International Journal of Technology and Design Education最新文献

The nature of engineering design thinking needs to change drastically to address the climate crisis, as the technologies and activities that damage the environment are generated by engineering design. Current engineering design practices, as well as engineering design education (EE) pedagogies, are driven by formal knowledge structures, such as mathematical models and optimization techniques, that are far removed from concerns about the environment. To adapt engineering design thinking for sustainability, a clear characterization of the thinking roles played by various design components, including the role of formal structures in sustainable engineering design, is needed. As a first step towards developing this characterization, we investigated the way sustainable micro-hydro power systems were designed by two grassroots technology designers. Our analysis indicated that artifact-based imagination (mental simulation of material structure and dynamics), including artifact-based reasoning (manipulation of imagined artifacts), and synthesis (of requirements and constraints) were key to integrating the eco-social context into the design. Formal structures played a supportive role to these core design thinking processes. To examine the validity of this analysis, we studied two engineering design cases from other areas, exploring whether the patterns we identified using the micro-hydro turbine cases extended to these cases. Results suggested that artifact-based imagination and reasoning and synthesis are common threads across different kinds of engineering design. Based on this finding, we suggest that the ongoing redesign of EE—to support ecological sustainability—needs to focus on artifact-based imagination and synthesis of eco-social factors, in addition to formal structures.

Increasing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) self-efficacy is necessary for closing the gap in STEM fields. There is a lot expected of students studying in STEM fields. However, studies have frequently mentioned the importance of design thinking in developing self-efficacy in STEM teaching. It has been highlighted as an important predictor of creative problem-solving. Based on this, in a Turkish sample, this study investigated the relationships between self-efficacy in STEM teaching, design thinking, and creative problem-solving of STEM teacher candidates. A total of 522 candidates participated in the study. The results showed that creative problem-solving mediated the relationship between design thinking and self-efficacy in STEM teaching. This information is vital for helping better assess the variables affecting the self-efficacy in STEM teaching of candidates entering the STEM pipeline. The discussion then revolves around integratingdesign thinking, the necessity of a human-centered approach, and creative problem solving, associated with 21st-century competencies into STEM education.

Technology has catalysed significant changes in modes of learning and instruction methodologies, encompassing various practices such as distance, online, and blended delivery of instruction. Design education, rooted in traditional studio models that rely on continual interaction and reflection over student projects, has faced challenges in embracing these approaches seen in other disciplines. While online and blended learning methods present transformative possibilities for instructors, the distinctive characteristics of design education pose barriers to their seamless adoption. This scoping review delves into the landscape of scholarly research concerning technology-enhanced practices in design studio pedagogy, examining trends, gaps, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on studio research and practice. Conducting an extensive review and content analysis of 156 articles spanning various design domains, including architecture, urban design, interior design, industrial design, and visual communication design, this study meticulously documents the practices, and research approaches employed. It also outlines prevalent research themes regarding how technology can augment the learner experience in undergraduate design studios. Following a brief summary of the literature on technology-enhanced approaches in design education, we introduce the review methodology and analysis. Subsequently, we present findings regarding trends and topics in technology-enhanced studio practices. Finally, we offer discussions and recommendations for research and practice to enrich the teaching and learning experience in the design studio context.

The use of persuasion has become ubiquitous within digital technologies to maximize revenue, gather users’ personal data, and increase engagement. However, literature has highlighted the phenomenon of dark designs which influence users into acting against their best interests. It has been argued that to address the issue of dark designs in the digital context, there is a need to integrate formal ethics education within design pedagogy and practice. Recent years have seen the introduction of ethics in university level curriculums, but there are few reports of integrating ethics within school education. To address this gap, we developed an educational module on persuasive digital design with integrated content on ethics for Class IX school students. This module was introduced to 419 students enrolled in five public schools in Delhi (India) as part of an introductory digital design course. Two classroom activities were conducted to observe the impact of this educational intervention. In the first activity, it was observed how the impact of ethics education reflected in students’ design outcomes. In the second activity, it was found that students became more critical in their normative assessments of designs after being introduced to ethical concerns. The findings show that ethics education integrated within digital design curriculums can cultivate ethics sensitivity. We discuss the implications of these findings for the development of ethics-focused design pedagogy.

This systematic literature review focuses on the research published on K-12 maker education in the early 2020s, providing a current picture of the field. Maker education is a hands-on approach to learning that encourages students to engage in collaborative and innovative activities, using a combination of traditional design and fabrication tools and digital technologies to explore real-life phenomena and create tangible artifacts. The review examines the included studies from three perspectives: characteristics, research interests and findings, previous research gaps filled, and further research gaps identified. The review concludes by discussing the overall picture of the research on maker education in the early 2020s and suggesting directions for further studies. Overall, this review provides a valuable resource for researchers, educators, and policymakers to understand the current state of K-12 maker education research.

