OCR 3.1.1 c
Task 1
Methods used to convey information
Questions and Answers
1a. Text is a ‘representation method’ used for conveying
information. Give two examples where it would be
appropriate to use text.
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user manual for a new piece of software
company report about annual profit
internal memo about a meeting
email to arrange a party
letter to a customer confirming a delivery date
invoice to a customer
intranet containing information required by staff
Any other suitable answer
1b. Identify two advantages for using text as a representation method
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Text based information is usually easy to understand
Most people are familiar and comfortable with reading text
If printed out, no special equipment is needed to access the information
A large amount of information and detail can be conveyed with text
Text can be used in a variety of contexts e.g. books, posters, billboards, web
sites
Text can be downloaded faster from the Internet than image, videos or sound
files
1c. Identify two disadvantages for using text as a representation method
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Some people have poor literacy skills and struggle to read even simple text
If you are from another country and don't understand the language then you
won't be able to read the text
Text must be written at the right level for the audience. A university level
academic paper would be very difficult for a school child to read.
Acronyms or technical language can sometimes make text difficult to understand
Not very good for understanding large amounts of data, numbers, trends
Blind or visually impaired people might not be able to access the information.
Large amounts of text can put people off reading it.
Poor choice of font size or style can make text difficult to read
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OCR 3.1.1 c
Task 1
2a. Pictures and images are ‘representation methods’ used for conveying
information. Give two examples where it would be appropriate to use
images.
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Symbols such as traffic signs
Icons on a computer desktop used to represent different software
applications
Symbols used during a weather forecast to represent different types
of weather
Any other suitable answer
2b. Identify two advantages for using images as a representation method
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You can convey information very quickly
People understand images no matter which language they speak
Can communicate ideas and concepts which might be difficult to do with text
alone
Images can help to support or add extra impact to textual information
Images such as road signs are easy to see from a distance
2c. Identify two disadvantages for using images as a representation method
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Blind or visually impaired people might not be able to access the information
If you don't know what the image means then it can't convey the information
effectively to you
Colour blindness might make some images difficult to decipher
Poor quality or fuzzy images might be confusing or lose their impact
Charts and graphs need to be correctly labelled otherwise they are meaningless
3a. Sound is another ‘representation methods’ used for conveying
information. Give two examples where it would be appropriate to use
sounds.
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face-to-face conversation
telephone conversation
announcements in shops/airports
sat nav instructions
podcasts
Any other suitable answer
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OCR 3.1.1 c
Task 1
3b. Identify two advantages for using sound as a representation method
Spoken sound
 Can convey information to people who might have poor literacy skills
 Can convey a large amount of information fairly quickly
 Can free you up to concentrate on something else e.g. Sat Nav instructions
allow you to concentrate on the road
 Can convey information to many people at once
 Don't need to actually see somebody to be able to hear them
Sound signals
 Can convey information and warnings very quickly e.g. a fire bell
 Sounds are accessible and understandable by people no matter what language
they speak
 Can convey information to many people at once
 Humans are sensitive to sound and will often pick information conveyed by
sound above other methods
3c. Identify two disadvantages for using sound as a representation method
Spoken sound
 Strong accents can make it difficult to understand what someone is saying.
 Need to be able to understand the language in order to understand what is
being said
 People with poor hearing might not be able to access the information
 Some public speaker systems are muffled and difficult to understand
 Might be too much background noise to hear the information correctly
Sound signals
 Need to know what the sound signal represents in order to understand the
information/message
 People with poor hearing might not be able to access the information
 Can be distracting especially if people are trying to concentrate
4a. Videos are used as a ‘representation method’ for conveying information.
Give two examples where it would be appropriate to use videos.
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Staff training
Teaching someone how to use software e.g. video tutorials on teachict.com site
 Communication with staff/customers
 Education
Any other suitable answer
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OCR 3.1.1 c
Task 1
4b. Identify two advantages for using videos as a representation method
 Multi-sensory - include visual and auditory information.
 Can be used for training - people can watch a skill and learn
 A lot of information can be conveyed in a very short time
 Information is accessible to people with poor literacy skills
 Can be stopped, started, replayed over and over
 Can be free or very low cost
4c. Identify two disadvantages for using videos as a representation method
 Specialist videos might be expensive to purchase
 Videos subject to copyright legislation - can't just make copies and distribute
 Specialist equipment needed - video player and television or computer
 May become out of date and will cost to replace.
5a. Animation is being increasingly used as a ‘representation method’ for
conveying information. Give two examples where it would be appropriate to
use animation.
 To draw attention to something e.g. an advertisement
 To demonstrate how something works
 For entertainment
 Any other suitable answer
5b. Identify two advantages for using animation as a representation method
 Can convey a lot of information with very little text or sound required
 Easily understood by people with poor literacy skills or who don't speak the
language
 Can be custom made for a company to convey a particular message
 Good for catching peoples' attention very quickly
 Can convey information in a fun, lighthearted way
5c. Identify two disadvantages for using animation as a representation
method
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Can be expensive and time-consuming to produce
Need specialist software and skills to create the animation
Can produce large file sizes which take up a lot of hard disk space or can be
slow to download
Can distract users from concentrating on key information
Can be annoying because of movement, sounds or repetitiveness
Animation when used alone might not convey the information. It may need
sound or text support.
Animation needs to use fairly basic graphics and effects otherwise it can cause
'information overload'.
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OCR 3.1.1 c
Task 1
6a. LEDs are sometimes used as a ‘representation method’ for conveying
information. Give two examples where it would be appropriate to use LEDs.
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televisions
computers and monitors
answer phones
kettles
clock radio alarms
6b. Identify two advantages for using LEDs as a representation method
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Can convey simple information e.g. monitor on/off; caps lock on/off
Inexpensive method of providing information
No language barriers
Long life - will probably outlast the equipment
LEDs light up very quickly.
LEDs are very small and so don't take up much space on an appliance
6c. Identify two disadvantages for using LEDs as a representation method
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Need to understand what the light signal represents
No use for people with visual impairment
Difficult to see if bright background light or if positioned at the wrong angle
Only able to impart limited information
Concerns that blue and white LEDs are capable of exceeding safe limits of the
'blue-light hazard' and could potentially cause damage to eye sight.
Only able to impart limited information
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