Gender and Technology in Hong Kong: A Study of Pupils' Attitudes Toward Technology

Attitudes play an important role in guiding and predicting future actions. In Hong Kong, where traditional attitudes regarding female and male roles often clash with more-modern influences, students' negative or positive attitudes toward technology have obvious implications for their participatory role in society. This paper reports on a study of Hong Kong Pupils' Attitudes Toward Technology. Items in a survey distributed to nearly 3,500 junior secondary school students were used to gauge their attitudes toward several areas of technology. Questions related to parents' careers and domestic influences were also asked.The analysis revealed that significant differences existed between girls and boys in many of the items. For instance, the importance of taking technical subjects such as Design & Technology (D&T) was found to be significant in their attitudes about technology being an activity for both genders. Similarly, students' interest in technology, attitudes about technology in the school curriculum, and ideas about careers related to technology showed significant differences between girls and boys. Given the results of the study, changes in Hong Kong's secondary school D&T are proposed. Current strategies being developed in Hong Kong's D&T teacher preparation programs are also outlined.     

Assessing the Attitudinal Technology Profile of South African Learners: A Pilot Study

Various instruments measuring either technological literacy or pupils’ attitudes towards technology are available. Recent research has emphasised that these instruments have not been validated for the South African context, yielded invalid and unreliable data for this specific context, and should therefore be adapted (Ankiewicz, Myburgh & Van Rensburg, 1996; Van Rensburg, Ankiewicz & Myburgh, 1996a, 1996b, 1999). The concept technology profile refers to learners’ knowledge and understanding of technology, their awareness of it, their values and attitudes towards technology, and their technological capability. It also refers to the extent to which these aspects have become part of the learners’ personality, beliefs, perceptions and behaviour. At the PATT (South Africa) Conference, held during October 1996, the developments regarding the design of an Attitudinal Technology Profile (ATP) questionnaire to evaluate the effects of curricula on the technology profile of learners in South African schools, were reported. At the time of the conference, the ATP questionnaire still had to be applied in order to establish its reliability and validity (Ankiewicz et al., 1996, p. 90). This article reports on this application of the ATP questionnaire. A quantitative pilot study was undertaken among 439 South African learners in Grades 9 and 10 in the Gauteng Province in the Johannesburg/Soweto area to determine their attitudinal technology profile. Differences among the learners with regard to their exposure to Technology Education, as well as gender differences, were also investigated. The conclusion is that the ATP questionnaire provides more reliable and valid results than its western counterpart that have been applied in South Africa. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Perspectives on pupil creativity in design and technology in the lower secondary curriculum in England

This paper is based on work carried out as part of a research study into the professional practices of secondary design and technology teachers in England. It focused on fostering creativity or teaching for creativity as defined by the Robinson Report (1999, All our futures: creativity, culture and education. London: Department for Education and Employment (DfEE)) for pupils aged 11–14 years. The overall research question that drove this study was “to what extent can teachers influence the creativity of pupils aged 11–14 years in design and technology lessons?” The paper provides the basis used to generate a unique theoretical three-feature model or framework that can be used to explore creativity within an educational context.The findings of three investigations in the study are presented in this paper. The first and second investigations looked at what could be learnt from the professional practices of art and design and design and technology teachers and the views of four ‘expert’ teachers known for their ability to develop the creative potential of their pupils. The data is discussed under emerging themes and it is used to inform specific criteria in the evolving theoretical three-feature model for creativity. The model is then used to analyse the data from the third classroom based investigation and the findings are discussed under the emerging themes to help identify the issues related to fostering creativity within the design and technology classroom.This paper discusses the implications of the research for classroom practice and suggests that, as creativity is a complex, multi-faceted concept and process, the theoretical three-feature model and related criteria evolved in the study provides a sound framework to explore creativity within an educational context. As a tool it helps identify examples of good practice and highlight areas that require further attention by teachers aiming to foster their pupils’ creativity. It is suggested that design and technology teachers have lessons to learn from the practices of their art and design colleagues and ‘expert’ design and technology teachers. It is concluded that there is a need for greater understanding by teachers of their implicit theories regarding teaching, learning and creativity. A wider use could be made of the breadth of strategies outlined by the ‘expert’ teachers. This would help address the weakness identified in the school based study and strengthen classroom practice when teaching for creativity.     

Problem-solving processes in technology education: A pilot study

This paper reports the preliminary results of a pilot study investigating the nature of problem-solving activity in technology classrooms. The research focuses on the relationship and potential mismatch between teachers' and children's agendas, aims, perceptions and beliefs concerning design and technology activities. A case study of an 11-week project was undertaken with four pupils aged 13. In-depth classroom observation and interviews allowed us to investigate the problem solving used in designing and making a kite, and the pupils' application of the knowledge required. Our analysis charts the influence of the teacher's task structuring and interventions on the children's problem-solving behaviour. The results indicate that the design process is highly complex and not always communicated successfully by teachers. What children typically encounter in design and technology projects are different problems requiring different approaches according to the kind of task and the stage reached in its solution. The popular idea that problem solving in technology denotes a holistic design-and-make process is hence under challenge. Moreover, the assumed access and application of relevant bodies of knowledge from other contexts is highly problematic.     

The Impact of the Implementation of Technology Education on In-Service Teacher Education in South Africa (Impact of Technology Education in the RSA)

In this article the impact of technology education, as a new learning area (subject) in the curriculum, on in-service teacher education in South Africa is described in order to ascertain the extent of the impact. The research on which this article is based draws on a variety of experiences and observations in the field at grassroots level (in particular an outreach project in rural communities). The envisaged impact of technology education on South African schools, communities, teacher educators and teachers, the range of in-service teacher education that is required, and the impacts in urban and rural areas are discussed. Finally a number of concluding remarks are made about the extent of the impact of the inclusion of technology education in the new National Curriculum Statement and whether the situation has changed since the implementation of a pilot technology education project in 1998. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

甜加糯型鲜食玉米留层加工关键工艺研究

为了最大程度延长并保持甜加糯型鲜食玉米的营养成分和口感,对玉米加工工艺进行研究。首先,确定了需要保留玉米内部2～4片苞叶的加工要求;其次,以冀糯173甜加糯型鲜食玉米为研究对象,掌握了鲜食玉米苞叶包覆状态及其在穗柄上的生长分布规律,提出了先定位切割再利用内外层苞叶附着力的差异去除外层苞叶的加工工艺;然后,在开展鲜食玉米外部形态尺寸测量实验的基础上,设计了一种环状定位结构,并搭建了去苞叶设备;最后,通过合理留层试验对所提出的加工工艺进行了验证。结果表明：先经定位环定位切割穗柄,再经去苞叶设备处理的玉米能够苞叶合理留层2～4片,定位环参数为大内径53 mm、小内径41 mm、接触区8 mm、保护区2 mm、厚度2.5 mm。先定位切割再去除外层苞叶的加工工艺合理可行,能够实现甜加糯型鲜食玉米合理保留内层苞叶的加工目标。鲜食玉米留层加工工艺可为甜加糯型鲜食玉米留层加工生产线的设计和改进提供参考。     

Automation and the future of work: A social shaping of technology approach

Recent years have seen enormous attention paid to automation and its potential implications for the future of work. This study rejects unhelpful speculation and, instead, poses the question ‘what is shaping automation and its predicted effects?’ In contrast to the technological determinism framing much of the current debate, this study utilises the social shaping of technology (SST) approach, a theoretically informed body of research largely overlooked by sociology of work scholars. Compared with mainstream commentary, which treats technology as separate from the social world, SST facilitates examination of how the development and use of technology are shaped by broader socioeconomic concerns and politics. The analysis presented is based on an understanding of how technology is shaped by existing technology, economics, social relations, gender and the state.     

Design-without-make: challenging the conventional approach to teaching and learning in a design and technology classroom

The purpose of the study reported here was to investigate the use of a design-without-make unit as part of the design and technology curriculum with pupils aged 14. Three research questions drove the study: (a) What sort of designing do pupils do when they work collaboratively to design without having to make what they have designed? (b) What is the teachers’ attitude to design-without-make? (c) What is the pupils’ attitude to design-without-make? The study is a small pilot and data were collected using semi-structured interviews with a class teacher and two pupils and detailed scrutiny of five pupils’ design ideas developed during 6 lessons towards the end of an 18 lessons teaching sequence. Findings indicate that the teacher and pupils in this study responded favourably to design-without-make. The pupils’ designing was highly iterative, creative, involved making a wide range of design decisions and revealed understanding of technological concepts.     

New social relations of digital technology and the future of work: Beyond technological determinism

This introduction sets out the context for the Special Issue and offers an in-depth reflection on key themes addressed by our contributors. The Special Issue aims to place the social relations of production at the centre of debates about technology and the future of work, and create space for greater critical reflection on what it means to go ‘beyond technological determinism’. We identify ways in which aspects of technological determinism continue to influence debates on technology, the labour process and industrial relations, despite efforts to reject it. We argue that this influence is manifested in some persistent problems within the literature including overly rigid periodisations (such as ‘platform capitalism’), a narrow conceptual repertoire (which reifies notions like ‘algorithmic control’) and a constricted empirical focus. We elucidate the value of a social shaping of technology (SST) approach to overcome these challenges and provide a brief overview of the articles contained within the issue.     

零碳建筑技术路线研究

为实现零碳建筑的零碳排放和超低能耗目标,提出了零碳建筑的技术路线。利用负荷能耗指标作为技术评价标准,以保定市某幼儿园实际工程为例,通过DeST软件模拟,分析了本项目全年负荷变化,冷热负荷指标以及负荷能耗指标,然后通过正交试验与极差分析得出不同影响因素对建筑热负荷的影响程度。结果表明,零碳幼儿园全年累计热负荷指标为61.60 kW·h/m~2,全年累计冷负荷指标为75.99 kW·h/m~2,采暖季热负荷指标为18.36 W/m~2,空调季冷负荷指标为25.76 W/m~2;不同影响因素对建筑热负荷的影响程度从大到小依次为外墙传热系数>人员密度>设备功率>屋顶传热系数,对建筑冷负荷影响程度从大到小依次为人员密度>设备功率>外墙传热系数>屋顶传热系数。零碳建筑技术路线的运用对于降低建筑能耗、实现建筑零碳目标具有重要意义。     

钻孔咬合桩在复合地层中的应用研究 ——以杭州地铁3号线工业大学站为例

钻孔咬合桩多用于软土地层,采用全套管钻机软切割法施工,但在上软下硬的复合地层中,全套管法成孔困难,无法保证桩体的垂直度,以致于咬合效果达不到设计要求。为了解决此类工程问题,依托杭州地铁3号线一期工程工业大学站基坑工程,研究了钻孔咬合桩在上软下硬复合地层中的适应性及应用情况,并与其他围护方式在可实施性、安全性、经济性、施工效率等方面进行了综合比较。研究结果表明,在复合地层中采用旋挖钻机硬切割法施工咬合桩,成孔效率高,桩体垂直度高,止水效果好,能产生更好的工期效益、社会效益和经济效益。并且钻孔咬合桩能够很好地适应复合地层,经济性好,施工效率高,解决了复合地层中钻孔咬合桩的施工工艺和设备选型问题。研究过程及结果可为复合地层中的基坑工程施工提供借鉴与参考。     

Impact of survey design in the estimation of habitual food consumption: A study based on urban households of Mongolia

This paper evaluates the impact of survey design on food consumption measurement using data from the Mongolia Household Socio-Economic Survey (MSES) 2007–2008. We exploit the fact that the MSES uses a diversified approach to collect food data by measuring consumption, acquisition and stocks using both, diaries and recall interviews. First, we estimate the effect of diary length on reporting of food consumption, finding a significant decrease of reported food over time. We conclude that shorter diaries would increase the quality of estimates and lower the costs of inquiry. Second, we show that recall interviews, combined with a measurement of stocks, perform well in measuring household food consumption compared to diaries. Third, we find cyclical variation in food consumption and acquisition not only between months, but also within months and weeks. Especially for food acquisition, we detect large difference within months, which can lead to biased estimates of food acquisition. This highlights the need for enumeration to be spread over time to overcome cyclicality on food acquisition and consumption.     

BIM技术在转体桥施工中的应用——以银西铁路跨定武高速公路转体桥为例

为了发掘BIM技术在桥梁施工中新的应用点,拓展其在桥梁施工中的建模功能,解决钢筋间的碰撞与冲突等问题,发挥其对施工现场的指导作用,以银西铁路跨定武高速公路立交连续梁工程为例,对全桥进行BIM技术建模,搭建施工管理平台,在施工现场应用BIM技术测量桥体变形,并对桥体进行定位,处理施工现场问题。得到了球铰的精确定位,实现了施工资料的上传、下载、保存以及对施工进度的实时监管操作,真正地将BIM技术应用于施工现场,体现了现场管控平台较强的时效性和操控性,确保了桥梁的顺利转体,保证了工程质量,拓展了BIM技术在施工现场中的应用,为同类施工现场管理提供参考。     

From core to periphery and back: A study on the deliberate shaping of knowledge flows in interfirm dyads and networks

We study 892 Italian motorcycle industry projects carried out via 184 different buyer–supplier and supplier‐supplier relationships to provide evidence on the knowledge dynamics occurring in dyads and networks and to understand the underexplored but important (perhaps even dominant) leading role that some firms play in the evolution of networks and interfirm learning processes. We develop a multiphase model which, from a multilevel perspective addressing different relational subsets, suggests how firms can best organize to generate and exchange knowledge efficiently. We argue that extant theoretical perspectives can profitably draw on our findings to strengthen their dynamic components and help them explain the widely diffused ‘exploring through partner’ strategies more effectively. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Research in Purpose and Value for the Study of Technology in Secondary Schools: A Theory of Authentic Learning

This paper briefly examines the literature on (a) problem-based learning (PBL), including constructivism and problem solving, and (b) learning in context, including mediation, embodiment, distribution, and situatedness. We use this literature, our previous research [Hill & Smith Journal of Technology Education 9(1), 29–41 (1998)], and some initial findings from our present research as a basis for a theory that we call authentic learning. The Theory of Authentic Learning provides a theoretical framework on which to scaffold purpose and value for the study of technology in secondary school curriculum. Initial results from Year One of our present three-year study contribute to the refinement of our Theory of Authentic Learning. First, we present some relevant literature, then we illustrate the Theory of Authentic Learning, and finally we conclude with some preliminary findings from our present research.     

国际交流合作课程新形式探讨——服装产品开发项目教学实录

中美两所院校的"服装产品开发课程",以六组不同种类的服装产品设计课题通过用远程网络视频教学与互访教学相结合的形式进行,通过网络沟通、调研与设计制作以及最后的中美互访,打破了传统的服装教学界限,这种"低成本高互动"的交流方式,拓宽了国际课程交流渠道,发展了学生的学习空间,增强了服装教学的实践应用能力,为设计教学院校的国际课程交流提供了一种参考模式。     

Positive and negative synergies between the CEO's and the corporate board's human and social capital: A study of biotechnology firms

This paper contributes to the corporate governance literature by developing and testing theory regarding positive and negative synergies between the CEO's and the board's human and social capital. Using a sample of 360 biotechnology firms that went public between 1995 and 2010, we demonstrate that accumulated public company board experiences of the CEO and the board have positive synergistic effects on IPO performance whereas the current board appointments have negative effects. While scientific educational backgrounds have positive synergies, industry‐specific experiences produce either positive or counterproductive effects depending on the age and profitability of the firm. Thus, our paper contributes to the corporate governance and human and social capital literatures by describing the costs and benefits of specific types and combinations of CEO and board capital. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Unraveling the mechanisms of reputation and alliance formation: A study of venture capital syndication in China

Extant research shows that resources are significant to a firm's choice of alliance formation. We focus on an important form of intangible resource—firm reputation—and examine how it affects a firm's propensity to form alliances. We propose an inverted U‐shaped relationship between a firm's reputation and its likelihood of alliance formation, resulting from the opposing mechanisms of opportunity and need. We also examine how this relationship may vary across two contingencies: (1) foreign and domestic firms; and (2) different levels of institutional development. Empirical analyses of China's venture capital (VC) industry provide support for our hypotheses. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Doubts about the conceptual and empirical status of context-free and firm-specific control expectancies: A reply to boone and de brabander

Boone and De Brabander (1993) contend mat Hodgkinson's (1992) strategic locus of control scale will not lead to interesting research results and that researchers should continue to adopt the well known Rotter (1966) I-E scale. Central to their argument is the assertion that responses to domain-specific control expectancy scales, such as the strategic locus of control scale, largely reflect actors' perceptions of their current circumstances, whereas responses to the I-E scale are a function of stable personality differences. In this reply the literature on the locus of control construct is briefly reviewed, in order to show that the accumulated empirical research evidence does not support the notion of generalized control expectancies as a simple unidimensional personality trait, but points overwhelmingly to the conclusion that control expectancies are more appropriately construed as a multidimensional, domain-specific, cognitive variable shaped by the combined effects of disposition, prior learning experiences, reinforcement histories and current circumstances. The rationale for the development of the strategic locus of control scale is further explained, in order to clarify a number of other misconceptions.