Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences (HiOA): Open Access Journals
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Preschool Heads’ Perceptions of Technology and Technology Education
No full textTeachers need support in how to organize teaching in technology to meet the preschool curriculum goals. In Sweden, the head of the preschool has a pedagogical responsibility with a task to support teachers and ensure that the work corresponds to national goals stated in the school act and the curriculum. In this paper, we investigate preschool heads’ perceptions of technology (RQ1) and of teaching technology (RQ2) as a precondition for their pedagogical responsibility. Data were gathered from two two-hour seminars with five heads of preschool attending a professional development programme. The seminars were audio recorded and the recordings were transcribed for analysis. Research question 1 was analyzed using Collier-Reeds categories for Nature of Technology, and research question 2 was analyzed using a conventional content analysis. The heads perceptions of technology varies between individuals having a narrow view of technology as only being artefacts, or a great insecurity entailing not knowing what separates technology from natural science, to a developed and complex view of technology. Regarding the teaching of technology the heads talked about the preschool teachers´ competence, including subject knowledge as a basis for teaching and pedagogical and didactical knowledge and skills. They also discussed content and method for teaching technology, which included the concept of technology, the nature of preschool teaching and a progression through the preschool years. The results also show that the heads believe the characteristics of preschool education demand that the preschool teachers have a high level of subject knowledge
Teaching Modelling Using Digital Design Tools: Experiences of Swedish Secondary School Technology Teachers
No full textModelling using digital design tools is a relatively new element in secondary technology education, though modelling using concrete material is common and has been practiced regularly. Many technology teachers now teach modelling using digital design tools, to meet the new criteria in the syllabus concerning problem solving and documentation using digital technology. However, there is a lack of knowledge concerning how technology teachers teach modelling using digital design tools and how they choose content and present it to the pupils. It is known, though, that teachers’ experiences affect how they plan the lessons. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate technology teachers’ experiences to gain more understanding in this particular area of technology education. Taking a phenomenographic approach, twelve semi-structured interviews with secondary technology teachers were conducted. The results show that teachers have different experiences teaching modelling using digital design tools, and four categories have emerged: 1) Handling the software and using simple geometries, 2) Using ready-made objects from databases, 3) Manufacturing via 3D-printers, and 4) Design and problem solving. The results indicate that teachers teach modelling using digital design tools with different aims; the intended object of learning differs. The results also indicate that teachers experience that they lack knowledge of teaching modelling using digital design tools and therefore have difficulties teaching in this area, which can affect the pupils’ problem-solving skills. The results, described in this article, can be used as a basis for further discussion.Modelling using digital design tools is a relatively new element in secondary technology education, though modelling using concrete material is common and has been practiced regularly. Many technology teachers now teach modelling using digital design tools, to meet the new criteria in the syllabus concerning problem solving and documentation using digital technology. However, there is a lack of knowledge concerning how technology teachers teach modelling using digital design tools and how they choose content and present it to the pupils. It is known, though, that teachers’ experiences affect how they plan the lessons. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate technology teachers’ experiences to gain more understanding in this particular area of technology education. Taking a phenomenographic approach, twelve semi-structured interviews with secondary technology teachers were conducted. The results show that teachers have different experiences teaching modelling using digital design tools, and four categories have emerged: 1) Handling the software and using simple geometries, 2) Using ready-made objects from databases, 3) Manufacturing via 3D-printers, and 4) Design and problem solving. The results indicate that teachers teach modelling using digital design tools with different aims; the intended object of learning differs. The results also indicate that teachers experience that they lack knowledge of teaching modelling using digital design tools and therefore have difficulties teaching in this area, which can affect the pupils’ problem-solving skills. The results, described in this article, can be used as a basis for further discussion
Investigative Activities as a Basis for Integrating Pre-primary Craft, Technology and Science Education
No full textThe aim of this study is to explore the integration of pre-primary craft, technology, and science education. Inquiry-based approaches and hands-on activities are common modes of teaching within these learning areas in pre-primary education. Referring to the way young children act in a learning context, the term ‘investigative activities’ has been used to describe the combination of inquiry-based and hands-on activities, such as designing and crafting. However, few studies have focused on the possibilities of integrating different joint objectives in pre-primary education. This paper presents an initial set of investigative activities that create the integrative basis for pre-primary craft, technology, and science education, and further, opens up the activities with a pedagogical example. With these activities, the three learning areas form an integrative, holistic learning project, supporting children to understand their natural and man-made environments and become active creators within these environments
Tasks for Mediating the Process of Knowing and Learning to Design and Make
No full textResearch in Design and Technology Education (D&TE) suggests that teachers need to appreciate the critical aspects of design and make. These aspects include developing an understanding of ill-structured problems, role of imagery and visualisation, need for collaboration and the influence of values in design thinking. The study reported in this paper explored the use of carefully designed tasks to develop critical reflection on the design and make processes among student-teachers (participants). The participants were 34 masters’ students who opted for D&TE course as part of their teacher preparation programme taught by the teacher-researcher (author). An analysis of participants’ engagement with two of the tasks designed by the author revealed challenges in attending to functional and structural details of artefacts, particularly when making shifts between micro and macro features. The tasks mediated the process of knowing and learning how to design and make, by affording simultaneous attention to cognitive, metacognitive and affective experiences in classroom discussions. As participants worked on tasks, the interplay of knowledge and skills created opportunities for discussing epistemic identity. The study suggests that learning mediated through design-and-make engagements provides an inward gaze into the process of designing and the purposes of technology. The paper concludes with the affordance of contextual and experientially informed understanding in handling the challenges of preparing teachers to teach design-and-make
