Introduction:
With the myriad conflicting demands on
D&T teachers it's no wonder that there is a national shortage of
new teachers choosing to teach our subject. New academies and free-schools are
simply not offering D&T. With 5 very separate subject areas (RM, Textiles,
Food, S&C, Graphics) under one umbrella, it is often too tricky and
expensive to deliver. The stuttering and ultimately unsuccessful introduction of
the EBacc was, in many cases, another nail in the coffin.
Speaking in broad generalities, D&T is
normally taught on a carousel of designing & making projects and it is these
projects which are the lifeblood of the subject.
There are of course are other
‘learning methods’ available to compliment designing and making e.g. making
without designing, designing without making and exploring technology and society
so an effective learning journey would consist of a judicious mix over
time.
For designing and making projects
the major consideration should be (1) what are the pupils learning and (2) how
does this relate to what they have already learned and (3) what they will be
required to learn in the future.
So what makes and effective D&T project?
Here is my quick, non-prioritised brain dump. You may like to prioritise these
yourself balancing out pragmatic considerations, for example pedagogy, physical
resources, intellectual resources and time allocation.
(1) Does it combine the
intellectual (and conceptual)
with the practical?
(2) Is it (really, honestly)
relevant? This requires real self-reflection. Is a clock, an automata, a
bottle opener or a moodlight really relevant to your students If it's
less relevant, do the skills learned make it worth the focus on such a product.
How can you judge relevance? (e.g. take-home rate, pupil
voice).
(3) Does it offer complexity? Does
the task require transferable skills e.g. application of Mathematics, Physics or
Art?
(4) Can it challenge and
does it have open-endedness? Are there authentic risk
taking possibilities, chances for failure and opportunities for
proper iterative design? Or do you pretty much know what
the result is going to be? Is failure an option and how will you embrace if it
it happens?
(5) Scaffold-ability? Does the
teacher have the skills, confidence and resources to scaffold the task? Do the
students? Can you leverage technology to scaffold the task? Who owns the
information necessary to allow progression?
(6) Is it time sensitive? 6 / 6.5 / 7
weeks / a term... Does it have to be delivered in traditional lesson
structures? Would a half/whole day/week be more suitable?
(7) Can it be
shared? Are there critique opportunities, do you allow allow for celebration of both the finished work and
process? Are there marketing/enterprise opportunities?
(8) Are there 'rich'
resources available? Can you access high quality video / text / apps? Are
there affordable stimulus products for deconstruction and
analysis?
(9) Can it be
personalised? Are there team working opportunities, that move
beyond aesthetic choices, can students make significant choices? Who is
making the decisions? Who is taking the risks?
(10) What is the assessment
provision? What is assessed: outcome, process, presentation of work? Where are the feedback opportunities? Is
the outcome more important than the process?
(11) Are there links to
'wider world' issues? Is the task scalable and cross-curricular? Does
the task support work that is going on elsewhere in your
organisation?
(12) Is there
balance? Does the project balance skills vs. processes vs. applications vs. outcome? How does this fit into
the wider Scheme of Work?
(13) How much scope is offered? Not
so much what is included, but what is left out. How does this fit with your
departmental and school aims?
(14) Take home? Is there a take home,
is it a 'thing', does it need to be a physical product? Does the need for a take
home trump the process?
(15) Competition. Can you easily buy
the same thing, well made, at a low price? How does that effect
'value'?
A further important consideration
must be how the learning journey prepares pupils for their GCSE course and if
there are a variety of options – Textiles, RM, Electronics then the range of
designing and making assignments must provide some sort of balanced experience
to enable pupils to make a choice.
A final important factor is
the extent to which the designing and making will engage the pupils and build in
a desire to do more of the same so that they are very keen to opt for a GCSE
course at the end of Year 8/9. This may involve a) canvassing pupil expectations for designing and making activities and how these
might be ascertained and perhaps challenged and b) parent perception of their
worth and again how these might be ascertained and perhaps
challenged.
There is not, of course, a set of
perfect projects. Every school has its own unique personality and set
of circumstances but this list may provide a useful taking point to reflect on
where you are now, and what you might need to consider to move
forwards.
Thanks to David Barlex for useful discussion
that informed this piece.
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