Techlink :: Classroom Practice :: Materials

Reference: CP907
Classroom Practice: Year 8
Title: Production Logo
Duration: One term
Overview: The Production Logo unit has a Graphics focus and was designed around Dilworth School's whole-school junior musical production. Three Year 8 Technology classes developed a logo, to be used within the production and to promote it. The unit emphasised student collaboration and introduced a competitive element, as class groups worked on a logo and then voted on which one to develop as their final outcome.
Focus Points:

Technological practice
Incorporating Nature of Technology/Technological Knowledge
Teamwork
Modelling
Working for a client
Evaluation
Community involvement
Peer teaching

Dilworth School is an independent, Anglican boys' school in the Auckland suburb of Remuera. The school is run by a trust, and each student is funded through a scholarship to cover education and boarding costs (all the boys board, either weekly or full-time).
Dilworth is divided into two schools, junior and senior, which are located on separate campuses. In 2009 the junior school (Years 5-8) had 192 students, and the senior (Years 9-13) 340. Juniors have Technology every week and over their four years cover most domains. Food and Biotechnology is not offered due to lack of facilities.

In the senior school, Year 9 students take compulsory Graphics and Textiles Technology, and in Year 10 choose an option from: Structures and Mechanisms, Electro-technology, IT, Food, Materials and Graphics. At Year 11 the only options are Furniture Making and Graphics, although an Electronics course is offered in Year 12.

Sarah Blenkiron teaches Technology in the junior school, and also goes over to the senior campus to teach the Year 10 Structures and Mechanisms, Materials and Graphics courses. Sarah says she has been doing Technology since she was her students' age (in England), and continued with it through to GSCE and A Level. After completing a four-year Industrial Design and Technology degree, Sarah taught Materials, Electronics, and Structures and Mechanisms Technology in both state and private schools. She moved to New Zealand in 2003 and taught at Royal Oak Intermediate, before joining Dilworth School in 2007.

As the sole junior Technology teacher, Sarah has taught most of her students in previous years so knows what experience and skills they have. An advantage of teaching a range of technologies is being allocated a large workroom which, when the equipment not required for the class is packed away, gives her students plenty of room to work in.

Sarah focusses on Graphics and Materials Technology with her Year 8 classes, as the students will take these subjects when they move to the senior school. She had been thinking about what she would do for Graphics in 2009 and also how she might incorporate the two new strands – Technological Knowledge and Nature of Technology in her Year 8 programme. She decided that the upcoming junior school production provided an ideal opportunity for her students to work on developing a logo for a client. Integrating Technology with an activity involving all students and staff, and emphasising teamwork in the unit, would fit in well with the Key Competencies 'participating and contributing' and 'relating to others'.

The Technological Knowledge strand was easily incorporated, as the unit would involve the students in technological modelling – as they sketched, photographed, or laid out paper shapes, and prototyped final designs to show how various ideas might look. Nature of Technology would engage students in considering the characteristics of technological outcomes when they analysed existing outcomes and considered the design elements used in them.

The Dilworth Performing Arts specialist was enthusiastic, particularly as the musical, Little Stars, was new to New Zealand and had no legal requirement that a particular logo be used, and agreed to be the client for the three Year 8 classes.

Each class of 24 students would work on the same unit during term 1, although, as the boys are involved in many activities, in some cases this would mean having less than a term to complete all the work. As the unit would involve students more in collaborative rather than individual development, Sarah introduced a competitive element to retain their interest. Each class would vote on the best logo and then the whole class would develop that logo and present it to their client, who would select the winning logo from the three classes.

Sarah discussed technological practice with her students and distributed an assessment sheet (PDF download, 5kb) showing the requirements for brief development, planning for practice and, technological outcomes. Students revised some of the practice they'd used before, and were introduced to newer concepts such as key attributes.

Their client's brief gave the students clear specification criteria – the logo had to be in landscape format so that it would fit on a T-shirt, in black/white and one other colour (for printing/cost purposes), and include the production title.

