Achieving Education for Technological Capability in Scotland

Abstract

Design and technology (D&T) education involves learners coping creatively with complexity. It must take account of a wide range of often apparently conflicting demands and constraints: aesthetic, economic, political, ethical, social, and environmental as well as ergonomic, technical, and scientific. Case study tasks describe a relatively recent approach to school-based D&T learning. Through case studies, students can begin to consider, critically, the impact and influence of D&T on society and the environment. As well as being of interest in their own right, the products explored in the CD-ROM "Exploring Everyday Products: Case Studies of Design & Technology in Action" provide examples of how to use a case study approach. In order to gauge the response of pupils and teachers to the content, format, and potential of "Exploring Everyday Products," school-based trials were conducted in addition to opinions being canvassed from practicing secondary and primary teachers. From the information collected from the early evaluations, the field trials, and canvassed opinions, the content of "Exploring Everyday Products" is deemed accessible and of value in the classroom. Overall, the selected CD-ROM case studies and associated tasks underpin an active learning approach to developing technological capability and meet the expectations of the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum (Scottish CCC) Technology Education Development Program. (Contains 2 figures, 2 tables and 2 notes.)