Chisnallwood
Intermediate School
A
production and process technology module
This material was produced by the Royal Society of New Zealand (RSNZ)
under contract to the Ministry of Education in 2000 and 2001. It was written
to assist teachers and schools in their delivery of the technology/ hangarau
curriculum statements. The project was 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 was carried
out by a national project advisory group.
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Setting
Situated in the north eastern suburb of Wainoni, Chisnallwood is the
biggest intermediate school in Christchurch with a roll of over 730
students.
Technology teacher Ted Sutcliffe arrived from England in 1982, where
he had taught for several years. Ted entered the teaching profession
after training and working as a cabinet maker and he considers the implementation
of Technology in the New Zealand Curriculum – with its student
centred emphasis – to be "an exciting classroom innovation".
Technology classes at Chisnallwood are structured so that a module occupies
16 lessons each of 1hr 10 minutes spread over 8 weeks.
The
brief
Ted has developed a module on production and process technology where
the students are given a brief which involves the production of a new
innovative toy, based on the theme of "The America's Cup - yacht design".
Activity Focus:
You are part of a four person production team working for
a company that specialises in producing quality constructional
toys. Your team is given the following specifications to produce
a new innovative toy.
Design Specifications:
On a given length of dowel rod to be fixed into a wooden base,
design a constructional stacking toy consisting of six parts
(the base is to be included as a part) which slide onto the
dowel rod, sitting neatly on the base, to make up the assembly
of the toy.
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The
module is designed so that:
- The students work as a team to produce four identical products –
one for each team member.
- Each member of the team has a job description indicating the part
of the product they are responsible for designing and making. These
are – keel maker, hull maker, cabin maker, and sail maker.
- Each team has one member given the additional job of quality controller/team
leader who is responsible for maintaining quality standards of production.
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Ted's objectives are that as the students work through the process
they build a knowledge base involving the nature and use of different
materials – wood, PVC, and plastic, and hand and machine processes
– drilling, cutting to length, cutting angles, cutting to shape,
finishing etc. Students acquire personal management skills, and collective
management skills as a member of a team. They are also given the opportunity
to demonstrate leadership qualities. An important skill developed in
this module is the ability of the students to express their ideas clearly
on paper.
In the technology programme the quality of the final product is seen
to be an important part of the specifications and examples of student
work are on display in the school's public area.
Reflection
Ted is constantly looking for ways to develop his units and in this
case incorporating electronics and control technology into the process
is seen as a natural development. Outcomes such as an astable oscillator
driving two LEDs – a green to indicate port and red for starboard
– are seen as possibilities.
Ted has detected little if any gender differences in students' enjoyment
of this particular unit or in skill and knowledge development.
Regular assessment of basic practical skills occurs as an integral part
of the process and includes together with assessment against quality
standards and fitness for purpose. Relevant knowledge can be assessed
in a written format, in this case it is conveniently structured in the
form of a crossword.
Ted describes himself as an "experienced" teacher, but one who still
enjoys the challenges and reward from ongoing development in his chosen
profession and curriculum area. He is keen to share experience with
other teachers and further information on his production and process
unit can be obtained by making contact with him at Chisnallwood Intermediate
School, Christchurch.
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