Curriculum Planning
3.2 Central Curriculum and School-based Curriculum Development
3.2.1 This Technology Education Key Learning Area Curriculum Guide (Primary 1-Secondary 3) (2002) sets the general direction for the learning and teaching of Technology Education from Primary 1 to Secondary 3 (P.1 - S.3). It outlines a central curriculum in the form of a curriculum framework and sets out what students are expected to achieve, i.e.:
• subject knowledge and skills as embodied in the learning targets under the three strands as well as the learning objectives,
• generic skills and
• positive values and attitudes.
Schools are expected to follow the recommendations of this Guide to ensure a balanced
taking into consideration factors such as:
• The vision and mission of the school as well as those of its sponsoring body
• The strengths of the school and its teaching force
• The background and learning needs of students
• A broad and balanced curriculum for students
• The resources of the school or alternative measures on resource provision that can support learning
3.2.2 Chapter 2 of this Guide lists the TE learning targets as well as the learning objectives of Primary 1 to Secondary 3 (Section 2.2.1). It also states the core learning elements of the curriculum (Section 2.3), which are the entitlement of every student and should be included in the curriculum of every school.
3.2.3 To help students achieve the learning targets and objectives, schools may adapt the central curriculum through selecting and varying the organization of learning elements, learning and teaching strategies, pace of learning and teaching, assignment requirements and modes and criteria of assessment, etc.
3.2.4 Curriculum development is an on-going process. Schools could develop their own school-based curriculum whenever appropriate and feasible. They should also encourage the professional development of teachers and collaboration with other stakeholders to achieve the aims, learning targets and objectives of the TE curriculum.
3.2.5 In developing a school-based TE curriculum, schools may consider the following major aspects:
• Curriculum aims: What are the vision and mission of the school and how are they related to TE?
In some cases, schools may want to strengthen the overall TE education of students, i.e. their technological literacy. In others, they may use TE as a vehicle to nurture generic skills and values and attitudes, such as collaboration skills, self-discipline, etc. of their students. There are also schools which would like to develop their own specialization with a strong inclination towards TE in certain chosen areas, e.g.
design, business, etc.
on them to meet the diverse learning needs of students. The strengths of schools vary and may have:
- better resources in TE, including more special rooms and workshops, and a team of teachers specialized in a variety of TE disciplines;
- good connections with the private sector to facilitate arranging life-wide learning activities for their students, such as visits, attachment programmes, etc. ; - support from their sponsoring body and a team of teachers with the same mission
to provide a balanced TE curriculum for students;
- a team of TE teachers with different specialisms, to develop a school-based TE curriculum within TE and in collaboration with other Key Learning Areas (KLAs);
- etc.
Schools could develop a school-based TE curriculum to excel in the areas of their strengths and to meet the learning needs of their students.
• Contents of learning: What is worth learning to achieve the aims?
Schools may consider the learning elements and objectives outlined in Chapter 2 and the subject syllabuses in TE, when choosing the contents of learning in accordance with the curriculum aims to meet the learning needs of their students.
• Timetable organization
Schools could employ different ways to set their school timetable flexibly to create more space for student learning. Examples of flexible timetable arrangement are given in "More Effective Use of Learning Time" in Booklet 2, Basic Education Curriculum Guide - Building on Strengths (2002).
An example of TE timetable arrangement:
S.1 Home Economics and Design & Technology and Design & Technology Computer Literacy
S.2 Home Economics and Design & Technology and Computer Literacy Home Economics
S.3 Home Economics, Design & Technology,
conducive to the chosen TE learning should be selected. The learning experiences (details to be dealt with in Chapter 4) could include activities such as:
- Classroom teaching
- Workshop/Laboratory sessions - Exploratory learning
- Reading to learn (one of the four key tasks recommended by the curriculum reform) - Case studies
- Project learning (one of the four key tasks recommended by the curriculum reform) - Job attachment, etc.
• School-based assessment policy: What constitutes the evidence of learning?
Assessment is an integral part of student learning. It is the process of identifying, gathering and interpreting information about student progress. Effective assessment practice should have appropriate answers to the following questions:
- What is the purpose of assessment?
- How to collect information? (i.e. the modes of assessment) - By whom? (by teachers, students, parents, etc.)
- How to communicate the results of assessment to the relevant stakeholders so as to inform the planning of subsequent learning?
- etc.
Illustrations of TE assessment are given in Exemplars 4 to 9 and the details are dealt with in Chapter 5.
3.2.6 Phases of Development
The existing modes of TE curriculum development in schools constitute a wide spectrum:
ranging from subject-based learning to a curriculum on life experiences of students. The phases of development are depicted in Figure 6.
3.2.7 There are different phases at which schools implement their technology curriculum using different modes of curriculum planning to meet the learning needs of their students.
Figure 6 represents a general direction from a subject-based curriculum where the existing subjects could be used as the organizers of student learning to a curriculum on life experiences of students where suitable organizers are drawn from daily life to organize student learning.
3.2.8 The characteristics and facilitating conditions for the different modes of school-based TE curriculum development are given in Figure 7. Schools may move from existing subject learning towards aligning related learning elements of different subjects taught by different subject teachers as in phase 2. For example, Home Economics and Information Technology teachers could rearrange the learning elements to establish links between the two subjects. As teachers acquire more experience of collaboration, they could attempt teaching a common element, connecting knowledge and skills of different subjects together as in phase 3. For example, teachers of Computer Literacy and Design and Technology could teach as a team to create more space for student learning. Schools may also organize the TE curriculum around some essential themes drawing upon the knowledge of different TE subjects as in phase 4. Teachers could also use experiences relevant to students' daily life as the focus of learning in technology education as in phase 5. It is important to note that the phases do not constitute a fixed sequence.
3.2.9 The various modes of curriculum development that are being used and recommended for schools are elaborated in Section 3.2.10.
Phase Modes of Curriculum
Development Characteristics and Exemplars or Examples Facilitating Conditions
Exemplar 1:
TE Curriculum in ABC Secondary School Exemplar 2:
TE Curriculum in LCM Secondary School Exemplar 3:
TE Curriculum in DEF Primary School Example 13:
Establishing Links
between Subjects - Home Economics and Design &
Technology Exemplar 2:
TE Curriculum in LCM Secondary School Exemplar 1:
TE Curriculum in ABC Secondary School Exemplar 3:
TE Curriculum in DEF Primary School Subject-based
learning, e.g.
• Design &
Technology
• Home Economics
• Business
Fundamentals, etc.
Aligning subjects, e.g.
• Home Economics, Design &
Technology, Information Technology
• Home Economics, Technology Fundamentals
Collaborative teaching of subjects
Existing subjects used as organizers of student learning
Learning elements of subjects rearranged to establish links
Projects or coursework
Cross-KLA studies
Team teaching to create more space for student learning Learning elements of different subjects clustered to form modules
Cross-KLA studies 1
2
3
Themes used as platforms for organizing learning experiences
Cross-KLA studies Life-wide learning
Projects or coursework
Learning elements organized by life experiences
Cross-KLA studies Life-wide learning
Projects or coursework Theme-based Learning
4
Life experiences of students
5
Example 13:
Establishing Links between Subjects -Home Economics and Design & Technology Example 14:
Themebased Learning -Quality Living
Exemplar 3:
TE Curriculum in DEF Primary School Example 13:
Establishing Links
between Subjects - Home Economics and Design &
Technology Example 19:
TE Lifewide Learning -Technology Competition Example 1:
Emphasis on Awareness and Exploration
Example 2:
Emphasis on Exploration, Experiencing &
Familiarization Example 3:
Emphasis on Exploring Orientation for Life-long Learning and
Specialization
3.2.10 Selected Modes of School-based TE Curriculum Development
Descriptions of selected modes of school-based TE curriculum development (Figure 7) are given below:
• Aligning Existing Subjects
Teachers of different TE subjects are encouraged to rearrange the learning elements of their respective subjects to establish links among the subjects. Teachers plan and schedule the contents of different subjects in such a way that common learning objectives for students could be achieved and assessed.
Hands-on studies
Community needs
Vocational needs
Academic needs
Aptitude of students
Mission of schools,
connection with community leaders
Mission of sponsoring body Networking with other organizations
Mission and tradition of schools
Ability and aptitude of students
Exemplar 7:
Building a Tower Example 17:
Learning TE through Project Learning at the Primary Level Exemplar 4:
A Presentation to Promote the Image of Hong Kong
Example 20:
TE Life-wide Learning - Job Attachment Programme
Exemplar 1:
TE Curriculum in ABC Secondary School
5 Schools, regardless of which mode of curriculum planning they adopt, may consider different orientations to build on their strengths and resources as well as the need and interests of their students.
Project or coursework, which requires contribution from both subjects, enables students to understand the connection between the subjects (Figure 8).
Figure 8 Establishing Links between Home Economics and Design &
S.1 students are asked to design and make a magazine rack as part of the TE course requirement. They learn to construct the wooden frame for t h e r a c k i n D e s i g n &
Technology lesson and prepare the fabric part for the rack in Home Economics lesson. The
parts will then be put together to form the final product. Students utilize the knowledge gained in the two subjects and apply it in their design.
Basic computer knowledge
Computer graphics
Design &
communication
Logo
programming
Impact of computer
& technology
Tools &
machines
Computer operations
Computer control
Resources &
technology
Computer Literacy
Design &
Technology
Figure 9 Integrated Learning Elements in Technology Education Subjects
The organization of the curriculum of Secondary 3 Computer Literacy and Design & Technology could be represented by the following diagram:
Teachers of two or more subjects can teach as a team. Some learning elements could be integrated to create more space for student learning.
