Background
Initial implementation of the Technology Curriculum 1999
Mairi Fitzsimons:
"Technology has had to struggle to overcome perceptions that it's 'just cooking and woodwork.' But full credit to our technology teachers, they've battled to overcome these misconceptions and I think they've won. They've certainly won it with the students, there's no doubt about that, and there's a greater understanding in the community in general about the changes that have taken place."
"The way in which Technology is being taught is so fundamental to good teaching of thinking skills that maybe we need to be looking at this level of good practice across our whole curriculum and not just in technology. Maybe this is a way of teaching that is passing some subjects by."
When Technology was introduced as a compulsory subject in 1999, Havelock North High School Co-Head of Department Carol Rimmer took the opportunity to rethink the Technology programme and to undertake what was to be a long-term overhaul. "We weren't going to do what we were already doing under a different name, and just change the sign on the door."
A planning group was formed in 1998, comprising Co-HODs Doug Sutherland and Carol, a biotechnology teacher and an economics teacher. The group worked with a technology education facilitator to put in place an overall strategy, which was then presented to the department for adoption.
To help develop the Year 9 and 10 Technology programme from a very broad perspective, a larger group was formed comprising teachers from a traditional technical background and others interested in teaching Technology. This group met weekly for a year to work on changes within the department, developing units "by the boxful", an exercise that helped bring "all the thinking together and a 'whole team' ethic into the department."
The result was the introduction of a completely new Year 9 Technology programme in 1999 comprising an introductory unit and five six-week modules. A sixth module was also developed for this class's progression into Year 10 in 2000.
It became clear over the following years that new programme was not as successful as was hoped and the quality of much of the finished practical work was disappointing. In retrospect, the six-week modules were "quite academic and prescriptive, not that well suited to the classroom" and did not allow time to develop relevant domain knowledge and skills.
Each module was therefore extended to one term of four hours per week. Students changed subjects and teachers each term. This modification proved more successful, but the department did not formalise what was being taught between those four teachers, so each teacher continued to address all three components of practice. There was a lot of repetition and only limited opportunity for students to progress their learning over the year.
A planned review and more radical modification of the approach and programme, coincided, in 2005, with the possibility of working within the Beacon Practice initiative. A Beacon Practice team was established, with four members of the department joining Carol and Doug: Jeff Arnold, John Foster, Andrew Hughes and Kate McLennan. (The remainder of the department taught only one technology class or were also teaching in other curriculum areas.) The smaller size of the development group suited the detailed work required for the all-encompassing changes that were to be made. However, the group was careful to ensure the active involvement (and therefore ownership) of all teachers in the department. All key decisions made by Beacon teachers were taken to department meetings for wider discussion and acceptance. Carol believes this was essential to the ultimate success of the project.
Over the previous years, Carol had undertaken a range of professional development, including a two-year postgraduate diploma at Massey University. She was also awarded a Woolf Fisher Fellowship, under which she travelled to Britain and visited a range of schools. This knowledge and experience brought new ideas and approaches to the group, to add to their collective and individual local experiences.
