OCR GCE Applied ICT UNIT 1: Student Workbook

GCE APPLIED ICT

OCR UNIT 1

Using ICT to Communicate

Student

Workbook


We live in the Information Age. We are continuously being bombarded with information in many different forms.

In this unit you will learn about the technologies and methods used to communicate information. You will also learn how you can create documents that communicate effectively.

This is a mandatory AS unit. It provides the basis for all the other units.

For your portfolio of evidence you are required to produce:

  A report comparing two types of business document from each of three organisations.

  Six original communications for different purposes that demonstrate a range of writing and presentation styles and that would be communicated by different methods.

The subject of one of your communications needs to be the different methods of communicating information and the technologies that support them.


The Information Age

Methods of communicating information

Use a table to create a summary of the advantages and the disadvantages of the following methods of communicating information:

  Paper-based methods

  Screen-based methods

  SMS and MMS

  Radio

  Television

  Telephone

  Email

  The World Wide Web

  RSS feeds

  Blogs

  Podcasts

  Virtual learning environments

  Real time information systems

Mobile phone services

The Telecoms Advice website (www.telecomsadvice.org.uk) gives information on mobile phones and provides links to the suppliers of mobile phone services.

Your task is to make use of this and other websites to produce an information sheet on 3G mobile phones. You should include information on the capabilities of the technology and how it can benefit both individual and businesses users.

PDA research

PDA's are a rapidly evolving mobile computing technology. Your task is to investigate the range of PDA's currently on the market and to produce an information sheet describing their capabilities and uses. You should illustrate your information sheet with appropriate pictures.


Technical terms

Explain the meaning of the following technical terms:

3G / Blu-ray / Broadband
CD-R / CD-ROM / CD-RW
DAB / Digital TV / DVD
GPRS / Internet / ISDN
Local Area Network / mp3 / MPEG
Netbook / Notebook Computer / Multimedia
PDA / Peripheral Device / Touch Screen
Wide Area Network / Wi-Fi


Communication of Information

Writing for a purpose

1.  Read the Plain English Online Guide "How to write in plain English" (www.plainenglish.co.uk/files/howto.pdf)

2.  Show that you are able to write documents for a range of purposes by producing the following documents.

  Directions to your house.

  A letter to a business requesting more information and an application form for a job you have seen advertised in your local newspaper.

  A short review for a broadsheet newspaper of a TV programme or film that you have recently seen.

For each document that you have produced, explain how you have made appropriate use of language to meet the needs of your readers.

Communicating effectively

Your task is to find examples of the following types of document.

  A newspaper advertisement for second-hand goods

  An agenda for a meeting

  The minutes of a meeting

  An email you have received from a commercial organisation

You may find it easier to find suitable documents if you work in a small group of 2 or 3.

You should rewrite each of the documents so that they communicate information more effectively. You could try using shorter sentences and simpler words. You could change words for more appropriate ones.

Document structure

You can work in a small group of 2 or 3 for this task.

Find an example of a document that meets each of the purposes listed in the worksheet on the next page of this workbook. Share your documents with the rest of your group and complete the worksheet to produce a summary of the documents.

Document purpose / Description of document / Intended audience / How the writing style & document structure meet the document purpose
Attracting attention
Setting out facts clearly
Document purpose / Description of document / Intended audience / How the writing style & document structure meet the document purpose
Writing to impress
Collecting information
Document purpose / Description of document / Intended audience / How the writing style & document structure meet the document purpose
Explaining technical information
Summarising information

Accuracy and Readability

1.  What types of words may not be in the main dictionary of Microsoft Word? Give two examples of each type of word that you have identified that do not appear in the main dictionary of Microsoft Word.

2.  Use an online dictionary to find the meaning of the following words:

  accuracy

  document

  language

  presentation

  style

3.  Describe the types of mistakes that can be corrected using grammar checking software.

4.  Use the standard proof-reading symbols to annotate the changes that need to be made to the proof reading task on the next page of this workbook.

5.  You have checked the readability of a report you have written for this course and found that it has a Flesch Reading Ease Score of 40. Explain what is meant by the Flesch Reading Age Score and if your document is suitable for its intended audience.

6.  You have written an article on the latest developments in mobile phone technology for a magazine that is read by young teenagers. The Flesch-Kincaid Grade for the article is 11. Explain what is meant by the Flesch-Kincaid Grade and if your document is suitable for its intended audience.


Proof reading task:

Advice for computer users

Adjust your chair and monitor or VDU) until you find the most comfortable working position. as a rough guide your forearms should be almost horizontal and and your eyes should be about the same height as the top of yourmonitor.

Make sure that you have enough space for any documents you are using.

Arrange your desk and monitor to avoid any glare from the sun or artificial lighting.Adjust curtains or blinds as necessary

Make sure that there is space under your desk, table or workstaion so that you can move your legs.Avoid excess pressure from the edge of your seat on the back of your legs and knees.

Leave space on your desk in front of your keyboard so their is space to rest your hands when not typing.

Dont grip your mouse to tightly. Rest your fingers lightly the buttons do not press them to hard

Make sure that the surface of your monitor screen is clean. Adjust the brightness and conttrast to suit the conditions in the room.

Don’t sit in the same position for long periods of time. Make sure that you have taken a break from usingthe screen. Many short brakes are better than few long breaks.

