S2 Unit 1: Foundations on the Investigation
A Level Art & Design · Semester 2 Plan · Unit 1 of 5 · Unit 2 →
What this unit does
This unit opens the foundations stage of Component 3. You read a 90/100 investigation and name what earns the marks, then propose three candidate themes and defend them one to one; each is screened against primary sources you can actually reach and against all eight pipeline stages. You lock one theme in writing — you propose it, and the teacher approves it against the exemplar criteria — and the unit closes with a statement of intent in your own words, a research plan, and your first primary-source shoot. Once locked, the theme is fixed: your investigation runs on it to submission next December.
Dates & span
Weeks S1–S3 (Mon 2027-02-21 → ~2027-03-13), 15 sessions. These spring dates may shift when the school publishes the calendar for that period — see the semester plan.
Sequence of work
| Code | Session | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| U1·L1 | C3 briefing and the marks | How the investigation is marked (C3 is weighted 75 marks → 150); what the written element must do |
| U1·L2 | Reading strong investigations | Name what earns the marks in an exemplar |
| U1·L3 | Theme longlist from the winter homework | Three candidates, with references |
| U1·L4 | Consultation round 1, one to one | Defend each candidate to the teacher |
| U1·L5 | Feasibility screens | Test candidates against reachable sources |
| U1·L6 | Proposal drafting: theme and aims | Why this theme can sustain sixteen pages |
| U1·L7 | Primary source plan | Shoots and sittings you control |
| U1·L8 | Artist shortlist | Artists who solve the problem, not favourites |
| U1·L9 | Consultation round 2, one to one | A decision or a fix |
| U1·L10 | Feasibility test against the pipeline | Walk all eight stages; fix what breaks |
| U1·L11 | Theme locked in writing | Signed with the teacher; no restarts after |
| U1·L12 | Statement of intent finalised | The investigation in your own words |
| U1·L13 | Research plan | Reading, sources and dates |
| U1·L14 | First primary source shoot | Reference you will draw from for months |
| U1·L15 | Shoot review and annotation | Annotate what is seen, not what is felt |
Assessment
There are no attainment gates in this unit. The first, A1, sits Fri 2027-03-19 in Unit 2. CS tasks: CS1 Fri 2027-03-05 (proposal draft — theme, aims, source plan, artist shortlist), CS2 Fri 2027-03-12 (statement of intent + annotated references). See the full register.
Key content
- The primary-source plan contains zero found imagery — “nothing found, nothing borrowed” is the C3 standard, as in S1.
- The artist shortlist is chosen for problems solved, not personal taste.
- The statement of intent is in your own words and names what will be investigated and why.