Component 02 the Externally Set Task: what it is, that it is worth 40 percent and 80 marks marked across all four objectives at 20 marks each, the OCR-set question paper, the preparatory period, and the 10-hour supervised final piece.

What this dot point is asking

OCR GCSE Art and Design has two components, and Component 02 is the Externally Set Task. This dot point is about what the set task is, how it is weighted and marked, and how it is structured from the release of the paper to the final piece. It is the 40 percent of the GCSE that OCR sets directly, and it is the only part of the course with a timed, supervised element, so understanding its shape is essential.

What the Externally Set Task is

The Externally Set Task is a sustained response to a theme OCR sets, not your school. OCR publishes a question paper containing several broad starting points; you choose one and build a personal response, just as you would for a Portfolio project, but to an external brief and ending in a supervised final piece. It tests the same four objectives as the Portfolio, so the skills transfer directly; the difference is the starting points come from OCR and the outcome is made under supervision.

How it is weighted and marked

The set task carries 40 percent of the qualification and 80 marks, divided equally across the four objectives at 20 marks each. As with the Portfolio, that equal split means you must evidence all four: investigation of sources (AO1), exploration and refinement of media (AO2), first-hand recording (AO3) and a resolved personal response (AO4). Your teacher marks the work against OCR's bands and OCR moderates a sample. The supervised final piece is part of the evidence, but so is the preparatory work, so the marks reward the whole response, not just the outcome made in the 10 hours.

The three stages

The component runs in three stages. First, release: OCR publishes the question paper from 1 January of the final year, and you choose one starting point. Second, the preparatory period: an unsupervised stretch (length set by your centre) in which you investigate sources, experiment with media, record first-hand and plan your final piece, exactly the development a Portfolio project needs. Third, the supervised final piece: you make the outcome in 10 hours of supervised time, working from your preparatory work, which is fixed once the supervised period begins.

The same objectives, an external theme

The reassuring point is that the set task is not a new skill set. It is the same four objectives, the same kind of sustained, investigated, recorded and resolved response you build for the Portfolio, applied to a theme OCR sets and finished under supervision. Everything you learn making Portfolio projects transfers. The differences to plan for are the external starting points (you cannot pick the theme), the fixed preparatory-to-supervised structure, and the discipline of arriving at the 10 hours with a complete plan.

Try this

Q1. State the weighting and total marks of Component 02, and how the marks are divided. [Knowledge recall]

• Cue. The Externally Set Task (Component 02) is worth 40 percent and 80 marks, divided equally across the four objectives, 20 marks each for AO1, AO2, AO3 and AO4.

Q2. Explain why the preparatory period matters more than its lack of supervision might suggest. [Short explanation]

• Cue. Three of the four objectives (AO1 develop, AO2 refine, AO3 record), worth 60 of the 80 marks, are evidenced mainly through the preparatory work, and the 10-hour supervised period is chiefly for resolving the final outcome (AO4); so deep preparation wins most of the marks and means the supervised time is for making a planned piece, not deciding.