The WAEC syllabus for Printing Craft Practice is the topic you must study to sit for the examination. It contains the aims and objectives, notes and format for the Printing Craft Practice exam.
Studying the Printing Craft Practice subject is necessary for your exam preparation. It will serve as a guide for you to know the topics to read. There are also notes on concepts you should pay attention to learning.
Exam preparations without using the Printing Craft Practice are like going to the farm without your agricultural tools. You will end up not being productive.
Ensure you begin your exam preparations using the syllabus.
This post contains the Printing Craft Practice and recommended textbooks of the West African Examination Council (WAEC).
WAEC Printing Craft Practice
There will be three papers, Papers 1, 2 and 3 all of which must be taken. Papers 1 and 2 will be a composite paper to be taken at one sitting.
Paper 1: will consist of forty multiple-choice objective questions all of which are to be answered in 45 minutes for 40 marks.
Paper 2: will consist of five essay questions. Candidates will be required to answer any four in 1½ hours for 60 marks.
Paper 3: will be a practical test of 1 hour duration. It will consist of two practical questions out of which candidates will be required to answer one for 100 marks.
A list of materials for the test shall be made available to schools not less than two weeks before the paper is taken for material procurement and relevant preparations.
Alternative to Practical Test
Alternatively, in the event that materials for the actual practical test cannot be acquired, the Council may consider testing theoretically, candidates’ level of acquisition of the practical skills prescribed in the syllabus.
For this alternative test, there will be two sets of questions both of which must be answered in 2 hours for 100 marks.
WAEC Printing Craftt Practice Syllabus
| S/NO. | CONTENT | NOTES |
| 1 | Introduction to the Art of Printing | (i) Art of Definition, explanation of printing. (ii) Importance, product advantages and uses. (iii) Printing in Nigeria-Survey Press, Federal Government Press, RailwayPress, Daily Timesand other Press Houses. (iv) Copyright law, History – Origin, Chinese, Johan Gutenberg.The role of Hope Waddel and Henry Townsend (1846 – 1926) and (1926 – 1960). (v) Printing and Career – Importance, Careers, e.g. Lithography machine minders, etc. (vi) Printing Processes, description materials/tools/equipment – letter press/relief printing; offset/lithography; Gravure/intaglio, screen, stencil/flexography. |
| 2 | Workshop safety and maintenance | (i) Technical workshops for printing – types e.g. lithography and machine room. (ii) Safety in the workshop – precautions, air-conditioning, electrical and lighting, dark rooms, machine rooms. (iii) Safety in the Binding and Print finishing, safety in the hot metal composition room. (iv) Maintenance of machines, tools and equipment in the Printing workshop, Enumerate the procedures. |
| 3 | Letter Assembly (a) Hand Composition (b) Design for Printing (c) Mechanical Composition (d) Photo-composition | Identification e.g. Tools and facilities. Explanation in simple Principles and terminologies, techniques, structures and parts of types. Identification of typefaces and typography. The concepts of basic design and instrument. Description and listing of differences between monotype and linotype; accessories and their uses. (i) Equipment/tools, accessories. (ii) Meaning: principles and components (iii) Advantages. |
| 4 | (a) Print Finishing (b) Binding materials, tools and equipment (c) Binding (d) Pamphlet (e) Perfect binding (f) Edition binding (g) Loose sheet binding (h) Warehouse | (i) Meaning, importance, etc (ii) Types and processes e.g. Edition case binding and loose leaves. (iii) Technical Terms. (iv) Materials and accessories. (i) Materials – e.g. sewing- thread and leathers. (ii) Bone-folders and guillotine. (iii) Papers and boards. (i) Types: book, pamphlet, padding, edition case, loose – sheet, perfect binding. (ii) Processes. Importance, explanation, description and processes, e.g. cutting, stitching, etc. Concept, importance and processes. Differences between perfect binding and other types. Explanation. Edition binding materials and their usages. Distinguish between edition binding and others. Description, operational outline and materials, tools and equipment. (i) Define warehouse. (ii) Identification and uses of types of printing materials e.g. paper and board, ink, chemicals, printing surfaces, sizes, substances, grammage etc. (iii) Stock and inventory control. |
| 5 | Screen printing (1) Frame/stencil making | (i) Origin of screen printing (ii) Preparation and methods -wooden frame, mesh (silk), hand-made stencil with cardboard; stencil using block out method. (iii) Stretching of the mesh on the frame. (iv) Materials and tools – frame mesh, shoulder joint, glue and nails, squeegee, wax, paint, sponge, cardboard, oil base or water-free ink. |
