Topic One (0.1): About the Course

Module Overview Icon.png Course Overview

Your International GCSE is divided into two components which are each worth fifty percent of the course. 

Component 1: this is your personal portfolio – which you will start in year one of this course and complete in year two. You will work from our set assignments and you will provide supporting studies and personal response. All work is set by us at Wolsey Hall and externally marked by the Edexcel art examiners. 

Component 2: this is your externally-set assignment. In January of your second year, the exam board will announce an assignment topic within a broad-based theme; you will have time to prepare and provide supporting studies and complete a 10-hour exam under remote invigilation conditions. Component 2 is both set and marked by Edexcel, the examining body for this course.  

The weighting for each component is 50%. 

Year One  

You will have seven modules in year one plus a mock exam at the end of the year.  

  • Module Zero recaps on prior art knowledge and introduces you to this International GCSE course.
  • Modules 1 and 2 have as their theme ‘This is Me’.
  • In Modules 3 to 6 you will choose one of eight possible themes to develop into a personal project (Component 1).  

The mock exam at the end of Module 6 will help you prepare for your external International GCSE exam in year two of the course. 

Year Two  

Year two of the course also contains six modules, two of which are your exam modules. 

  • Modules 7 and 8 provide further opportunity for you to develop your personal project.
  • Modules 9 and 10 are your Component 2 externally-set International GCSE exam modules and you will need to be ready to start these in January of your second year. You will complete your own studies based on the theme announced by the exam board at the start of January and then undertake ten hours of focused invigilated exam work, presenting the end result for external assessment. Your Component 2 work will take place between January and April of year two. 
  • Modules 11 and 12 are a final opportunity to complete your Component 1 personal project and present your ePortfolio ready for external assessment by the exam board. 

Optional Activities Icon.png Overview Diagram

This overview of the course will help you to visualise both components of the Art and Design International GCSE and how they fit together:

Overview of Component 1 &2.png