Teachers' teaching practice plays a key role in the learning process of pupils, and for teaching to be successful, teachers must have knowledge in many different fields. This obviously also applies to teaching the subject technology. However, lower secondary school technology education in Sweden has reportedly been described in terms of teaching not following the curriculum along with widespread uncertainty among teachers regarding how to design their teaching practices. To address this national challenge, we need to understand the existing technology teaching practice. The purpose of this study is therefore to explore the considerations experienced technology teachers make. The study is based on interviews with technology teachers who work in lower secondary school (13-15-year-old pupils). The collected data consist of teacher's statements regarding their own expertise and teaching practice. To visualize the described teaching practice we have analysed collected data through the lens of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). The results show both similarities and differences in the teachers' descriptions. Speaking in terms of PCK, the purpose and teaching focus expressed by the respondents, framed within the category 'Orientations to teach technology', vary considerably. However, regarding 'instructional strategies', the consensus among those experienced teachers is striking. Experienced technology teachers' teaching practices are proven to provide valuable information about the subject's potential, and the findings offer a basis for the future development of the subject of technology as well as future teacher education and professional development courses.
There is not one single global version of technology education; curricula and standards have different forms and content. This sometimes leads to difficulties in discussing and comparing technology education internationally. Existing philosophical frameworks of technological knowledge have not been used to any great extent in technology education. In response, the aim of this article is to construct a heuristic framework for technology education, based on professional and academic technological knowledge traditions. We present this framework as an epistemological tripod of technology education with mutually supporting legs. We discuss how this tripod relates to a selection of epistemological views within the philosophy of technology. Furthermore, we apply the framework to the Swedish and English technology curricula, to demonstrate its utility as an analytic tool when discerning differences between national curricula. Each leg of the tripod represents one category of technological knowledge: (1) technical skills, (2) technological scientific knowledge and (3) socio-ethical technical understanding. The heuristic framework is a conceptual model intended for use in discussing, describing, and comparing curriculum components and technology education in general, and potentially also as support for planning and conducting technology teaching. It may facilitate common understanding of technology education between different countries and technology education traditions. Furthermore, it is a potentially powerful tool for concretising the components of technological literacy.
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