In multidisciplinary technology education, teachers work together to support pupils in designing with technology. The different forms of support are based on establishing pedagogical infrastructures for pupils’ learning of technology. Although previous studies have identified the main forms of pedagogical infrastructure, how they can be leveraged in collaborative technology education remains elusive. This study adopts the perspective of teaching teams in exploring the kinds of pedagogical infrastructures involved in the collaborative planning and implementation of support for learning by collaborative designing (LCD). The data consist of semi-structured interviews with 11 technology education teaching teams. The participants were 21 experienced in-service teachers who worked in primary, secondary, and general upper secondary schools. A multiple case study approach was applied to identify the differences between the teaching teams in the planning and implementation phases. The data were analyzed following the principles of qualitative content analysis. The findings revealed that the application of pedagogical infrastructures varied during the teaching teams’ process of collaboration. In the planning phase, support was mainly based on establishing material-technological infrastructures. In the implementation phase, teachers often leveraged scaffolding and epistemological infrastructures. Pedagogical infrastructures were mostly targeted for the early stages of the LCD process, as well as in the stage of experimenting and testing design ideas.

Although educational robotics competitions have become a popular research field in STEAM education, there is a lack of studies concerning the design process that student teams follow to build their solutions. This study aims to propose and evaluate We!Design!ForSTEAM, an approach for supporting design thinking in the context of STEAM and robotics competitions for elementary school students based on a card-based design game. The proposed methodology is derived from participatory design approaches. It is based on 40 design cards, which aim to empower elementary students to empathize with the problem and ideate creatively and efficiently for identifying solutions. It was applied in 6 sessions with the participation of 31 elementary students preparing for an open educational robotics competition. Questionnaires and focus groups were used to gather data from the students who argued that the proposed approach allowed them to explore the problem in an unexpected, creative, and productive way. They managed to identify complex problems and produce innovative solutions utilizing a structured design process with ideation probes. Weaknesses of the framework, primarily focused on time management, were also identified and reported. We suggest that the proposed approach is a first step to creating design thinking methodologies for elementary students in educational robotics and STEAM.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to teachers. Teachers need a creative way to continue the engaged teaching process under the constraints of physical separation, emotional anxiety, and insecurity. Technology teachers who develop students’ technology literacy or skills should be aware of the importance of integrating technology or facilitating a more creative process in instructional design. Especially, it is valuable to explore creative instructional design to solve problems. The Yin and Yang of BaGua, representing opposite connection, is regarded as a catalyst for fostering creative problem-solving abilities, and offers a theoretical perspective on the process of instructional design. Hence, this study aimed to incorporate the BaGua-based creative problem-solving model into Dick and Carey’s instructional design process to visualize each stage of creative instructional design, encompassing the initial stage of design development, formulation of plans, plan demonstration stage, and effectiveness in completing instructional design. Through eight hypotheses, this study investigated the correlation between activities in the model’s adjacent stages. A total of 1,169 high school technology teachers completed the survey. Structural equation modeling was used to verify the hypotheses. The results showed that analyzing learning needs can positively predict interaction and stillness, interaction and stillness can positively predict idea generation of instructional design, support and confrontation can be positively predicted by idea generation of instructional design, and completing instructional design can be positively predicted by support and confrontation. This study presents a creative procedural model of creative instructional design to facilitate teachers’ comprehension of the sequential steps that should be followed in creative instructional design and enable them to implement it accordingly.

This research presents a comprehensive framework for assessing design thinking competencies in the context of STE(A)M education, specifically within the Vietnamese educational system. The study, conducted over a period from September 2022 to February 2023, involved 935 high school students in Vietnam. The framework development utilized advanced statistical techniques, including first- and second-order Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), to ensure a robust psychometric assessment. The framework comprises five competency factors: empathy, problem setting, ideation, modelling, reasoning, and process management. The research findings demonstrated that the developed tool meets the criteria for internal consistency, reliability and validity, providing a valuable instrument for assessing students’ design thinking competencies in the Vietnamese STE(A)M education context. The study’s meticulous and rigorous psychometric evaluation represents a significant contribution to the understanding of design thinking competencies in the Vietnamese educational domain. Furthermore, the implications of the results extend beyond the Vietnamese context and have relevance for international education. The study enriches the understanding of measuring design thinking competencies in the context of STE(A)M education, providing valuable insights for educators and policymakers not only in Vietnam but also in other countries. The rigorous methodology and statistical analyses employed in the study contribute to the broader discourse on design thinking competencies in international educational settings.

In Norway, makerspaces are emerging as new educational contexts across all school levels. This trend is multifaceted as it is inspired by the global maker movement and supported by local initiatives as well as a national policy to create more opportunities to teach digital competencies. The makerspace concept facilitates this in a concrete and innovative way. Although the maker movement is established, the pedagogical foundations of maker activities in educational settings are still being developed. As the movement meets competent teachers and existing learning cultures, there is the potential to create new pedagogical knowledge and educational practices. This study explored teachers’ values and beliefs regarding maker-centered learning in Norwegian schools through qualitative semi-structured interviews with maker teachers from 18 schools. The results indicate that makerspaces in Norwegian schools are initiated and driven by teachers’ interests in the maker movement, which resonates with their learning beliefs. The individuals in question are mostly natural-science teachers inspired by other makers. The learning culture in Norwegian schools, and that found in the maker movement, coincide in many areas. However, there are some compatibility challenges, such as facilitating open-ended learning processes and initiating learning frameworks that allow students to act and learn based on their motivations and ideas. With guidance from the latest curricula, teachers are encouraged to teach toward learning goals, which have been traditionally achieved with structured and predefined activities. In this goal-directed environment, maker teachers struggle to find room for iterative processes, play, and productive failures.