Be able to apply text enhancement including bold, underline, italic

Topic 14 – Styles (IGCSE ICT 0417)

Learning Objective

Be able to create, edit and apply both paragraph and character styles, and to use the three text‑enhancement options (bold, underline, italic) via the toolbar, keyboard shortcuts and style definitions. You will also understand how styles support consistency, corporate/house‑style conventions and the specific requirements of Paper 2 (Document Production).

1. Text Enhancements – What They Are

Text enhancements are character‑level formatting options that change the visual appearance of text without changing its meaning.

• Bold – makes the text darker and heavier.
• Underline – draws a line beneath the text.
• Italic – slants the text to the right.

2. Applying Enhancements

2.1 Using the Toolbar

1. Select the text you wish to enhance.
2. Click the appropriate button on the formatting toolbar:

   • B for Bold
   • U for Underline
   • I for Italic

3. The selected text changes instantly.

2.2 Keyboard Shortcuts

2.3 Clearing Direct Formatting

If a piece of text has been manually formatted (direct formatting) and you want to start from the underlying style, use:

• Ctrl + Space (Windows) or Command + Space (Mac) – removes all character‑level direct formatting.

3. Styles – Overview

Styles are predefined collections of formatting attributes that can be applied to whole paragraphs, headings, or individual characters. Using styles ensures a uniform look, saves time, and lets you change the appearance of every instance with a single edit.

3.1 Why Styles Matter (AO2 & AO3)

• AO2 – Apply knowledge and skills: Creating, editing and applying styles demonstrates practical competence.
• AO3 – Analyse and evaluate: Evaluating the impact of a style change (e.g., readability, consistency) shows analytical ability.

3.2 Style Hierarchy & “Based‑on” Relationships

When you create a new style you can set it to be based on an existing style. The new style inherits all attributes of the parent style, and you only need to change the attributes that differ. This creates a logical hierarchy (e.g., Heading 2 based on Heading 1).

3.3 Saving Styles for Reuse

To use the same style set in future documents, save the style(s) to a template:

1. After creating the required styles, open the Styles pane.
2. Choose Save As > Word Template (.dotx) (or the equivalent in Google Docs – “Save as template”).
3. Give the template a clear name (e.g., “IGCSE Corporate Style”).
4. When you start a new task, open this template; all saved styles are already available.

4. Attributes Controlled by a Style

5. Corporate/House‑Style Set – A Complete Example

The following set mirrors a typical corporate document. All styles are linked in a hierarchy (each “based on” the previous one).

6. Creating, Modifying and Applying Styles

6.1 Creating a New Style (Paragraph or Character)

1. Open the Styles pane (Home → Styles).
2. Click New Style (or “Create a Style from Formatting”).
3. Enter a meaningful name (e.g., “Key Phrase”).
4. Choose the Style type – Paragraph or Character.
5. Set Based on if you want inheritance (e.g., “Based on Normal Body”).
6. Define the required attributes (font, colour, bold/italic/underline, spacing, borders, etc.).
7. Click OK to save.

6.2 Modifying an Existing Style

1. In the Styles pane, right‑click the style and select Modify.
2. Make the needed changes (e.g., change colour, add a border, adjust spacing).
3. Check “New documents based on this template” if you want the change saved to the template.
4. Press OK. All text using that style updates automatically.

6.3 Applying a Style

• Select the paragraph or character text.
• Click the style name in the Style Gallery or the Styles pane.
• The formatting is applied instantly.

6.4 Quick Edit During an Exam

If the brief changes (e.g., “headings must be 14 pt, not 16 pt”):

1. Open the Styles pane, right‑click the affected style (e.g., Heading 1) and choose Modify.
2. Adjust the font size (or any other attribute) and click OK. Every heading updates instantly – far faster than editing each heading manually.

7. Direct Formatting vs. Style Formatting

• Direct formatting – applying bold, colour, etc. manually to selected text.
• Style formatting – applying a style that already contains those attributes.
• Common mistake: applying direct formatting after a style creates “overridden” text that will not change when the style is edited.
• Solution: clear any direct formatting first (Ctrl + Space / Command + Space) and then apply the appropriate style.

8. Relevance to IGCSE ICT Paper 2 (Document Production)

• Exam tasks frequently require a document with a consistent set of headings, sub‑headings and body text.
• Using a pre‑designed corporate style set (as in Section 5) demonstrates efficiency and consistency – both award marks.
• Typical brief excerpt: “Produce a three‑page report using the company’s standard heading style (Heading 1 – 16 pt, dark blue, centred). All body text must use the Normal Body style.”
• Creating the required styles at the start of the exam saves time and reduces the risk of inconsistent formatting.

9. Practical Exercise – Apply What You Have Learned

Complete the tasks in a new document. Record the steps you used for each part. Wherever possible, use styles rather than manual formatting.

1. Type the following paragraph exactly:

   The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

2. Using the toolbar, make the word quick bold.
3. Underline the word brown using the Windows shortcut Ctrl + U (or Command + U on a Mac).
4. Italicise the word lazy using the shortcut Ctrl + I (or Command + I on a Mac).
5. Create a character style called Key Phrase that applies bold + italic (no underline). Apply this style to the phrase “jumps over”.
6. Modify the Key Phrase style to change the font colour to dark blue (#003366). Observe the automatic update of every instance.
7. Clear any direct formatting from the word “brown” (Ctrl + Space), then create a character style called Highlight that uses a single underline and a light‑grey background (#F2F2F2). Apply it to “brown”.
8. Write a short heading (e.g., “Report Summary”). Create a paragraph style named Heading 1 (Bold, 16 pt, centre‑aligned, dark blue, space before 12 pt, space after 6 pt). Apply it to the heading and to any subsequent headings.
9. Save the document as a template named “IGCSE Practice Styles”. Open a new file from this template and verify that all styles are available.

10. Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Applying a paragraph style when only a single word needs bold/italic – use a character style instead.
• Mixing manual formatting with a style; this creates “direct formatting” that will not change when the style is edited.
• Over‑using underline together with italic – can reduce readability.
• Forgetting to clear existing formatting before applying a new style, leading to unexpected attribute combinations.
• Not updating a style when a document’s visual requirements change – remember that editing the style updates every instance automatically.

11. Summary Checklist (AO2 & AO3)

• Can you apply bold, underline and italic using both the toolbar and keyboard shortcuts?
• Can you create, edit and apply both paragraph and character styles, including hierarchy and “based‑on” relationships?
• Do you know how to modify a style and see the change reflected throughout the document?
• Are you able to save a set of styles to a template for future reuse?
• Do you understand corporate/house‑style conventions and how to emulate them in exam tasks?
• Can you identify and clear direct formatting before applying a style?
• Can you evaluate the impact of a style change on readability and consistency (AO3)?