Introduction

This document is a statement of the aims, principles and strategies for teaching and learning of Design and Technology at Woodside Primary School.

What is Design and Technology (D&T)?

Design and Technology is the process of designing, making and evaluating products fit for a purpose or improving, refining and extending the use of existing products. It involves the creative application of the principles of science to solve practical problems and is subject to the constraints of economics and social acceptability.

Aims
Our aims in teaching D&T are that all children will:

• develop the knowledge, skills and understanding necessary to design, make and evaluate products fit for a purpose.
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• develop the practical skills to work with a wide range of materials and components.
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• develop understanding of control systems, energy and structures.
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• become aware of the impact of technology and its contribution to the quality of life.
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Principles of the Teaching and Learning of Design and Technology

Design and Technology is important because:

• the designing and making of products is a pleasurable activity which can provide fulfilment throughout life
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• technological capability is essential to living and working in a technological society.
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Design and Technology is a foundation subject in the National Curriculum. The fundamental skills knowledge and concepts of the subject are set out in "Design and Technology in the National Curriculum" where the single programme of study is divided into 3 main sections:

• designing skills and making skills, including planning and evaluating
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• knowledge and understanding
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• the range of activities required to ensure development of capability.
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For the purposes of assessment and reporting 2 attainment targets are identified:

• designing
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• making.
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Strategies for the Teaching of Design and Technology

• The D&T curriculum is organised in topics wherein children will be involved in investigative work and taught skills.
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• approximately 1.25 hours per week is spent on Design and Technology
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• during the first term each year pupils develop their capability through focused practical tasks in which they develop and practice particular skills and knowledge
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• also during the first term pupils engage in activities to investigate, disassemble and evaluate simple products
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• during the other terms capability is developed through a specific assignment in which pupils design, make and evaluate a product using a range of materials and components.
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The predominant mode of working in D&T is co-operative group work although individual work and class teaching are used where appropriate. Within this structure:

• groups are usually of mixed ability children are encouraged to develop inter-personal skills through discussion, enquiry and negotiation and working as part of a team.
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There is no specialist teaching in D&T, it is taught by class teachers.

Classroom helpers are used in D&T to assist in the classroom by preparing materials and supervising group activities on outings and visits to museums and to commerce and industry in providing other help, such as the demonstration of specialist skills.

Commercially available schemes of work are not used in Design and Technology.

Pupils with special needs receive support from the class teacher to undertake exercises or projects geared to their level of ability and to take an effective and valuable role in mixed ability co-operative group work.
They include:

• pupils with learning difficulties who may need support with reading and writing but who may have well developed practical skills in designing and making
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• pupils who have difficulties with practical tasks who may need more support and extra opportunities for practice
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• pupils with particular ability and flair for Design and Technology who are extended through the use of additional, more demanding, assignments.
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Homework is used to support Design and Technology through tasks such as:

• library research in areas such as the work of distinguished engineers and the historical development of familiar products
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• bringing artefacts from the home environment into school for display and discussion.
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The emphasis in our teaching of D&T is on providing opportunities for pupils to combine their designing and making skills with knowledge and understanding in order to design and make products. The focus is on the assignments in which we encourage children increasingly to take control of their own learning. Thus:

• work in D&T draws on knowledge from all other subjects of the curriculum especially science, mathematics and art
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• work in the first term of each year aims to build the skills, knowledge and understanding necessary to complete the annual assignment in the second term.
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Excellence in D&T is celebrated in display and presentation including:

• suitably mounted displays in classrooms and throughout the school
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• competitions for published materials such as calendars and Christmas cards
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• presentation and display of work in assemblies and other public occasions.
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Strategies for Ensuring Progress and Continuity

Planning in D&T is a process in which a all teachers are involved, wherein:

• schemes of work for Design and Technology are developed by the co-ordinator (in collaboration with the whole staff)
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• a termly staff meeting is used to discuss the Design and Technology curriculum and ensure consistency of approach and of standards
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• work plans (including detailed lesson plans) are drawn up by individual teachers for each half term and monitored by the headteacher.
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The role of the D & T Co-ordinator is to

• take the lead in policy development and the production of schemes of work designed to ensure progression and continuity in Design and Technology throughout the school
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• support colleagues in their development of detailed work plans and implementation of the scheme of work and in assessment and record keeping activities
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• monitor progress in Design and Technology and advise the head on action needed
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• take responsibility for the purchase and organisation of central resources for Design and Technology
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• keep up-to-date with developments in Design and Technology education and disseminate information to colleagues as appropriate.
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Feedback to pupils about their own progress in Design and Technology is achieved through the marking of work. Effective marking:

• aims to help children learn, not to find fault, and to be positive and constructive
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• is done while a task is being carried out through discussion between child and teacher
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• of written work and design drawings may be carried out in the absence of pupils but is always followed up by discussion between child and teacher.
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Formative assessment is used to guide the progress of individual pupils in Design and Technology. It involves identifying each child's progress in each aspect of the subject, determining what each child has learned and what therefore should be the next stage in his/her learning. Formative assessment is mostly carried out informally by teachers in the course of their teaching. Suitable tasks for assessment include:

• small group discussions perhaps in the context of a practical task
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• specific assignments for individual pupils
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• individual discussions in which children are encouraged to appraise their own work and progress.
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Strategies for Recording and Reporting

Records of progress in D&T kept for each child contain:

• a termly record of progress in each attainment target
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• a portfolio of work, dated and annotated with teacher comments and containing one item for each year which shows achievement and progress.
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Reporting to parents is done on a termly basis through interviews and annually through a written report. Reporting in Design and Technology will focus on each child's:

• designing and making skills
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• knowledge and understanding.
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Formal summative assessment is carried out at the end of each National Curriculum Key Stage (i.e. in Years 2 and 6) through the use of teacher assessment.

Strategies for the Use of Resources

Classroom resources in D&T include:

• a variety of regularly used tools and materials for cutting, shaping, joining and combining (e.g. scissors, glue) woodworking materials
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• paper, card and junk modelling materials
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• plasticine
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• construction kits appropriate to the age of the pupils.
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• electrical kits
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Central resources in D&T are the responsibility of the Design and Technology co-ordinator who has a small budget available. They include:

• a wider range of less commonly used tools for cutting, shaping, joining, combining and finishing (e.g. woodwork tools)
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• a range of stiff and flexible sheet materials (e.g. wood, plastics)
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• mouldable materials (e.g. clay, plaster of Paris)
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• textiles
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• electrical and mechanical components.
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Information technology is a major resource which is used in Design and Technology for

• planning and design
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• research - using encyclopaedias on CD-ROM
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• desk top publishing of printed materials.
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The library is used in Design and Technology for

• reference - a wide selection of books is available covering materials, mechanisms and control, structures, products and applications.
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Health and safety issues in D&T include

• use of materials, tools and techniques in accordance with health and safety requirements
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• appropriate storage of tools and materials
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teaching pupils to recognise hazards in a range of products, activities and environments and take action to control the risks to themselves and others.