Alternatively, clusters of learning elements in different subjects could be taken as a basis for forming modules to be used as building blocks for the curriculum at different levels.
This approach facilitates the flexible sequencing of learning experiences.
Through the collaborative effort of subject teachers in designing the modules, students learn some common elements of the subjects more effectively. An example is illustrated in Figure 9.
In this mode, a selected theme, which covers the learning elements from various TE subjects, is used as the platform for organizing learning experiences related to daily life.
Examples of themes are:
Quality Living Home Economics, Computer Literacy,
Business Fundamentals
Smart Living in the 21st Century Home Economics, Design & Technology, Computer Literacy
Do I Need Brand Name Products? Business Fundamentals, Home Economics, Computer Literacy, Design Fundamentals Fair Competition Business Fundamentals, Computer Literacy Robotics Design & Technology, Electronics &
Electricity, Computer Literacy
Chocolate Egg Packaging Design Design & Technology, Computer Literacy, Home Economics, Business Fundamentals
Poster Design Design Fundamentals, Graphical
Communication, Computer Literacy Fashion Design and Fashion Show Home Economics, Design Fundamentals,
Design & Technology, Business Fundamentals, Computer Literacy
Themes Subjects
In the process of learning, students are provided with a project brief, which outlines the purpose of the project and common enabling skills such as survey design, interviewing skills, etc. Students then form project groups and choose themes of their own interests to develop their technological literacy as well as nurture their values and
Theme: Quality Living Level: Secondary 3
The chosen theme aims to cover some major knowledge and concepts in Home Economics, Computer Literacy and Business Fundamentals, such as Food &
Nutrition, Family Living, Information Processing & Presentations, Consumer Education, Resources Management, etc.
The theme aims to motivate students to commit themselves to active self-learning and to cultivate an independent thinking culture in the school. A briefing on possible programmes for a more in-depth study and research method could also be given.
Students are engaged in a brainstorming session in which they might come up with topics such as the following:
• Living Environment
• Law and Protection
• Planning and Management of Life
• Education
• Health
• Technology
• Social Welfare
• Culture
A concept map showing the inter-relationship between "Quality Living" and the topics could be developed for a closer analysis of the whole issue.
Students are asked to focus on one area and come up with a detailed report on a selected TE topic. In the process, students are highly motivated since the topics are closely related to their everyday life. Group and individual work are involved. Frequent feedback is provided so that in-depth learning could also be achieved.
To conclude the event, an exhibition is held at the school campus to give students the opportunity to share their learning experiences.
LCM Secondary School".
Programme
• The learning of existing TE subjects would be refocused from skill-based or content-based teaching to learning and teaching for a balanced development of technological capability, understanding and awareness.
• The programme would be implemented in three phases, starting with S.1 in September of Year 1, S.1-S.2 in September of Year 2 and S.1-S.3 in September of Year 3, so that the change will occur gradually and smoothly. The programme will be reviewed once every three months or whenever desirable to ensure that it is providing what students need in their learning.
• Commencing in S.1, the students will experience about 4 themes every year. The learning experiences involved in each theme include activities such as classroom teaching, workshop sessions, small group activities, reading assignments and projects, and last for about two months. The themes have the following characteristics:
- progressive in nature
- integrating the different knowledge contexts of TE
- nurturing the basic skills, attitudes and the ability for life-long learning of students
- ensuring basic competence for core elements and encouraging the pursuit of excellence in specialized fields.
(An extract from Exemplar 2)
Schools may wish to consider organizing TE learning elements according to the life experiences of students as below:
• Fashion & Dress Sense
• Consumer Education
• Technology and Society
• Food & Nutrition
• Food Preparation &
Processing
• Fabric & Clothing Construction
• Family Living
• Home Management &
Technology
Family Social Economics & Work
• Safety & Health
• Design & Applications
• Business Environments, Operations & Organizations
• Resources Management
• Marketing
• Concepts of System
• Application of Systems
• System Integration
• Control and Automation
• Materials & Resources
• Material Processing
• Structures & Mechanisms
• Tools and Equipment
• Production Process
• Project Management
• Information Processing &
Presentation
• Computer Systems
• Computer Networks
• Programming Concepts
the learning experience of TE around "Family" in S.1, "Social" in S.2 and "Economics and Work" in S.3. Alternatively, a school can choose to organize TE learning around "Family"
and the theme will run for 20 weeks, "Social" and "Economics and Work" for 10 weeks each in S.1, while the duration of the three life experiences in S.2 and S.3 can be varied according to the students' learning needs.