Engaging pre-service teachers in the modernization of the secondary school design & technology curriculum

Alison Hardy, Senior Lecturer in Education, Nottingham Trent UniversityDavid Barlex, D&TforD&T

Why m

odernise?

Assignment brief

Designing & Making

Mainly Making

Mainly Designing

Design & Technology in Education &

Society

1. Become knowledgeable about significant and contemporary developments in technologies and design;

2. Understand how ethical, cultural, economic and environmental factors influence the design of products, systems and environments and can affect technological change;

3. Engage in appropriate activities that highlight the need for debate, tolerance of beliefs and respect for values in dealing with controversial and/or social issues

4. Consider the process of technological change and the technological issues in society within the context of Design and Technology education

Learn

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Student support

Evidence

• 26 pieces of evidence from:– Wiki– University survey– Tutor comments

Evidence & discussion

1. Become knowledgeable about significant and contemporary developments in technologies and design;

Tutor commentEnergy resources: ‘Excellent technical understanding’

University survey ‘Gaining experience in new topics which were new to us’

Wiki

2. Understand how ethical, cultural, economic and environmental factors influence the design of products, systems and environments and can affect technological change;

Wiki Wiki:

Outline how disruptive technologies will affect teachers and the classroom

Student seminars:

University survey ‘Everything we learn about makes us question what we already know’

3. Engage in appropriate activities that highlight the need for debate, tolerance of beliefs and respect for values in dealing with controversial and/or social issues

University survey ‘Everything we learn about makes us question what we already know’‘Given ideas of how I could run sessions in the future’

Tutor commentPower of the supermarkets: ‘Excellent balance about the argument for & against supermarkets’

4. Consider the process of technological change and the technological issues in society within the context of Design and Technology education

‘Tutor comments

1. Some good ideas about how to utilise the topic in D&T although I wonder about your reliance on biology for this assignment.’

2. ‘Good understanding of how to engage pupils in D&T, e.g. starting points and inspiring their creativity’

Seminar activities:• Cradle to Cradle seminar asked for reflections on ‘Based on your

reading, discussions and the video from the session, so (sic) you this this will increase or decrease? What is a good example of cradle2cradle?’

• Energy resources: Students were grouped and asked to give reasons why a particular method should be the main alternative.

Discussion

×No single topic addressed each of the learning requirements

Only two topics addressed three requirements; these were food security and cradle to cradle.

×Several topics did not support any of the requirements: these were product development, manufacturing systems and globalisation.

Issues

• Topics were provided by partnership schools: met their needs rather than the modernisation agenda.

• Focus on how fundamental to D&T’s development the modernisation agenda is and trainee teachers’ role within it.

• Provide more meaningful opportunities to work in schools prior to and during this module.

Next steps

• Revise topic list to support new and emerging topics as a central aspect of the modernisation agenda

• Supporting the students who have taken the module in using the knowledge, skills and values learnt in their teaching practice

Questions

• How are these students using the knowledge, skills and values learnt in their teaching practice?

• How can the course and school tutors work together with students to create teaching activities?