When Chalfonts Community College decided they wanted to develop a Digital Art GCSE that would provide students with industry-applicable, employer-friendly skills, we helped them get to grips with Adobe and Creative Suite...

What they needed...

In a school with over 2,000 students, nearly all of whom study art, introducing a Digital Art GCSE in a way that is quick to learn, and at the same time gives students useful skills posed a significant challenge for Greg Hodgson, leader of Art at Chalfonts, and his team.

"It's important that these students leave the Digital Art course with relevant, employable skills. A lot go on to do A-level Art, they go on to do degrees, so they must have worthwhile, meaningful skills."

At first the school wanted to develop the course in a way that focused on skills and not software, but as the course matured it became apparent that teaching would have to mean sticking to something the students and teachers could use effectively.

Getting to grips with Adobe

The school needed technology that was flexible and represented something that would be useful to its students in the workplace. After trying a few alternatives, Hodgson and his team decided on an Adobe solution, with the integration between the Adobe creative elements providing an easy means of producing and displaying work, and the widespread use of Adobe Flash Players on computers connected to the internet being a large advantage.

Helping pupils get creative

Chalfonts is pushing ahead with online content, creating course elements using Adobe Captivate which are available through the school's intranet and Acrobat Connect Pro for online interactive coursework submissions.

"Rather than giving the students a worksheet or a handout I create an Adobe Captivate movie that records the desktop and I narrate over it, so they can refer back to them 24 hours a day, seven days a week." says Hodgson.

The digital art GCSE has been very successful, with the course being so popular the number of students has had to be expanded by 100% to meet demand.

"The kids really want to do this. They are excited by it and engaged," says Hodgson, "We have students who are taking the Digital Art GCSE who wouldn't necessarily be gaining those grades in other subjects and certainly wouldn't be gaining them in art."

Presenting with Connect Pro

A particular success has been derived from an A-level student using Acrobat Connect Pro to create and submit part of his coursework, creating a presentation and narrating over it. The art department were then able to discuss the work in an online 'meeting' with both the student and other education experts who were off-site. The experiment was so successful that the school is looking at all of the students producing and submitting work as recorded Acrobat Connect Pro meetings, an arrangement which has enhanced the reputation of the school to prospective sixth-form students.

It has also had an impact on teaching as well as learning at Chalfont. "It has allowed me to engage in innovative learning as well as the students," says Hodgson, "It's got me, as a professional, wired and excited about teaching."

To find out more, give us a call on 03332 409 300 or email learning@Jigsaw24.com.

Tags: Adobe