The Nature of Technology Strand Explanatory Papers Updated May 2010
Characteristics of Technological Outcomes
Senior Secondary (Years 11-13)
Possible learning experiences
The learning experiences suggested below have been provided to support teachers as they develop their understandings of the Characteristics of Technological Outcomes component of the Nature of Technology strand, and how this could be reflected in student achievement at various levels. There is no expectation that these would form the basis of any specific unit of work in technology. The learning experiences have been written in such a way as to support student learning across a range of levels. This stance reflects the majority of classrooms where it is expected that students will demonstrate a range of levels of achievement.
Students select an incident where a socially significant technological outcome has malfunctioned, (for example, the Cave Creek platform collapse) and examine the reasons provided for the failure. Students explore, in particular, what physical and functional design elements appeared to be prioritised and how this was justified at the time of development and after the malfunction.
Implications of the event are explored in terms of subsequent technological outcome development and the development of, or modification to, codes of practice to minimise future risks. Lessons learnt from all events investigated in the class are summarised and linked to how technological outcomes and technological knowledge is enhanced through exploring the reasons for the failure.
Students identify an existing technological outcome in their local environment and analyse it in terms of its wider socio-cultural and historical context. Suggestions for how this outcome could be modified to enhance it in some way could be explored and a feasibility study carried out to form the basis of a proposal for future developments. This could provide the basis for the student to undertake their own technological development in the future.
Students achieving at level 4 could be expected to:
- describe the proper function of the technological outcome that failed;
- explain how the failure of a technological outcome occurred, and how this related to the relationship between its physical and functional nature; and
- explain what changes to the physical attributes of the technological outcome could have been made to better suit the intended user/s or physical environment.
Students achieving at level 5 could be expected to:
- explain the concept of malfunction and use the selected technological outcome to illustrate the importance of context on judging an outcome as fit for purpose;
- explain why a technological outcome malfunctioned;
- undertake a contemporary evaluation of the fitness for purpose of the technological outcome based on experiences and/or knowledge available now; and
- explain how the risk of a selected technological outcome malfunctioning could be reduced.
Students achieving at level 6 could be expected to:
- discuss how the technological outcome that failed was part of a socio-technological environment and how the interactions between the technological outcome, people, and social and physical environments impacted on the failure;
- describe the socio-technological environment that surrounds the selected technological outcome and identify relationships between other technological product and technological systems; and
- discuss the impacts and implications of the way technological outcomes, people, and social and physical environments interact in a selected socio-technological environment.