Styles of Presentation

Creating an effective page layout

1.  Explain the meaning of the following terms:

  Margin

  Header

  Footer

  Widow

  Orphan

  Gutter margin

2.  Find an example of a document that makes use of either a header or footer. Annotate the document by highlighting each item of information placed in the header or footer. Explain why the author of the document has chosen to use the header or footer.

Creating suitable textual styles

Write a definition for each of the following terms:

  Serif font

  Sans serif font

  Subscript

  Superscript

Paragraphs

1.  Describe the appearance of justified text.

2.  When and why may you choose to have central, vertical alignment of text?

3.  Why is hyphenation used with justified text?

4.  What is the purpose of the tab key?

5.  What type of tab should be used to format the price of meals on a menu?

6.  What is the purpose of creating a bulleted list?

7.  What is the name given to each box in a table?

8.  Use the AutoFormat Table feature in Word to create a league table for a sports competition involving six teams.


Features for developing special presentation styles

1.  Explain the meaning of the term 'watermark'. Why may a watermark be used on a document?

2.  Why would you choose to use a text box?

3.  Explain the meaning of the terms 'footnote' and 'endnote'.

4.  Identify software features in Microsoft Word that can be used to automate the production of a long document.

Creating a slide show

Your task is to experiment with different presentation styles by producing a

slide show to give information about your GCE ICT course. The slide show is

to be used at an open evening for prospective students and their parents at

your school or college.

The slide show must meet the following design brief:

The slide show should give information on:

  The units covered

  The method of assessment

  Accessing the elearning materials used to deliver the course

  Reasons for choosing the course

  Career opportunities for those who successfully complete the course

The slide show should include:

  Suitable clipart

  Digital photographs showing students at work on the course

  Photographs from the Internet showing ICT being used in the world of work

  A pie chart showing the proportion of tested and portfolio assessments

Before you start work on your slide show you should plan your slides by producing a storyboard.

How Organisations Present Information

1.  On the next page of this workbook you will find a letter from Stourgrove Travel. Annotate the letter to identify the position of key items of information.

2.  Find an example of a document that has been created by a business. Annotate the document to identify the position of the key items of information.

3.  When you work on your assessment for this unit you will be creating documents that demonstrate a range of writing and presentation styles. A collection of stimulus materials will help you with this work. Your task is to collect at least 8 documents that have been produced by organisations for a range of different purposes.

4.  Select three of the documents you have collected. For each document:

  Describe its purpose, content and layout

  Evaluate good and bad points about the writing and presentation style

  Comment on the suitability for purpose

  Suggest how it could be improved

5.  Collect three examples of different documents that have been produced by the same organisation.

Write a short report to describe how the documents have been designed to help project the identity or the organisation.


STOURGROVE TRAVEL

47 High Street, Stourgrove, B132 2ED

Miss Kate Kelvin

1 The Larch

Stourgrove

B131 6TQ

14th June 2008

Dear Miss Kelvin

Re: Your holiday booking

Please find enclosed your itinerary and tickets for your forthcoming holiday. Would you please check the details carefully and contact me at the earliest possible opportunity if you think that any aspect of your holiday booking is incorrect.

We sometimes find that our customers arrive at the airport without a valid passport. We advise that all members of your travel group check that the expiry dates on their passports cover the full duration of the holiday.

Wishing you an enjoyable and relaxing break.

Yours sincerely

Nicola Young

Travel Sales Executive

Enc: Itinerary

Travel tickets

Hotel voucher

ABTA Member, for your protection.
Your portfolio of evidence

Introduction

For your portfolio of evidence you are required to produce:

  A report comparing two types of business document from each of three organisations.

  Six original communications for different purposes that demonstrate a range of writing and presentation styles and that would be communicated by different methods.

The subject of one of your communications needs to be the different methods of communicating information and the technologies that support them.

Self-assessment reviews

The self-assessment review show you what you need to be able to do to achieve different grades. When you started working on this unit you should have assessed your skills, knowledge and understanding of ‘Using ICT to Communicate’ by completing the 'Start of Unit' column.

When you think you have finished your portfolio tasks you should complete the 'End of Unit' column. It will help you to identify any further work that needs to be completed to achieve your target grade.

You should also number each page of evidence in your portfolio and record the location of your evidence in the 'Page Number(s)' column.

Planning and deadlines

If you are to achieve your target grade, it is important that you plan your work and meet deadlines. If you leave work until the last moment before a deadline it is likely to be rushed, lack detail and omit key items from the assessment grading criteria.

The calendar, diary and planner tools will help you to plan and meet your deadlines.


Reviewing documents

You are required to produce a report that compares two types of business document from each of three organisations.

There are 7 marks available for this task.

You should:

  Identify two different types of business document.

  Ask your teacher or tutor if your chosen document types are suitable for this task.

  Collect three examples of each document from different organisations.

  Write your report.

To achieve high marks for this task you must:

Describe in detail the layout and purpose of each of the six collected documents.

Provide a critical analysis of the documents, including comparison of the writing and presentation styles of similar items.

Provide a critical analysis of their suitability for purpose and use of house style.

Explain how each document could be improved in relation to its purpose.

Produce a report that is consistently well structured with few, if any, spelling, punctuation and grammar errors.

Use this prompt sheet when you are describing the presentation styles used in a document.

Page Layout:

Paper Size / Page Orientation / Margin
Gutter Margin / Header / Footer
Widow / Orphan

Textual Style:

Font / Serif Font / Sans Serif Font
Point Size / Bold / Italic
Underline / Heading / Subscript
Superscript / Text Orientation / On-screen Animation

Paragraph Format: