EQUITABLE ACCESS TO DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGIES IN AUSTRALIA - ARE

EQUITABLE ACCESS TO DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGIES IN AUSTRALIA - ARE WE THERE YET?

MONIQUE DALLI

The ACARA Curriculum technologies update has the potential to make access to the Design and Technologies curriculum equitable across Australia

The current implementation of the curriculum in Australia lies with states' curriculum authorities, however the vast differences our students experience in their education could be soon changed if states accept the latest update. The revised ACARA Design and Technologies curriculum stipulates “By the end of Year 8 students will have had the opportunity to create designed solutions at least once in each of the four technologies contexts ” being Systems Engineering, Food and Fibre, Materials Technologies and Food Specialisations.

At present each of our states have differing implementation requirements, this means that students in each state aren ’t participating in the same learning experiences in Design and Technologies.

The NSW Education Standards Authority stipulates minimum number hours for Design and Technologies, in Years 7 and 8 it is 200 hours. This means that each school in NSW has to deliver the entire curriculum, each of the specialisation areas to a minimum requirement of indicative hours. Schools can choose to combine and repeat technologies, this allows for flexibility and for schools to plan to their resource availability. Because NSW requires all specialisations to be taught, this drives the staffing

of schools, teacher training and plays a role in making learning experiences equitable for students across NSW regardless of where they attend school they are learning the full curriculum in Design and Technologies. Western Australia ’ s implementation was designed to suit the rural and small school settings that are in WA. The School Curriculum and Standards Authority, Government of Western Australia suggests that students have the opportunity to participate in at least one Technologies context area. This requirement can benefit rural schools as it allows them to work with the resources and teachers that they have.

In QLD, QCAA are moving from a trade and materials focused curriculum and are early days in implementing the current ACARA Design and Technologies curriculum and new senior subjects. Some QLD schools are still using material focused subject naming conventions like woodwork and metalwork. These terms are not present in the Australian Curriculum, the new update might be what QLD needs to move forward with Technologies implementation.

In Victoria, schools use school discretion to optout and compact content in Year 7 and 8 Design and Technologies. VCAA doesn't have a minimum requirement for hours, and schools use their discretion to not teach the Technologies curriculum entirely. School discretion can be

based on reasons of curriculum time constraints, limited resourcing or due to the shortage of specialist trained teachers in Victoria not all schools teach all of the Design and Technology areas, or teach them at all.

So, where do you sit on this debate? Should we have the option for states to implement their own version and implementation requirements of a national curriculum OR should we be all teaching the same curriculum nationally?

Let’ s think about some of the scenarios that currently play out in schools across Australia, do single sex schools gender subject offerings? Yes. Do all of our female students get access to learning opportunities like Systems Engineering? No.

The DATTA Australia committee is in full support of the revised ACARA curriculum, current implementation allows for states to reduce and compact our learning area, we see potential in the update to encourage equitable and equal learning in Design and Technologies across Australia by impressing that each and all of the four 7 & 8 specialisations are taught within the context of the school. A positive flow on effect of the proposed curriculum changes will be the push for State level funding for Initial Teacher Education courses. If it is mandated for Design and Technologies to be taught, there must be properly trained specialist teachers to deliver the courses. In NSW and QLD, you can select and choose from a number of Universities to study and train as a Design and Technologies teacher, In Victoria we fall short here. There are no local Initial Teacher Education tertiary courses available for Victorians. The only study options for prospective Victorian Design and Technologies teachers are online and interstate. The results from a recent member survey conducted by DATTA Victoria, indicated that 90% of respondent schools are using out-of-field teachers to deliver both the 7-10 Design and Technologies curriculum and VCE.

In NSW during Term 1 2021 there were over 250 jobs advertised for TAS teachers. There aren't enough specialist teachers and sadly governments at all levels don't understand that this in turn leads to our ongoing STEM-related workforce shortages, not only in teaching. It is the hope of DATTA Australia that compulsory curriculum changes will put pressure on state governments to fund ITE courses, retraining options and funding for scholarships to support staffing in our learning area so we can can specialist teachers teaching our students.

The purpose of a National curriculum is to set standards of learning and teaching. If the revised ACARA curriculum is adopted by our states, all schools will teach all Design and Technologies curriculum and this will in turn drive a need to have trained teachers to teach it. The curriculum update could agitate change and equity at a time when STEM education is a national priority. It is an exciting time to be a part of Technologies education.

Source: Technologies Consultation Curriculum

Monique Dalli

Monique is an author, Design and Technologies secondary teacher and Director of Professional Learning at Caroline Chisholm Catholic College in Victoria. She also works at Southern Cross University as a Casual Academic within the Faculty of Education. Monique is the current president of DATTA Australia, the national teacher association for Design and Technologies teachers, a current focus of the association is the shortage of teachers within Design and Technology specialisations.