This material has been produced by the Royal Society of New Zealand (RSNZ)
under contract to the Ministry of Education. It has been written to assist teachers
and schools in their delivery of the technology/ hangarau curriculum statements.
The project is jointly coordinated by personnel from the Technology Education
New Zealand (TENZ)
and National Association of Māori Mathematicians, Scientists and Technologists
(NAMMSAT) networks. Monitoring and evaluation of the material is carried out
by a national project advisory group.
Carncot is a small school with a well-established reputation for excellence
and innovation. The school has had many homes in the city of Palmerston North
since its establishment in 1881 but has been settled on its present site since
1955. It became a single-sex girls school in 1982, now catering for year 1 to
8 students with a current roll of around 170.
Principal Lyn Gregg talks enthusiastically about the school's broad-based,
inclusive curriculum and a philosophy which promotes student interaction with
knowledgeable, enthusiastic teachers and community personnel.
Lyn was initially attracted to the Neighbourhood Engineer project because she
could sense that, "here was something which was real, purposeful, and offered
our students a different sort of experience". She saw that it was an initiative
that would allow students not only to use apply and integrate their knowledge
and skills but also had the potential to
stretch them in a different direction.
I thought it was a very authentic opportunity for the school and
the work community to come together - and that it had the potential for
being meaningful and satisfying for both sides. We hear quite a lot about
how schools and the work community should get together and pool their skills
but its not a simple process. This offered a relatively straightforward
clear cut way in which both sides could work with each other and I think
the project had a lot of merit because it was manageable.
When she approached her staff the challenge was enthusiastically picked up
by teacher Diane Lewis. Once the school had formally registered its interest,
IPENZ nominated Catherine Stapp as the consultant engineer. Catherine is a planning
engineer (drainage and water) with the Palmerston North City Council.
Dianne and Catherine were able to meet together before the end of the school
year and discuss the expectations of the project and brainstorm some possibilities.
These possibilities were put to the 24 students in Diane's year 6 class at the
start of the new year. The girls were all agreed that their existing bike stands
were. " obsolete, old, rusty, ugly, poorly located and not in keeping with our
new school".
The "Pedal Power Rack" project had begun - to develop and suitably locate new
bike stands for the school.
The planning
process
Aims
Design new bike stands for our school.
Understand the various steps in the "'technology cycle" and implement them.
Identify and discuss ideas about modification and adaptations in familiar technologies.
Gather, collate, and explore solutions and strategies.
Identify and consider different views and feelings in relation to the bike stand development, including the decision regarding its location.
Learning outcomes
Students will have a good understanding of the technology cycle.
Students will have gained and used a number of skills that will have taken
them through a series of processes in order to reach a desirable outcome.
Self satisfaction from having thoroughly and competently produced an object
to meet a particular need.
Teaching / Learning experiences
Introduction. Discus the technology cycle - Identify need, Investigate,
Plan, Create, Test, Modify, Utilise. How important each stage is if we are
going to be successful in achieving our goal.
Visit the present bike stands. In groups of 6 use "The 6 Thinking Hats"
to analyse them, then determine if there is a need for redevelopment. The
desired outcome will be that they recognise that the existing stand:
does not fit in with our new school image;
is rusty, dull, ugly;
is wobbly, squeaky;
is inflexible, sharp, marks bike paint-work;
is poorly located;
is too close / tight together.
Introduction to our Neighbourhood Engineer who will tell us about:
becoming an engineer
purposes of an engineer
various types of engineering
design processes
women in engineering
her planned input into our project
Investigate. Class discussion - What can we do to find out what would be
a better bike stand for our school?
Interview current bikers needs/dislikes.
Observe people using stands (schools / public places / parks /private use).
Photos / sketches.
Seek expert advice.
Library - research.
Internet - gather ideas on existing stands.
Identify areas suitable for re-locating.
In groups sort and sift through ideas and analyse data.
Identify desirable components / traits.
Planning / Designing. Using all the information gathered, begin planning
and developing ideas for a bike stand that fulfils the needs of Carncot School
(small groups). Make sure the possible solutions meet the needs of the users
and suit the location.
Identify 3 or 4 of the most likely solutions. Draw up detailed sketches,
identifying materials / components / size / structure. Have prototypes made
and put into place to be used and assessed.
Dr Janet Hoek (Associate Professor of Marketing, Massey University to
talk to the class regarding surveys:
purpose of surveys
design (dependent on what desiring to achieve)
structure of questions
administering (interview / complete independently / random sample / census)
achieving results
analysing information
using information
Create a survey that will analyse the effectiveness of
the prototypes and give the desired information. Have bike riders complete
the survey.
Analyse the information. Select which prototype will be modified to become
the "Pedal Power rack" for Carncot School. Consult with engineers and decide
upon fine detail such as - ease of use, material size, fitting and anchoring,
and colour. Draw up final sketches.
Take sketches to the Carncot School Board of Trustees. Convince and sell
the idea to them that this is a "must have" for the school. Present budget.
