Question 1

What is NCEA AS 91342 about?

Accepted Answer

You'll design a product (like clothing, packaging, or a consumer item) and show your design thinking using drawings, sketches, and visual communication methods. You need to explore ideas, make decisions about what works well (or doesn't) based on the design brief, and explain your choices using research or real data to back them up.

Question 2

What do students need to do for AS 91342?

Accepted Answer

1. Explore and refine multiple design ideas that show you understand how products are designed 2. Make clear design decisions by judging whether aesthetic (how it looks) and functional (how it works) features meet the brief 3. Use graphics practice—applying visual communication techniques like sketches, rendered drawings, models, or prototypes to develop your ideas 4. Support your design choices with research data or evidence (like market research, measurements, user needs) 5. Document your design development process so examiners can see how your ideas evolved

Question 3

What's the difference between Achieved, Merit, and Excellence for AS 91342?

Accepted Answer

Achieved: You develop a product design by exploring and refining ideas with some reference to design knowledge, and you make some design judgements about aesthetic or functional features in response to the brief. Merit: You clearly develop a product design by reviewing and refining ideas that incorporate product design knowledge, and you make informed design judgements on relevant features that show how your thinking progressed. Excellence: You effectively develop a product design by reviewing and refining well-considered ideas that integrate product design knowledge throughout the entire development, demonstrating sophisticated design thinking.

Question 4

What mistakes do students typically make in AS 91342?

Accepted Answer

1. Submitting designs without sufficient research or data to support design decisions—examiners need to see what influenced your choices 2. Showing only final designs rather than the full development process—the journey of refining ideas matters as much as the end result 3. Making vague design statements instead of specific judgements about how features work (e.g., saying 'it's good' rather than explaining why a particular material or shape choice solves a user problem)

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