The Technological Practice Strand Explanatory Papers Updated May 2010
Planning for Practice
Junior Secondary (Years 9-10)
Learning experiences
The following learning experiences have been provided to support teachers as they develop their understanding of the Planning for Practice component of the Technological Practice strand. There is no expectation that these would form the basis of any specific unit of work in technology. The learning experiences have been summarised from classrooms across New Zealand and provide examples of student achievement across a range of levels. This stance reflects the majority of classrooms, within which it is expected that students will demonstrate a range of levels of achievement.
A year 9 class developed a class time capsule, with personalized contributions being designed by each class member. The students worked to a given brief but were required to personalize this to guide their individual pieces. Planning was a key part of the process to ensure the practice undertaken was coordinated and completed in time for the capsule's closure. For details of this unit please see the Time Capsule case study.
Students achieving at level 3 could:
- identify the key stages in the development of the class capsule, and the implications of these for their own capsule;
- identify the materials they would need for the name stand, the resin artefact and the individual time capsule, and where they expected to access these from;
- draw diagrams detailing how the name stand, the resin artefact and the individual time capsule would be made and the materials needed for each; and
- review diagrams and modify, as a result of progress to date and resource availability.
Students achieving at level 4 could:
- develop initial plans for their own capsule showing how they fitted in with the class plans;
- draw diagrams showing how the name stand, resin-captured flower and capsule would be constructed; annotate diagram with notes about possible materials and their costs, and identify times to use gain feedback from the teacher, technician and other students; and
- review diagrams, develop step-by-step instructions, and compile a list of materials selected and where and how they could be accessed.
Students achieving at level 5 could:
- discuss the planning decisions made during the development of the class capsule, and past planning they had been involved in to identify strengths and weaknesses of particular planning tools;
- use a combination of action plans, Gantt charts and flow diagram to plan how they could access knowledge and skills required to construct each part of their project; and ensure they had enough time with people at the museum to ensure their perspectives could inform future planning decisions;
- develop a Gantt chart to clearly align tasks to be done with their timeframes, and provide guidance for where to next;
- draw detailed flow diagrams showing how the name stand, the resin-captured flower and the capsule would be constructed; annotate diagram with notes about possible materials and costing; and
- document planning decisions and outcomes in a digital scrapbook of design ideas, including previous plans, charts and diagrams annotated with reflective comments showing why decisions and any changes had been made .
