Technology Education for All Students

All students have the right, and therefore should have the opportunity, to achieve in technology. Technology programmes should "recognise, respect, and respond to the educational needs, experiences, interests, and values of all students: both female and male students; students of all ethnic groups; students with different abilities and disabilities; and students of different social and religious backgrounds". (The New Zealand Curriculum Framework, page 7.)

Almost every daily activity involves some aspect of technology, from the soap we wash with, to our cooking appliances, the transport we use, and the paper we write on. Teachers should select or devise content, contexts, and learning approaches that make connections between students' everyday lives and experiences and the world beyond the school gate, and also extend their appreciation of the ways technology impacts on their lives and society.

Technological development is initiated and sustained by people according to the needs and opportunities they perceive. These needs and opportunities reflect the ways in which people view their world and the priorities they establish. Many factors determine how these world views and priorities are developed, including gender, ethnicity, socio-economic and geographic location, and physical and intellectual abilities.

Many people have, historically, been excluded from publicly recognised technological developments; there have even been discriminatory practices, such as past laws which denied some people the right to patent. Historical documents and records often focus on a limited range of major technological developments, emphasising dramatic changes, and thus undervaluing the perspectives and achievements of other important innovations, particularly in personal and domestic spheres.

Language, too, is of primary importance in how people develop and express their ideas and views. Language and contexts in technology education must be inclusive of all students. It is especially important to use gender-inclusive language in all learning and teaching. Technology education for Maori students will be further enhanced through the medium of te reo Maori, and by including technological activities based on Maori developments and applications.

Many such technological activities derived from Maori experience already feature in educational programmes, although they have not always been recognised as technology. Consultation with, and involvement of local iwi, kaumàtua, kuia, and advisers is crucial in the recognition of tikanga in technology education.

Teachers should develop programmes which recognise the technological contributions of societies in the past, as well as those of diverse contemporary groups which contribute to our society. In the course of the school programme, all students should be encouraged to explore all areas in a range of contexts, and should not be limited by traditional assumptions or perceptions of what will "interest" girls, boys, or other defined groups.

All resources used should be critically reviewed to ensure that they support gender-inclusive, non-racist, and non-discriminatory programmes.