Using Linkography to Understand the Social, Conceptual and Physical Cognitive Mechanisms During the Design Process
No full textThe 21st century is marked by an increase in the information sources available to designers who solve design problems. Current design thinking analysis procedures and theoretical frameworks do however not explain how designers interact with a variety of social, conceptual and physical information sources when designing. Ongoing research is required to not only understand how designers interact with these information sources; but also to find suitable methodologies with which to investigate these interactions. The purpose of this study was to examine the way in which Grade 8 technology learners interacted with social, conceptual and physical information sources during the early phases of the design process. In order to explore the cognitive mechanisms of learners when interacting with a variety of information sources, we relied on both extended design cognition and activity systems theory and implemented a mixed methods design. Three medium resourced secondary schools were conveniently selected from which nine Grade 8 participants were purposefully selected. Verbal and visual data were generated and documented by means of a think aloud protocol methodology, and analysed quantitatively and qualitatively by utilising linkography. The potential contribution of the study is twofold. Theoretically, the study adds to the existing knowledge base on learners’ design cognition by shedding light on the nature of their interactions with physical, social and conceptual information sources when solving design problems during STEM tasks. Secondly, the study makes a methodological contribution by illustrating how linkography can be utilised to analyse the design cognition used by learners during design activities
PATT38 Introduction
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Technology in our Hands. Creative Pedagogy and Ambitious Teacher Education
Click on the "pdf" button to open and readthe introduction to the conference.
Technology in our Hands. Creative Pedagogy and Ambitious Teacher Education
Click on the "pdf" button to open and readthe introduction to the conference
Craft consumption and participatory consumerism
No full textHow are crafters, in this case hand knitters active on social media, involved in participatory consumerism and prosumption? This is the main question asked in this article, that explores the creative relations between craft consumers and the commodities they are searching for in order to be able to craft and to create. By using affect theory, and focusing on aspects as raw materials, tools, instructions and craft processes, the study is an exploration of how crafters engage in material conditions by using them to realize ideas and fantasies in craft
Entangled Materialities : Caring for soil communities at glass industry sites
No full textThis paper discusses craft and design practices through their impact on the environment. We consider how to act concerning the consequences of the craft and design industry. Also, we reflect on the agency of our field of practice in changing how we perceive the environment. We present three case studies of the European glass industry sites in Sweden, Italy and Finland, where we study contamination of the soil with participatory, speculative and craft methods. Through these cases, we reflect on our role in soil communities and ask how we may act in them with responsibility, hope and care. We conclude by proposing to act locally, to share our practices and make them visible, expanding our situated, personal skills and knowledge towards the political.This paper discusses craft and design practices through their impact on the environment. We consider how to act concerning the consequences of the craft and design industry. Also, we reflect on the agency of our field of practice in changing how we perceive the environment. We present three case studies of the European glass industry sites in Sweden, Italy and Finland, where we study contamination of the soil with participatory, speculative and craft methods. Through these cases, we reflect on our role in soil communities and ask how we may act in them with responsibility, hope and care. We conclude by proposing to act locally, to share our practices and make them visible, expanding our situated, personal skills and knowledge towards the political
Canoe-carving, Lamotrek style : An interdisciplinary study in crafting, design, engineering, and sustainability
No full textMicronesian traditional canoe carvers of Lamotrek Atoll are one of the few Pacific communities whose canoe carving, ocean seafaring and indigenous navigation techniques are living traditions. They sail long distances on open ocean in these craft without instruments or maps, using traditional navigation techniques. Their building procedures involve no plans, no measuring devices or numbers. This kind of indigenous boatbuilding and seafaring was once practiced by virtually all Pacific island communities over hundreds or thousands of years, but the traditional knowledge has been eradicated in all but the most isolated and impoverished communities
Global Demands – Local Practices: Working towards Inclusion of Gender Equality in Teacher Education in Finland and Sweden
No full textGender equality is a global aim that has been presented in numerous documents. However, teacher education programs in many countries still lack sustainable strategies for working towards gender equality in education. Working successfully in this area may promote more sustainable practices in schools to reach gender-fair societies. The Nordic countries are known for pro-active gender policies and they provide interesting cases for investigating achievements and struggles in the field. The purpose of this article is, from an international comparative perspective, to explore the rationales and practices when working with issues of gender equality in Finnish and Swedish teacher education and to reflect on related concepts. We describe, analyse and compare local practices, theoretical frameworks and challenges by revisiting gender and teacher education research and equality projects from the 1980s up to today. The comparative methodology chosen facilitates understanding examples from two neighbouring countries, illustrating different ways to develop policies and strategies. Local actors not only follow global claims to work with gender and equality in teacher education but also play an active role and contribute to these discourses. Our study suggests that gender equality cannot be achieved overnight; appropriate strategies need to be negotiated constantly in specific national and institutional contexts at universities and teacher education institutions