Technology

' The teaching of quality design and technology in our schools is a vital requirement for the country's future in the 21st Century '
James Dyson, inventor and manufacturer of the world's first bagless vacuum cleaner.

Learning for a technological world

Design and technology prepares pupils to participate in tomorrow's rapidly changing technologies. The subject calls for pupils to become autonomous and creative problem solvers, as individuals and members of teams, who must look for needs, wants and opportunities and respond to them by developing a range of ideas and making products and systems. The combination of practical skills and an understanding of aesthetics, social and environmental issues, function and industrial practices allows them to evaluate past and present design and technology, its uses and effects. Through design and technology, all pupils can become innovators as well as discriminating and informed users of products.

Of value to everyone

Design and technology is an important area of study for ALL young people, not only those who enter specialised courses in further and higher education. An important feature of design and technology is that it makes immediate and practical use of knowledge and skills from other subjects. It is linked with art and design, mathematics and science. Consider the effects of technology on the development of society - and our own lives - and appreciate the balance of advantage and disadvantage in those developments.

Design and technology enables pupils to:

. understand how design and technology affects our lives;
. contribute to the use and development of technology in our society through informed participation;
. relate their personal experience to the work of commerce and industry.
. start to use ICT as part of their designing and making.

During Key Stage 3 , pupils use a wide range of materials to design and make products. They work out their ideas with some precision, taking into account how products will be used, their consumers, costs and appearance. They develop understanding by investigating products and finding out about the work of professional designers and industry. Computer aided design and manufacture (CAD/CAM) and is used as an integral part of designing and making. Pupils also benefit from incorporating knowledge and understanding from other areas of the curriculum. Projects may involve an enterprise activity, where pupils identify an opportunity, design to meet a need, make products and evaluate the whole design and make process. Pupils use ICT to help with their work, including CAD/CAM software, control programmes and ICT based sources of research. They consider how technology affects society and their own lives, and learn that new technologies have both advantages and disadvantages.

At Key Stage 4 all pupils are entitled to follow a specialist course leading to a GCSE qualification. Currently the courses available are: food technology, graphic products, resistant materials technology and textiles technology.

Preparation for citizenship

Design and technology is a challenge to all young people. It requires initiative, an enquiring mind, determination, the careful management of time and resources, and a sense of responsibility for making decisions and taking action. When the outcomes of a project are intended for use by others or in a production or marketing task, pupils will need to collaborate with experienced adults from outside school. The opportunity to work with others and to understand the implications of what they do helps young people to become informed consumers, understanding the balance of issues involved in compromise and in search for quality at an affordable cost. This personal experience helps young people to develop their own system of values and to understand those that operate in society

A preparation for working life

Patterns of work are changing rapidly. This emphasises the need to prepare young people to be adaptable in acquiring new knowledge and skills. Design and technology is frequently linked to enterprise activities in which teams of young people tackle the development, manufacture and sale of a product in a business-like way. They can establish a market opportunity, design and make a product to meet that need, consider the distribution and sales, decide an appropriate price for the market place, and evaluate how effective they have been. In this way, young people develop an ability to respond flexibly and creatively in unpredictable situations, adding new learning as they progress through a design task.

A pathway to further and higher education

Design and technology is a broad subject. Pupils will have begun to specialise in particular aspects of their subject during their examination courses, and some of these lead directly to specialised courses in further and higher education, including engineering, electronic products, food technology, textiles technology and product design. In addition, design and technology provides a useful platform for further study in areas such as architecture, management, ergonomics, occupational therapy, food science, urban planning and education.

As teachers we

. Believe in the ability of your pupils.
. Support pupils by developing a challenging, yet manageable curriculum.
. Use on-going assessment for learning which sets clear goals on an individual basis.

As a parent

. Be interested. You do not have to be an expert, but can help your children to solve difficulties for themselves by listening.
. Provide a space where your child can make simple models of their design ideas to help think things through.
. Be aware that design and technology draws on, and pulls together, knowledge, skills and understanding from other subjects.
. Encourage your children to ask questions about made objects: Why are they like that? How do they work? How could they be different? Could they work better?

As a school governor

. Support regular professional development for teachers and support staff.
. Encourage investment in the teaching environment.
. Argue for the purchase and maintenance of tools and equipment and ensure that there is an adequate supply of suitable consumable materials.
. Ensure that all pupils study design and technology at Key Stage 3 and can follow the option of their choice at Key Stage 4.

As a Local Business

You can show that you value the design and technology curriculum in four important ways:

. Discuss with your staff the contribution Business links can make to pupils' Design and Technology education.
. Encourage your staff to develop new knowledge, skills and understanding.
. Support the design and technology specialists by involving your company in the life and work of the school.
. Celebrate the design and technology success of Beacon Hill with company staff, pupils, teachers and community.

Like to know more?

Visit these websites: www.dfes.gov.uk www.qca.org.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk www.data.org.uk www.primarydandt.org www.secondarydandt.org www.designmuseum.org