
• Rates of reaction
• Reversible reactions and equilibria

Skills:

• Get the idea of exothermic reactions, describe simple calorimetry experiments, calculate the heat energy change and the molar enthalpy change, draw and explain energy level diagrams to represent exothermic and endothermic reactions.
• Investigate the effects of changes in surface area of a solid, concentration of a solution, temperature and the use of a catalyst on the rate of a reaction, explain the effects of changes in surface area of a solid, concentration of a solution, pressure of a gas and temperature on the rate of a reaction in terms of particle collision theory.
• Know that some reactions are reversible and that a reversible reaction can reach dynamic equilibrium.

• Be aware of the distinction between financial and non-financial objectives.
• Examine how a business has grown over time and how its objectives could have changed during that time.
• Be able to recognise what is meant by each type of business and be able to recognise the most appropriate business type to a given business situation.
• Be able to identify which sectors of the economy a sole trader, partnership and company they are part of.
• Be able to consider the importance of a range of factors that determine the location of a business.
• Think about the fact that markets for goods and services are now interdependent and that students cannot consider competition from just coming from other domestic producers.
• Know that a weakening currency will make exports from that country cheaper in terms of a different nation’s currency which will lead to an increase in demand.
• Know that success can be measured using a variety of different measures.

• Understand the different forms of communication.
• Understand the benefits and drawbacks of using IT to facilitate communication.
• Understand the difference between full-time and part-time employment.
• Know what the process of employing a worker is.
• Know what the legal controls are trying to do.
• Understand that some training may be required so that employees do not break the law.
• Understand why a business will ultimately benefit from having a motivated workforce.
• Know the difference between financial methods of motivating workers and non-financial methods of motivating workers.
• Should have a simple recognition of the different functional areas of a business.

• Consider the financial constraints a business faces as it starts up and expands in size.
• Be able to match the appropriate source of finance with the situation the business faces.
• Know the advantages and disadvantages of using internal sources of finance.
• Recognise that cash and profit are related, but not identical concepts.
• Be able interpret cash flow figures and tables to explain what is happening, or to evaluate the cash flow position of the business.
• Be able to perform basic business calculations and be able to interpret a break-even diagram.
• May be asked to calculate, cost of sales, gross profit, other operating expenses and operating profit.
• Be able to decide whether the business is successful and whether there is any risk of failure following the analysis of the accounts of the business.

• Explore sample size but are not expected to look at sampling techniques.
• Know the difference between product orientation and market orientation.
• Know the difference between niche marketing and mass marketing.
• Understand that there is a difference between goods (tangible product) and a service.
• Know what the Boston Matrix is.
• Know that cost plus pricing involves adding a percentage mark-up on to the average total cost of the product.
• Know what viral advertising is.

• Know the various factors that cause economies and diseconomies of scale to occur.
• Know the advantages and disadvantages of job, batch and flow production and the scenarios where certain production processes would apply.
• Know what Kaizen (continuous improvement) is.
• Know what the four factors of production are and the distinction between capital and labour intensive production.
• Know the three factors of production: Enterprise (Entrepreneurship), Capital (machinery), Land (to include raw materials) and Labour (workers).

Topic Politics and Governance Democracy and Sovereignty:

• Systems of government
• Human rights
• International law
• Citizenship in action

Skills:

• Definition of democracy, representative and direct elections, referendum, nation state in global politics, the challenges to the sovereignty of nation states.
• Existing political systems and their impact on communities and individuals, differences between democratic and autocratic countries, the concepts of monarchy.
• Human rights; Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the nature and types of human, human rights during conflict, humanitarian intervention and peacekeeping; respect of the rights and freedoms.
• The origins, development of international law; the role of international laws, institutions and agreements in protecting the rights and freedoms of people, social movements, charities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
• Campaigning for global political change, the role of education in understanding significant global issues.

Topic Economic Development and the Environment:

• The process of economic development
• The role of international organizations
• Protecting the environment
• The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
• Growth of regionalisation
• Citizenship in action

Skills:

• Three Human Development Index countries (high, medium, low), education and health disparities in each nation; new emerging economies; the roles of free and fair trade in economic development; international migration.
• The main international organisations supporting economic development WHO, UNICEF and UNHCR; difference between long-term and emergency development assistance; citizenship involvement with international organizations, volunteering and donations.
• Climate change, the impact of global economic development on the Global Commons, including rainforest removal, biodiversity loss and ocean pollution, ways of promoting the protection of the environment.
• UN work in support of global development, the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) framework, meeting SDG targets in two contrasting world regions.
• Reasons for the growth of regional multi-governmental organisations (MGOs), the consequences of MGO and the political reaction to globalisation and MGO growth.
• Assisting the development of other societies, including volunteering, campaignin; educating others; importance of charities and non-governmental organizations; the work of schools, charities, NGOs, and international organisations.

