Tasks
Teaching through Tasks
Teaching through tasks provides the opportunity for the student to acquire the knowledge and the skills at the same time and to a depth that is determined by their own level of understanding and ability. While there is a need for some basic knowledge input, the student can, through judiciously chosen tasks, add to this knowledge while developing skills in a 'hands-on' approach across a wide spectrum of topics either individually, as would be the case in the initial stages of the course, or in a more integrated fashion - once the initial knowledge and skills have been established in a number of different areas.
The task-based approach is founded on the principle that technology education should reveal the process of technology as it evolves from ideas to final product. Initially teachers may have some difficulty in adopting this approach which is fundamental to technology. There may be a reluctance to let students 'have a go'. Teachers should try not to discourage students' suggestions but rather should allow them to find out the limitations themselves. There will be times when the teacher will have to intervene in the interests of safety, economy, etc. The 'problem centred' approach creates an environment within which the student becomes an active and interested learner. New levels of enthusiasm can be engendered in the students as their desire for new knowledge and new skills increases. Significant long-term benefits have been identified with this approach to tasks.
These include
- students develop improved levels of research and enquiry skills;
- students learn the skill of decision making and their capability for making intelligent choices is enhanced;
- the need for personal management of activities is fostered through organisation and planning of work and the adherence to time schedules;
- new capabilities of presentation skills, oral, written , graphic and visual are imparted to students;
- students' ability to make reasoned and informed evaluation of their" own work is greatly improved. It is important that Tasks be brought to completion and then evaluated.
The object may not necessarily be an artefact; it could be, for example, a computer program. In any case it must be the considered solution to the task set
It is expected that teachers provide a broad range of tasks for their students to undertake. The aim should be to enable students to undertake a variety of tasks that involve the use of as wide a range of skills and knowledge. It would be a very limited treatment of Technology if students were confined to tasks requiring the use of certain materials, or indeed to tasks requiring the use of certain materials only.
It would be incorrect to expect that all tasks will result in new and innovative outcomes. Students will have to be taught to use existing technological artefacts and systems, to modify and adapt them to the task in hand and even to evaluate existing solutions.
Over-ambitious tasks lead to time wasting, disappointment and.frustration. Thetask undertaken should be achievable with existing skills and only such additionali skills as can realistically be gained in the time scale. Ideally each succeedingtask should build on and reinforce skills and knowledge already gained.Selecting suitable tasks is not so much a problem of coming up with ideas forprojects as it is of matching student ability, resources, and time, to provide theoptimum learning outcome.
An open design brief given to very junior students will result in chaos. Earlydesign briefs should be closed down very carefully to direct students towards thetargeted learning experience. As students grow in their design ability andmaturity, the design briefs may gradually be made more open allowing thestudent more freedom of expression. Due to resource constraints all task brie3~will be closed to some extent. Great care must be taken in the formulation of thedesign brief(f the above targets are to be met. Loopholes that would allow wildand unachievable design forays should be foreseen and written out of the brief.
Tasks should be of such duration that interest does not wane before completion.Time allowed will vary with complexity and student ability but it is important thata realistic deadline be set. A task taking an entire term to execute is too long.Ideally the life of a major task should not exceed eight weeks with six weeks beinga likely optimum
Task Selection
In first year at least, students are still dependent on concrete experiences in their learning, only gradually making the transition to more abstract concepts. The 'investigation and research' stage of the design cycle are likely to be confined to specific examples of existing artefacts, etc. which they can recall. Only later will they become more innovative and creative in their approach to designing solutions to problems or indeed in identifying problems to which they will apply themselves in designing solutions.
In selecting tasks, therefore, this level of development must be borne in mind and tasks that, of themselves, develop or highlight particular skills or aspects of technology, while at the same time laying the groundwork for a more expanded or complex approach at a later stage, need to be chosen. The 'small-scale task' concept can be a basis for a more integrated task to follow. For example, an investigation of gear Wains in mechanisms , allied to the setting up of a simple electric circuitin which a motor can be switched on/off, and the design and manufacture of a suitable body or frame in craft & materials, can be integrated into a task in which it is required to design, make and test a motorised vehicle that travels at a specified speed. This can be made more extensive if the vehicle must be capable of automatic control and/or manoeuvrable in some manner.
When selecting tasks of an open integrated nature, particularly at the initial stages, it may be helpful to select from an area the student is familiar with - home, school, hobbies being some examples. The teacher could present them with a situation and brief, but then gradually encourage students to find their own situations with problems that need solving. This approach will require students to formulate their own brief thus allowing a wider base for solutions.
To achieve a progression from directed tasks, students must develop within themselves the ability to recognise and define their own situations/problems. Obviously the level achieved will depend upon student ability.
Time Allocation
The time allowed for the completion of the task must take into account the possible 'bottle-necks' that may arise in the need for certain items of equipment and the consequent delay introduced. There also arises the question of whether students should be allowed to take incomplete artefacts home with them for completion on their own time. It is worth giving consideration to different forms of presentation for the tasks and in this regard oral presentation to their peers provides an opportunity for interpersonal communication skills that should not be overlooked. It will take extra time if all the students are to take this approach on the one task - perhaps a better idea is to spread this across a number of small-scale tasks by way of introducing it and set down a root for oral presentations of main tasks/projects.
The time allocated tor the completion of tasks will be dependent on the stage reached by the students and the level of integration demanded. The small scale tasks referred to above might be adequately catered for by one class period, where the students prepare their report as a homework exercise or are presented with a 'task sheet' or workbook in which they can record their observations, designs and conclusions etc. If they are expected to present a printed report, or there is need for extensive research or communications (graphics), obviously more time will be needed. The important feature of the time allocated is that it must be reasonable but definite. Part of the students' development through technology involves organisation and planning of time just as much as equipment and processes. In order to encourage the organisation of their work along the lines of the design cycle, it is to be recommended that first year students be given prepared sheets or a booklet in which they can record their ideas and sketches and develop one of these, with an evaluation completing their report. The use of grid paper, both square grid paper and isometric grid paper, is to be recommended from the beginning until such time as the students have mastered basic skills in relation to graphical representation. As students make progress and develop their own skills, it should be possible for them to design their own folders that could, for instance, integrate both computer-generated and freehand graphics.
Evaluation and Assessment
Another factor to be borne in mind when planning or assigning tasks is the advisability of making the students aware of the criteria against which the tasks will be assessed and any weighting that will be applied. This will help them to organise their time in relation to the various requirements of the task.
The evaluation stage is vital if the student is to reflect on experience, assimilate what has been learned and uses this in the planning of new experiences. The evaluation and reflection could take the form of homework in which the student, having completed a task, considers how this might lead to other applications or projects. As has been stressed already, this forms an integral part of reporting on any task or project. An assessment scheme, even for the small scale tasks, must reflect the part played by evaluation at the final stage in the process even though observation, analysis and revision are ongoing throughout the task. Initially, the briefs given to the students will tend to be specific since their purpose is to establish particular knowledge and skills as a stepping stone in enabling the students to apply this developed body of knowledge and skills to more complex situations. In time, students should be challenged to interpret a given situation and write a brief themselves, stating clearly the constraints that apply and identifying the specific aspects that will form the basis for research and investigation. There is also a requirement that there should be a progression towards open, extensive and integrated tasks that strike a balance between the different content areas of the syllabus, keeping in mind the need for safety and the limitations of resources. Particularly at third year level, students (and teachers!) must not lose sight of these considerations when devising tasks.
Reference has already been made to homework in the context of evaluation and indeed research or investigation. One of the difficulties that arise with regard to tasks and homework is the element of uncertainty that it introduces with regard to the work being the student's own. In some instances, students may have access at home to equipment and facilities that the school is not capable of providing, as well as expertise in particular areas that would relate well to technology. It could be required that students work on their tasks, especially the realisation stage, within class time and use home study to reflect on and reinforce their knowledge of the principles and applications etc. associated with the task.
For the purpose of evaluation and assessment, teacher involvement in the task should maintain a necessary balance between
- guidance and direction
- student creativity and problem solving.