Section A: Identifying Design Possibilities

Overview

10 marks — AO1 (Assessment Objective 1: Identify, analyse and research)

This section is your starting point. You need to show that you have thoroughly explored the context, researched existing products and users, and identified a clear design opportunity. Aim for 3–4 pages.

Where it goes: your informal sketchbook. This section is exploratory, so it can be rough, as long as it is clear.

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What to include — page by page

Page numbers are a suggested order. WJEC sets no fixed format — see sketchbook and folio.

Page 1: Context analysis

WJEC sets three contexts each year. Start by analysing all three before choosing one.

• Annotate or mind-map each context — what does it mean? What areas does it cover? Who might it affect?
• Identify possible design tasks within each context, then pick the context that gives you the strongest opportunities
• For your chosen context, identify at least three possible directions you could take
• Explain why the context is relevant and what kinds of products could come from it
• Show you understand that design takes place within real-world situations that shape outcomes

Tip: Explore the full breadth of the context before committing to a product. That doesn’t mean waiting to sketch: quick sketches and rough card models of early thoughts are encouraged from day one. They help you work out what you need to research.

Page 2: Primary research — designing your survey

Primary research is data you collect yourself, directly from users or the real world.

You don’t have a product yet — and that’s the point. Your survey is a tool for discovery, not confirmation. You are researching the context and your users so you can work out what to design. Never ask “would you buy my product?” — instead, explore people’s needs, habits and frustrations within the context.

A note for the Inspiration from nature context: Your survey researches the problem and the user — not nature itself. Don’t ask people about plants or animals. Pin down a real user problem first; the inspiration from nature comes later, during ideation, when you look at how the natural world has solved a similar problem (e.g. burrs → Velcro, honeycomb → lightweight strength).

Aim for 5–10 respondents. Mix closed questions (tick-box, scale or ranking — easy to turn into graphs) with one or two open questions (richer detail you can quote and analyse). Present your results as charts and comment on what they mean for your design.

A question template for any context

Adapt these four types to whatever context WJEC has given you:

• Screening — who is your user?
  • Establish who they are and whether they experience a relevant problem. (e.g. “Which activities do you do outdoors regularly?”, “Do you experience any recurring problem the natural world might help solve?”)
• Behaviour — what do they currently do?
  • Find out their habits and the solutions they already use. (e.g. “What product do you currently use for [task]?”, “How well does it work for you?”)
• Frustrations — where is the opportunity?
  • Surface the problems your design could solve — these feed your design opportunities. (e.g. “What frustrates you most about that product or task?”, “When does it fail or let you down?”)
• Priorities — what matters to them?
  • Understand what they value — this starts to shape your specification. (e.g. “Rank these by importance: durability / weight / cost / sustainability”, “How important is it that a product is made from eco-friendly materials?”)

Tip: Behaviour and frustration questions reveal your design opportunities (Page 4). Priority and preference questions begin to inform your specification (Section B). Good questions do double duty.

Example questions for each context

Inspiration from nature (identify a problem; let nature inspire the solution)

• Screening: “Which everyday tasks or activities cause you the most difficulty?”
• Behaviour: “What product do you currently use for that task, and how does it perform?”
• Frustration: “When does that product fail, break or let you down?”
• Priority: “Rank by importance: durability / weight / cost / sustainability.”

Responding to climate change (a solution for emerging environmental conditions)

• Screening: “Which changing weather conditions affect your daily life most? (heat / flooding / storms / drought)”
• Behaviour: “What do you currently do to cope with those conditions?”
• Frustration: “What doesn’t work well about your current approach?”
• Priority: “Rank by importance: cost / effectiveness / portability / environmental impact.”

Designing for future generations (ethical, multifunctional, inspiring products)

• Screening: “Which everyday products do you feel are wasteful or short-lived?”
• Behaviour: “How long do you typically keep this kind of product before replacing it?”
• Frustration: “What makes you throw a product away — and could it have lasted longer?”
• Priority: “Rank by importance: ethical sourcing / multifunctionality / repairability / appeal.”

Common mistakes to avoid

• Leading questions that push a particular answer (e.g. “Don’t you agree storage is a problem?”) — they bias your results and moderators spot them.
• Asking about a product you haven’t designed — there is no product yet.
• Presenting data without analysis — every chart needs a sentence on what it tells you about your design.
• Too many open questions — they’re hard to graph; keep most questions closed.

Other primary research methods

• Interview notes — speak to a potential client or user and record key findings
• Observations — observe how people interact with existing products or environments
• Measurements — record any relevant anthropometric data (e.g. hand sizes, reach distances)

Analyse what your primary research tells you — do not just present data, comment on what it means for your design.

Page 3: Secondary research — ACCESS FM product analysis

Secondary research is data already collected by others that you find and use.

Existing product analysis using ACCESS FM

Analyse 4 existing products that are related to your context using the ACCESS FM framework. For each product, work through all seven headings and annotate an image or photograph of the product.

Tip: Don’t just describe — evaluate. Say whether each aspect is successful or not, and explain why. Your teacher and the moderator want your judgement, not just a list of facts.

For each product, end with a short “What this tells me” sentence — link what you found to your own design direction.

Other secondary research to include

• Past and present professionals and companies — research designers or companies whose work relates to your context (link to the Designers content from Unit 1). This is named in the mark scheme, so don’t skip it
• Standards and legislation — note any relevant BSI/ISO standards or safety requirements
• New materials, processes and techniques — explore materials and making methods that could be appropriate, including modern and smart materials

Concluding your research

After your product analyses, write a short research conclusion that draws everything together — your survey findings (Page 2) and your product analyses. Answer these questions:

• What have you learned about what users need?
• What do existing products do well that you should keep in mind?
• What do existing products do poorly — where is the gap your design could fill?
• What materials, sizes or features are you starting to consider as a result?

This conclusion bridges your research and your design opportunities (Page 4). It shows that your design decisions will be evidence-based, not guesswork.

Tip: Relate everything back to your context. Ask yourself: “What does this tell me about what I should design?”

Page 4: Analysis, design opportunities and possible briefs

Pull your research together into clear conclusions.

• Summarise the key needs and wants of your target user
• Identify at least three design problems or opportunities arising from your research
• Turn them into 2–3 possible design briefs, each a sentence or two, and list the advantages and disadvantages of each
• Model and test some initial ideas for your possible briefs, such as quick sketches or a rough card model, to see which has the most potential
• Explain which opportunity you will pursue and why
• Show how your chosen direction responds to real user needs, not just your personal preference

Why possible briefs? The Band 4 descriptor asks for a broad range of problems/opportunities that “inform the development of possible design briefs”. Showing several briefs, then choosing one, is the clearest evidence of this. You finalise your chosen brief in Section B.

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Marking criteria

Your teacher picks the band that best fits your work. A mark at the top of a band needs all of its descriptors met; missing evidence means a lower mark within the band. See how the marks are awarded.

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Checklist for Band 4

• All three WJEC contexts analysed, and the chosen one explored from multiple angles
• Primary research collected, presented visually and analysed
• 4 existing products analysed using ACCESS FM with annotations
• Each product analysis ends with a “What this tells me” sentence
• Research conclusion written — linking survey findings and product analyses
• Reference made to relevant past/present professionals or companies
• New materials, processes or techniques researched
• User needs and wants clearly identified
• At least three design problems or opportunities stated
• 2–3 possible design briefs written and compared
• Some initial ideas sketched, modelled and tested
• Everything is linked back to the context