Sixth Form Bridging Work – Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Certificate in Information Technology

This document aims to prepare you for the transition between GCSE and Year 12 BTEC courses.

You can view the most up to date specification of the course here that will tell you all about it:

https://qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/BTEC-Nationals/Information-Technology/2016/specification-and-sample-assessments/9781446938058_BTEC_NAT_ExtCert_IT_Spec_Iss2CUpd.pdf

What the BTEC will be worth:

It is equivalent in size to one A Level. There are 4 units of which 3 are mandatory and 1 optional unit we have decided as a school. Of these 4 units 2 of them are externally assessed whereas the other 2 will be assessed by Mr. Marsh and Miss Madhaparia internally.

Units of study Unit 1: Information Technology Systems

This unit is externally assessed through a written examination set and marked by Pearson. The examination is two hours in length. Learners will be assessed on their understanding of computer systems and the implications of their use in personal and professional situations. The number of marks for the unit is 90.

Unit 2: Creating Systems to Manage Information

This unit is externally assessed through a task set and marked by Pearson. The set task will be completed under supervised conditions for 10 hours in a one-week period set by Pearson, which can be arranged over a number of sessions. The set task will assess learners’ ability to design, create, test and evaluate a relational database system to manage information. The number of marks for the unit is 66.

Unit 3: Using Social Media in Business

Learners explore how businesses use social media to promote their products and services. Learners also implement social media activities in a small business to meet their requirements.

There will be 2 coursework assignments that will be marked internally, where you can be awarded Pass, Merit or Distinction for each one.

Unit 6: Website Development

Learners investigate website development principles. They will design and develop a website using scripting languages such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and JavaScript.

There will be 2 coursework assignments that will be marked internally where you can be awarded Pass, Merit or Distinction for each one.

Compulsory tasks before the start of the course in September

You must attempt all tasks below.

Task 1:

1.

2.

3.

4.

Task 2:

Research what is meant by table validation and then do the following:

Type the data from Task 1 into a Microsoft Access database yourself. Now provide screenshot evidence of the following tests on your data with arrows pointing to the particular checks:

1 example of a length check

1 example of a presence check

1 example of a range check

Task 3:

Name as many differences as you can between Facebook and Twitter:

Task 4:

Look at the following two posts from the same company. What product do you think they are trying to advertise do they do a good job about advertising them, why or why not?

What is it about these post that would make a customer want to buy the product that is advertised in it? Explain your answer in detail.

Overall thoughtsThese tasks are based on the units you are about to study, what are your thoughts on the tasks you have completed? Name what you have learnt new from doing these activities: