Assessment for Learning: Using Solo Taxonomy to Measure Design Performance of Design & Technology Students

One objective of Design &; Technology (D&;T) is to enable students to be inventive in designing practical solutions to problems. D&;T is viewed as being successful when students can demonstrate the ability to recognize problems, undertake inquiries by themselves, and contribute ideas accordingly. This article will discuss a study which investigated an alternative approach to assessing students’ design performances. In the study, a new item format was designed and a new criterion framework of assessment based on Biggs’ SOLO Taxonomy was developed. The evidence from this study indicates strong face validity for the new approach which maps closely to the goals and purposes of learning D&;T.     

Transferring and Transforming Technology Education: A Study of Norwegian Teachers’ Perceptions of Ideas from Design & Technology

What happens when educational ideas cross national and cultural borders? How do teachers respond to ideas originating in a different school system and a different national culture? This article reports on an empirical study investigating the transfer of ideas from Design &; Technology as a subject in England and Wales into Norwegian schools. A sample of teachers participating in a specific project on technology teaching inspired by this subject has been studied by means of interviews and classroom observation. Results of the study show that while some elements of Design &; Technology are adopted by the teachers, essential ideas of the subject are significantly transformed. Drawing on Barnes, (1992, Teachers and Teaching: From Classrooms to Reflection (pp. 9–32), The Falmer press, London) concept of teachers' professional frames for teaching, it is shown how specific aspects of the national and educational culture have had a considerable effect on?the teachers' interpretation of the nature of technology as a subject of teaching and its place in the curriculum. The study illustrates the importance of the cultural context in how educational ideas are interpreted, reshaped and realized in schools.     

论绩效考核指标体系设计

绩效考核是企业管理的一项重要工作。由于绩效考核多因、多维、动态等特点及考核者的情感因素,绩效考核未能取得令人满意的效果。在上述诸多因素中,指标评价体系设计不科学是一个重要原因。介绍了绩效考核指标体系及其设计原则,在对企业绩效考核指标体系设计案例研究的基础上,分析了企业绩效考核指标及其体系设计的相关理论,并运用平衡计分卡理论从财务、顾客导向、内部流程和学习与发展4个维度设计了绩效考核的指标、权重及考核体系。     

The Determinants of Innovation: R & D,Technology Transfer and Networking Effects

The traditional analysis of innovation has focused on the Schumpeterian hypothesis of a positive link between market power and innovation. This often includes an implicitly linear view of the innovation process, with R & D as a necessary first step. This paper widens the determinants of innovation beyond R & D to include technology transfer and networking effects, thus extending the standard Schumpeterian analysis. When tested on a dataset of c. 1300 UK manufacturing plants, R & D, technology transfer and networking are found to be substitutes in the innovation process, with the two latter intensities especially important in increasing the extent of innovation. There is no evidence that (actual) monopoly power increases the extent of innovation, but there are significant plant and sectoral effects on innovation.     

Creativity in school design &; technology in England: a discussion of influences

This paper identifies five influences on design & technology education in England—the government agency, the curriculum developer, the teacher, the pupil and the researcher. Using developments in school design & technology education and examples from England the paper describes a range of activities involving one or more influences noting the implications each has for creativity in school design & technology education. In conclusion the paper summarises the impact of the influences and suggests an approach to support further productive collaboration.     

Designing the Best: A Review of Effective Teaching and Learning of Design and Technology

The role of Design and Technology (D &; T) in schools in England is changing. As from September 2002, D &; T will no longer be compulsory from age 14, but students will have a statutory entitlement to opt to study the subject. These proposed changes have renewed policy-makers' interest in a subject, which was first introduced into the National Curriculum in England and Wales in 1990. It provides the immediate context for a review of the literature published in English on Design and Technology commissioned by the Department of Education and Skills. Four databases were searched: the British Education Index (BEI), Educational Resources Information Centre (ERIC), PsychInfo, and Current Educational Research in the UK (CERUK). This article draws from the findings of the review and focuses in particular on two questions: How can D &; T be delivered effectively and what enhances learning and teaching in D &; T? The reviewers conclude that the factors which enhance effective learning and teaching of D &; T include: adequate equipment and accommodation, appropriate curriculum content and teaching methods, up-to-date continuing professional development for teaching and management support to allow teachers to implement innovative practices. In addition, they suggest a research agenda, which could inform future research in D &; T.     

Adding Value to the Teaching and Learning of Design and Technology

It has been argued that design and technology can be used as a vehicle for teaching science and vice versa. In this paper, we report an investigation into Grade 6 students understandings of concepts embodied in the Systems strand of a technology syllabus as they grappled with a unit of work in technology for the first time. The unit of work involved students in the design and construction of simple systems, followed by experiences with more complex systems. Qualitative research methods were used to investigate the activities of the students as they engaged in the design and technology learning experiences for eight weeks. Data sources included student and teacher interviews, video and audio recordings of whole class and small group interactions, students notes, drawings and diagrams, and researchers field notes and reflections. Changes in students ability to identify the individual components and analyse how the components worked together in systems, and evidence of students use of scientific understandings for explanations, were noted as the unit of work progressed. An improvement was observed in students abilities to describe relationships between inputs, processes and outputs, and outline sequences of cause and effect. The technology and science appeared to be complementary as they developed technology specific and action-oriented technology and science language, which may be evidence of the presence of a community of learners. Recommendations are proposed for enhancing the value of both design and technology and science if both subjects are taught together as part of an integrated program in primary schools.     

Emerging Assessment Practices in an Emergent Curriculum: Implications for Technology

This paper reports on detailed case studies into emerging assessment practices in technology in two New Zealand primary schools (Years 1–6) with nine teachers. This research is part of the two year Research in Assessment of Primary Technology (RAPT) project and formed the basis for the one year New Zealand Ministry of Education funded Learning in Technology Education (Assessment) project.Emerging classroom assessment practices in technology, a new subject area in the national curriculum, are discussed. It was found that the existing subcultures in schools, teachers' subject expertise and the school wide policies impacted on the teachers' assessment practices. Assessment was often seen in terms of social and managerial aspects such as team work, turn taking and information skills, rather than procedural and conceptual aspects. Therefore teachers' formative interactions with students distorted the learning away from procedural and conceptual aspects of the subject, and the learning and the formative assessment interactions focused on generic skills rather than student technological understanding.The importance of developing teacher expertise in three dimensions of knowledge about the subject, knowledge in the subject and general pedagogical knowledge is highlighted. Thus the findings from this research have implications for thinking about teaching, learning and assessment in technology.     

Developing the Teaching of Food Technology in Primary Schools in England through Curriculum Development and Initial Teacher Education

This paper investigates developments in the teaching of food technology introduced as an element of design & technology in the 1990 National Curriculum for Technology in the English primary curriculum for children aged five to eleven years. It reviews briefly the situation for food teaching before 1990 and identifies a number of relevant issues. This is followed by an overview of developments in food technology in primary schools between 1992 and 2001, highlighting the need for primary teachers and trainee teachers on initial teacher education courses to develop an understanding of how to teach food technology in their schools. The development of teaching materials through the Nuffield Approach to food technology in primary schools is outlined together with a case study of the use of the materials in initial teacher education at the University of Surrey Roehampton. The paper describes the uptake of Nuffield Primary food technology materials as measured by down loads from the Nuffield Primary Design & Technology web site. Alongside this, there are reflections of primary trainee teachers on the impact of using the Nuffield food technology materials on their classroom practice during school experience. It concludes with a discussion of the key issues arising from the paper and suggestions for future research. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The Influences of Teacher Knowledge and Authentic Formative Assessment on Student Learning in Technology Education

Students involved in holistic technological practice need to develop an understanding of technological practice outside the classroom and to participate in tasks set as close as practicable to actual technological practice. This paper investigates the context of assessment and its relationship to achievement and the importance of teacher knowledge to student technological practice. I argue that ‘out of context’ assessment tasks do not give an accurate indication of achievement levels of the children assessed. Introduced is the Model of Student Technological Practice, which identifies four constraints that influence student technological practice. A significant factor is teacher knowledge, as it impacts greatly on the quality of feedback given to students by their teachers. Timely teacher intervention and formative assessment feedback will alter student technological practice and should improve the students’ likelihood of developing successful outcomes.     

The Challenge of Integrating AI & Smart Technology in Design Education

This paper examines some of the many problems and issues associated with integrating new and developing technologies into the education of future designers. As technology in general races ahead challenges arise for both commercial designers and educators on how best to keep track and utilise the advances. The challenge is particularly acute within tertiary education where the introduction of new cutting edge technology is often encouraged. Although this is generally achieved through the feedback of research activity, integrating new concepts at an appropriate level is a major task. Of particular concern is how focussed areas of applied technology can be made part of the multidisciplinary scope of design education.The paper describes the model used to introduce areas of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to undergraduate industrial design students. The successful interaction of research and education within a UK higher education establishment are discussed and project examples given. It is shown that, through selective tuition of research topics and appropriate technical support, innovative design solutions can result. In addition, it shows that by introducing leading edge and, in some cases, underdeveloped technology, specific key skills of independent learning, communication and research methods can be encouraged.     

Learning in Design and Technology: The Impact of Social and Cultural Influences on Modelling

The paper introduces the highly problematic nature of modelling in design and technology education and examines the relationship between cognitive and concrete modelling. Its aim is to gain insight into what learners do, rather than what others say they ought to do in their learning activities. The variety of purposes that educators have for learners’ modelling are discussed through examining the contested curriculum justification for design and technology education itself. The paper proposes that learners’ modelling cannot be extracted from the social milieu in which they act and it provides some insights of these social influences through the analysis of two case studies. Their settings are a girls’ secondary school and a college of higher education. Each case study is presented independently but organised with a common format to consider a) the impact of assessment on learning intentions and outcomes; b) cultural influences on learning and modelling; c) social influences on learning and modelling. A discussion of the emergent themes considers implications for teachers. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Beyond `The Design Process': An Alternative Pedagogy for Technology Education

`The design process' as an underpinning structure for technology education is well established. A number of increasingly complex models have been produced to describe the design process. These models have had a widespread, paradigmatic effect on the teaching of technology education. The development and implementation of models of the design process and the influence of these on teacher's classroom practice is examined, and it is then argued that the paradigm is fatally flawed, and that continued adherence to it is having a detrimental impact on children's learning in technology. It is suggested that the basis of an alternative pedagogy for technology education already exists within the research literature. Two examples of an alternative approach for teaching technology are described, and some practical limitations outlined. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Pragmatism, Pedagogy and Philosophy A Model of Thought and Action in Action in Primary Technology and Science Teacher Education

This article reports on one outcome from a three-year study with pre-service primary teachers at Goldsmiths' College, University of London. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the influence of participants' prior educational experience and beliefs about the relationship between design & technology (D&T) and science on their lesson planning for these subjects during school placements. Data from the study support a three-domain model of pre-service teachers' thinking and action. When operating within the pragmatic domain, participants are primarily concerned with survival in the classroom, resulting in short-term planning which may contradict their epistemological and curricular beliefs. In the pedagogical domain, the focus shifts from the pre-service teacher themselves and their immediate survival to the learning potential of the activities they plan. There is evidence that some participants have progressed to operating within a philosophical domain, leading to clasroom practice which reflects and re-conceptualises pre-service teachers' core beliefs about the nature of, and relationship between, D&T and science. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Using ‘Electronic Portfolios’ to Challenge Current Orthodoxies in the Presentation of an Initial Teacher Training Design and Technology Activity

The paper examines the extent to which a University undergraduate curriculum initiative provided initial teacher trainees with opportunities to challenge orthodox design methodologies through the production of an electronic portfolio within and extended design and technology activity. It was found that the ‘electronic portfolio’ served primarily as a developmental tool for promoting creative continuity and sound, reflective, design practice within a structured educational design challenge. The portfolio also provided a focus for the development of ‘e’ learning skills as it facilitated the use of new technologies in the compilation of the portfolio. Additionally, the portfolio provided trainees with a means by which they were able to demonstrate their capability to prospective employers. The use of the ‘electronic portfolio’ challenges current orthodoxy and methods routinely employed to present and assess trainees’ creative work, which have been shown to constrain innovative practice. The paper concludes that the use of the ‘electronic’ portfolio was successful in facilitating trainees’ engagement with a creative Design and Technology process.     

上市公司的科技投入对公司绩效的贡献度研究

科技创新是经济发展、社会进步的动力源泉,坚定发展自主创新是我国上市公司提高核心竞争能力的必由之路。本文以科学地评价科技投入对我国上市公司绩效的贡献度为核心研究内容,遴选了 R＆D 科技投入和其它科技投入及其派生指标作为科技投入的表征变量,遴选了产品销售收入、净利润、净资产收益率、每股收益率及其增长率作为公司绩效的表征变量,并通过相关分析和回归分析展开了实证分析。实证分析的结论表明,科技投入和我国上市公司绩效之间存在一定的关联,但影响作用并不明显。针对这一实际问题,本文给出了相应的政策建议,以期让科技投入更好地促进上市公司绩效的提升。     

Problem Solving in Real-Life Contexts: An Alternative for Design in Technology Education

This article focuses on one way to study technology, through technological problem solving situated in real-life contexts. In problem solving for real-life contexts, design processes are seen as creative, dynamic and iterative processes that engage exploration; join conceptual and procedural knowledge-both thought and action; and can encourage considerations to technology, human and environmental interactions. This approach is a demarcation from what is typically found in schools; design, make and appraise cycles based on closed design briefs that are teacher assigned and unrelated to the students' world. An interpretation of technology education as problem solving for real-life contexts using design processes as tools for creation and exploration offers an alternative approach to design in technology education. Alternative curriculum and instruction then emerge. Elementary and secondary school programs in technology education and teacher education can all be seen through this kind of design lens. Episodes from case studies are reported with the intent to briefly describe technology education programs in elementary and secondary schools that interpret technology education in this way. Educational implications of this approach are offered. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The Political Ecology of Design and Technology Education: An Inquiry into Methods

At the beginning of this new century, design and technology educators face a serious dilemma: Practice conventional modes of design and technology, which have consumed proponents in Canada, England, Germany, and the US, or model design for sustainable lifestyles. Our conventional design, problem solving and technological methods embody a liberal, political ecology and in effect, these methods – our practices – are not sustainable. Using the political ecology of Nike shoes as an example, I describe ecological footprints, resource streams, and wakes as effective metaphors for sustainable practice. In contra-distinction to technocentric methods, I argue for modelling ecocentric processes rooted in political ecology and cultural studies. Attending to the political ecology of design and technology means nothing less than remodelling the design of lifestyles and reducing production and consumption in our practice.     

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.     

The Role of Published Materials in Curriculum Development and Implementation for Secondary School Design and Technology in England and Wales

This paper discusses the ways in which teachers exploited a set of curriculum materials published as a vehicle for curriculum innovation, and the relationship between chosen modes of exploitation and teachers’ own perceptions of how the materials had ’added value’ to their teaching. The materials in question were developed by the Nuffield Design and Technology Project (’the Project’) to offer a pedagogy appropriate to the statutory curriculum for secondary school design and technology education in England and Wales (DFE/WO 1995). The Project had sought both to inform the statutory curriculum, and respond to its requirements. An earlier case study (Givens 1997) laid the foundations for the survey that is reported here. This paper focuses on the teaching of pupils aged 11–14. It finds that while most teachers made at least some use of all the various components of the publications, they were selective. While the Study Guide, which carries out a meta-cognitive dialogue with pupils, was generally underused, those teachers who did use it perceived greater value added by the materials as a whole to the quality of pupils’ work, their effectiveness in design and technology and their autonomy. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.