Topic Culture and Community:

• Global and national cultures
• Identity and Migration
• Social attitudes and changing lifestyles
• Global language and communication
• Cultural change in emerging economies
• Citizenship in action

Skills:

• Growth towards a global culture, the rejection of globalised cultural change, the protection and promotion of national culture as an economic development strategy.
• The main economic, political, cultural and environmental reasons for increased international migration, the factors that shape individual and community identities, the effects of migration on patterns of identity and diversity in local and national communities.
• Changing social attitudes to participation in global events, the impact of cultural activities on national and international communities, lifestyle changes.
• Widespread use of European languages and increased take up of Chinese and Arabic, communications technology, accessibility of travel within and between countries.
• Changing patterns of wealth and poverty in emerging economies.
• Changing behaviours, the importance of education for promoting literacy and tackling cultural bias against disadvantaged groups in some societies, raising of own awareness of shifts in cultural traditions; health and social care related issues; educational initiatives for cultural change.

Topic Technology:

• Technology and economic development
• Technology and communities
• Technology, politics and citizenship
• Technology, energy and climate change
• Social media identities and freedoms
• Citizenship in action

Skills:

• The links between communications technology and economic development, the role of communications technology in trade and investment, the growing importance of communications technology in tackling inequality between and within communities.
• The role of communications technology in international community building, opportunities and threats for communities.
• Communications technology and campaigning, communications technology during elections, censorship and bias in relation to communications technology.
• Energy-saving technologies, technologies needed to tackle or adapt to future climate change.
• Ways in which personal identities can be affected by the growth of social media communities, personal rights and freedom of speech for users of social media, changing patterns of media use.
• Engaging with technological change, the role of law-making in support of technology access or protection issues, promoting technological skills the role of schools, charities, NGOs in improving access to technology.

Topic Citizenship Community Action Project

Skills:

• Identify an issue and carry out initial research.
• Undertake primary and secondary research.
• Represent their own and different points of view. Plan the action.
• Apply skills of collaboration, negotiation and influence as they deliver the activity.
• Critically evaluate their learning and the impact of the action.
• Develop exam technique for approaching essay writing and source analysis questions.

Topic Thinking Synoptically

Skills:

• Develop exam technique for approaching essay writing and source analysis questions.

Topics

• Types of digital devices
• Features of digital devices
• Software
• Types of peripheral devices – input and output
• Types of peripheral devices – storage
• Memory
• Processors
• ICT systems to meet specified needs

Skills

• Be aware of different kinds of digital devices (computers (mainframe computers, laptop and desktop computers), mobile phones; smartphones and specialist phones, tablet devices and how they connect to the network.
• Be able to describe the purpose and use of other digital devices such as:
  • cameras and camcorders
  • games consoles
  • home entertainment systems
  • media players
• Know about navigation aids and how they are used.
• Understand the terms ‘multifunctional’ and ‘convergence’ in the context of digital devices.
• Understand features of digital devices: portability, performance, storage, user interface, connectivity, media support, energy consumption, expansion capability, security features.
• Be able to identify the purpose of systems software and applications software.
• Know about operating systems and system software tools such as utilities.
• Know about the role/function of the operating system, including basic knowledge of:
  • single user and network
  • memory management
  • resource management
  • security
  • print spooling
• Know about software applications (apps), including office-productivity tools, web authoring, image and sound editing, presentation software, control software, project management software. Know about software licensing types (free/open source and proprietary software). Understand that the purpose of communication software is to provide remote access to systems and to exchange files and messages in text, images, audio and/or video formats between different computers or users.
• Know about types of output and input devices.
• Be able to differentiate between storage devices and the media used to store data.
• Know the characteristics of hard disk drives (HDD), solid state drives (SSD), optical disk drives.
• Know that storage devices can be internal or external.
• Know about types of storage media.
• Understand the terms describing the capacity of storage such as bit, byte and multiples of these.
• Be able to describe the characteristics and uses of RAM and ROM and flash memory.
• Understand the function of the processing unit (CPU).
• Know how the speed of a processor is measured.
• Be able to identify digital devices and associated peripheral devices that meets particular needs, including accessibility.
• Be able to justify choices made in identifying and configuring hardware and software.