Ministry of Education Guidance
Implementation of the Technology Curriculum
The Ministry of Education goals for technology education are: to develop seamless quality technology education for all New Zealand students from early childhood, and through years 1-13, as part of students general education; to raise the quality and effectiveness of teaching and learning in technology; and to promote a focus on the technology curriculum introductory learning area statement and achievement objectives, to provide consistent and coherent messages for teaching and learning in technology.
The technology curriculum in The New Zealand Curriculum consists of three strands (Technological Practice, the Nature of Technology and Technological Knowledge) and eight achievement objectives, to support the development of student technological literacy. All three strands of the technology curriculum in The New Zealand Curriculum work together to provide opportunity for student's to enhance their technological literacy which is the overall aim for learning in technology.
There is no longer a requirement for schools to provide learning experiences that cover four to six of the seven technological areas that were defined in Technology in the New Zealand Curriculum (1995). Schools are now expected to develop coherent learning programmes in technology across a broad range of contexts. These should draw from and consider a variety of fields associated with communities of technological practice.
In the senior secondary area, schools may wish to develop courses that begin to differentiate technology to allow for greater specialisation. The generic technology achievement objectives at levels 6, 7 and 8 of The New Zealand Curriculum, alongside the Body of Knowledge developed to support specialist knowledge and skills, provide guidance for the development of more specialised courses. Such technology courses should focus on a mix of generic technology achievement objectives, and learning objectives from within or across specialist categories, to offer learning experiences that best meet the needs of students and optimise individual schools' teaching expertise and resources.
To further increase student engagement and gain access to mentoring support networks, schools may also incorporate many of the technology related awards and competitions available into their technology programmes. Examples of these include Realise the Dream, CREST, Bright Sparks, the Transpower Neighbourhood Engineers Award, Young Designer Award.
The support material in The Technology Curriculum Support package is provided to aid the development of understandings of the revised technology curriculum and help teachers and curriculum leaders as they implement the technology curriculum in The New Zealand Curriculum. Until 2010, additional resource material available on Technlink to support teachers in developing programmes and pedagogical strategies has been largely focussed on the Technological Practice strand. From 2010 additional resources are being progressively added to the Techlink website to support teachers with the Technological Knowledge and Nature of Technology strands.