| (a) Print (b) Photographic screen making (c) Image Reproduction | Making print using stencil with attention to registration marks and different colours. (i) Coating of the screen with a sensitized solution. (ii) Exposure of the screen with the gelatin solution in a suitable source of light and development with water. (iii) Identification and uses of the following materials – silk or organdie gelatin coating, dichromate, positive image, board light source, tracing paper, black light source, tracing paper, black paint (Opaque). (i) Transferring of the image from the mesh/stencil to the substrate, e.g. paper, sticker, plastic, etc. (ii) The use of enlarger and Kodaklith translucent printing paper. | |
| 6 | Lithography – Process Camera Work (1) Planning – (a) Work Ticket (b) Layout Planning | Preparation, interpretation and uses. (i) Definition of lithography and layout planning (ii) The procedure and uses of the layout planning in chronological order, e.g. identification of griper margin, image area, folds and gutter margins. (iii) Materials – Negative/Positive flats, masking tape/brown paper, etc. Tools and equipment and their uses: Light table, stripping knife, etc. (iv) Identification of Negative/Positive e.g. emulsion and non-emulsion side. |
| (2) Film making/Process camera Plate making | (i) Definition, qualities, functions and safety rules of the darkroom. (ii) Equipment and materials for filmmaking. e.g. chemicals, original artwork, (different type) funnels, developing-sink/tray, mixing tools, pail. etc. Process camera; Digital Colour Separation Machine. (iii) Types of films and their characteristics, Panchromatic films, Orthochromatic films, Laser films. (iv) Chemicals – Developer; fixatives and stop bath; and their uses. Preparation and preservation of films. Effect of safe-light on films. Description of plate making equipment and their uses. e.g. plate processor, developing sink, exposure/frame vacuum, etc. Materials – Pre-sensitised plates, gum, Arabic. The process of making corrections and preservation of plates and safety procedures. | |
| 7 | Machine Printing (i) Offset Machine Printing | (i) Techniques of offset printing (ii) Spare parts and maintenance procedures e.g. lubrication, bearings, rollers setting, etc. (iii) Brief history of offset lithographic machine. (iv) Configuration of the lithographic machine. (v) Plate and adjustment in correcting image position on the sheet during the printing process. (vi) Functions of the important parts of the press and its running. (vii) Major units of a lithographic printing machine and their functions. |
| (ii) Relief Printing (iii) Gravure Printing (Intaglio) (iv) Flexographic Printing | (i) History; explanation; principles and types of relief printing. (ii) Important parts and maintenance. (iii) Method and schemes of imposition.(iv) Types of image carrier. (v) Tools and Materials- Chase, Quoin, Solvents, Oils, etc. (i) History, explanation, principles and types of Gravure Image Carrier. (ii) Products and advantages/disadvantages. (i) Definition and concept of flexography and its image carrier. (ii) Differences between flexography printing and other machine printing. (iii) The importance of flexographic printing to the packaging industry e.g. cellophane and pharmaceutical industry. (iv) Products- cellophane bags, pharmaceutical and food packing products. | |
| 8 | Legal Aspects of the Printing Industry | (i) Trade houses in the printing industry and their activities e.g. Employers Association; Professional Bodies, Training Institutions, Examination Bodies and other Foreign Trade House. (ii) Copyright |
Facilities and Equipment
LIST OF FACILITIES AND MAJOR EQUIPMENT/MATERIALS REQUIRED
| ITEM NO | EQUIPMENT | QUANTITY REQUIRED |
| 1. | Vacuum Frame | 2 |
| 2. | Table | 4 |
| 3. | Screen mesh stretcher | 5 |
| 4. | Gullotine | 1 |
| 5. | Magnifier | 10 |
| 6. | Squeege | 20 |
| 7. | Stencil knife | 10 |
| 8. | Compass cutter | 2 |
| 9. | Drying Rack (Cabinet) | 1 |
| 10. | Light table | 4 |
| 11. | Pallet | 2 |
| 12. | Register scope | 1 |
| 13. | Destometer | 1 |
| 14. | Type scale | 1 |
| 15. | Printing down frame | 1 |
| 16. | Small offset machine | 1 |
| 17. | A set of Computer | 1 |
| 18. | Scanner and Printer | 1 each |
| 19. | Giant stapler | 2 |
Recommended Textbooks
SUGGESTED READING LIST
| S/N | TITTLE | AUTHOR |
| 1 | Printing Technology | Adams Faux |
| 2 | Comprehensive Graphic Art | Dr Ervin A, DenisDr John D, Jenkins |
| 3 | Screen Printing Techniques | Albert Kosloff M, A |
| 4 | An Approach to Printing Management | Soji Adeniyan |
| 5 | Graphic Communication in Nigeria | Abdul Rasheed Afolabi |