The class looked at the elements of a good logo, then researched other production logos and analysed how successful they were in terms of font, colour, spacing, and overall impact. Sarah talked to her students about how to develop an idea, pointing out that it isn't just changing font or colour, but involves modelling – in this case sketching different ideas or taking photographs. She taught them the drawing techniques they would need to use in the project: perspective, 2D and 3D drawing.

The class had an opportunity to question their client and each student developed some ideas, adding his own key attributes to those in the given brief. After sketching their ideas, the students annotated them – explaining, analysing and evaluating each design. Each student chose his best design, which was hung on the classroom wall, and then voted for the six he preferred.

The students were split into groups of four and each was given one of the top six logos to improve and develop. When the groups had drawn their final logo they had to do a mini-presentation to the class, explaining why they had included particular aspects. After a final (anonymous) class vote, the class logo was decided upon.

At this stage the students were divided into six new groups to develop their products. The original designer of the logo and the person who'd had the most input into its development were put in charge of the final drawing. Other groups worked on developing the logo for the: T-shirt, DVD case, front of programme, ticket (on back of programme), and final presentation (which involved advertising and promotion, and writing a speech).

The classes had three to five lessons to develop their products, and Sarah notes that there was quite a rush on as students scanned and printed material, ironed transfers on to T-shirts, etc. Throughout the project, students had to assess the process and keep a diary of manufacture – while some group members were assembling things, others were writing the diary in which they noted what each team member was doing, what needed to be done next, any problems, and whether the product still linked to the original key attributes or had been changed.

The students all worked well and Sarah notes if anybody was seen to be wasting time they would be chivvied along by the others, since each group wanted to win. The boys worked between the Technology room, the library (computers), and a third room (scanner). There was no stipulation regarding computer programs, and the boys used a range, such as Photoshop , Comic Life and Kid Pix , depending on their skills. This resulted in some peer-group teaching, as those who had the skills taught others in their team how to use the software.

On the last day of term, each class presented its logo to the client, their presentation teams explaining each aspect of the design. Sarah says that this went really well, and that the boys appreciated the client's prompt selection of the official production logo and his explanation of why it was chosen.

While the unit finished at the end of term, students were still talking about it in term 2 when the logo was used extensively to advertise the production. After the show finished, Sarah revisited the unit with the three classes. They looked at the T-shirt, programme and DVD, and discussed how the final idea had changed slightly when it was mass-produced, giving Sarah the opportunity to point out the changes that can occur when an abstract design is transferred on to different materials using varying methods of manufacturing.

The unit was very successful and the students enjoyed working on it. Sarah attributes this to the fact they were working for a client who would be using their final product, so there was real incentive to produce work of a high standard. "They can see a purpose behind it, and they're really proud of the fact that it has been used. There was a point to it, and that was very important to them".

Although a Graphics project such as this doesn't directly lead to a 'take home' physical product, the students were very proud of what they had achieved. The logo was in high profile locations at the school, and the T-shirt worn by all the students and staff.

The boys received much positive feedback about their work. Parents attending the production were impressed with what they had achieved, and interested to find out that they had done it as part of their Technology programme. Sarah comments that the Year 5/6 students were very impressed that the logo they saw everywhere had been designed by the Year 8s.

Sarah says the hardest part of the project for the boys was working as a group, and that at times there was quite a lot of argument over the best idea – resolved only when they were told they would just have to vote to decide. The project proved a good exercise in demonstrating the dynamics of teamwork and how the same give-and-take is required in industry. At the end of the project, students could see how a design might incorporate lots of ideas from different people and result in a better outcome, and consequently they all felt a sense of ownership in the final logos.

The unit was so successful that Sarah intends repeating it in 2011 when the next junior school production is scheduled. She will adapt the unit if the next production requires an existing logo be used, and have the students design a poster or tickets.

Dilworth was accepted as one of the schools involved in the Resource Development and Facilitation: Years 7-10 Technology Project and during the two years Sarah plans to develop a Year 5-8 Technology programme. She started working on a Year 7-8 programme in 2009, and will move on to the Year 5-6 section in 2010. She also plans to develop a diagnostic tool which will allow her to easily assess new students' experience in and knowledge of Technology.

Sarah will use some PD time to increase her knowledge of NCEA, and hopes to take Technology through to Year 11, and then Years 12/13, in the senior school.