Ashpark Primary School

Curricular Position Statement – Technology

Healthy         Hardworking       Caring          Kind

Why Technology?

Learning in the Technology will enable children and young people to:

• Gain awareness of technological developments (past, present and future), including how they work.
• Study the Impact, contribution, and relationship of technologies on business, the economy, politics, and the environment.
• Use digital products and services in a variety of context to achieve a purposeful outcome.
• Search, process, and manage information responsibly.
• Build cyber resilience and Internet safety.
• Understand the world through computational, thinking
• Design, build, and test computing solutions.
• Use Food and textile technologies.
• Design and construct models or products.
• Explore uses of materials.
• Represent ideas, concepts, and products through a variety of graphic media.
• Apply engineering in an appropriate context.

What Learning and Teaching Approaches are used?

At Ashpark Primary, we promote high quality learning and teaching in Technology.  Staff plan challenging and engaging learning experiences which motivate and sustain the interests of learners across the school.  Effective learning and teaching includes:

• Active learning to allow children to observe, experiment, experience and play.
• Using relevant contexts for learning to motivate and engage children.
• Appropriate and effective use of technology
• Building on the principles of Assessment is for Learning
• Collaborative and independent learning
• Discussion and informed debate
• Interdisciplinary learning experiences
• Learning outdoors, field trips, visits and input by external contributors.

How do children progress through Technology?

Technology is planned through Ashpark’s bespoke Progression Pathways which is used to create discrete learning experiences. From August 2023, class teachers will use the Glasgow City Council Programme of Study when planning, teaching, and assessing Technology across the school. This progression pathways ensures breadth and depth of learning across Early, First and Second Levels. Learners will develop knowledge and skills through focussing on the key organisers of:

• Digital Literacy
• Food and Textile Technology
• Technological Developments in Society and Business
• Craft, Design, Engineering and Graphics
• Computing Science

The organisers recognise the special contribution made by each of the social subjects.  At Ashpark, we encourage teachers to focus on local contexts in addition to national and international. Class teachers use this framework to provide children and young people with opportunities for effective interdisciplinary working by making connections across and between subjects.   Experiences and Outcomes are bundled to ensure relevance and coverage across each level of Curriculum for Excellence.

How are skills developed in Technology?

At Ashpark, the development of skills is an essential aspect of learning in Technology and the Experiences and Outcomes provide frequent opportunities for applying these skills in new and more complex contexts.  Through the Technology Programme at Ashpark Primary, children and young people will develop skills including:

Knowledge and understanding of the key concepts in the technologies. Curiosity, exploration, and problem-solving skills. Planning and organisational skills in a range of context. Creativity and innovation. Using tools, equipment, software, graphic media, and materials. Skills in collaborating, leading and interacting with others. Critical, thinking through explanation and discovery within a range of learning contexts.

Discussion and debate. Searching and retrieving information to inform Thinking within diverse learning context. Making connections between specialist skills Develop links between learning and skills for work. Evaluating products, systems, and services. Presentation and communication skills. Awareness of sustainability.

 

How do we assess Technology?

At Ashpark, assessment in Technology focuses on learner’s knowledge, understanding and skills in their studies of the 5 organisers.

The purpose of assessment in Ashpark Primary is:

• To identify pupils’ strengths, attainments and development needs
• To decide on the next steps
• To provide effective feedback to pupils in order to move learning forward
• To allow effective reporting

In all classes, teaching staff use the Write, Say, Make or Do approach to allow learners to demonstrate their learning within Technology.

Staff at Ashpark assess pupil’s learning formatively within lessons using a wide range of strategies. Pupil’s learning is recorded digitally and in subject jotters and is shared more widely on platforms such as Seesaw and X (formerly Twitter). During session 23/24, our DLOL will be trialling recording assessment on ‘Showbie’ in the form of a learning journal.  Teachers create a yearly floorbook where each subject will be celebrated throughout the year; including pupil voice. Pupils also select pieces of BGE work they are proud of and keep these in their black assessment folders.

Using this evidence and teacher professional judgement, teachers will make informed decisions using the Technology Benchmarks about whether a learner has:

• Achieved a breadth of learning across the knowledge, understanding and skills as set out in the experiences and outcomes for the level
• Responded consistently well to the level of challenge set out in the experiences and outcomes for the level and has moved forward to learning at the next level in some aspects
• Demonstrated application of what they have learned in new and unfamiliar situations in order to achieve a level in Technology.

 

What is the link between Technology and other areas of the curriculum?

Technology experiences and outcomes encourage links with other areas of learning to provide learners with a deeper, more enjoyable, and active experience.  Digital technologies are developed to create an effective vehicle for teaching and learning across all areas of the curriculum in Ashpark. Our Health and Wellbeing programme, alongside the experiences and outcomes from Technology as well, are chunked by teachers to offer IDL opportunities in areas such as Food Technology and Learning about internet safety/being safe online.

When carrying out Design Projects in technology, the source of the project often stems from additional curricular areas. Examples of this include:

• Creating solutions to scientific problems, for example in floating and sinking projects.
• Creating a castle similar to those from the past.
• Using 2D shapes of 3D objects in various ways in Numeracy and Mathematics.

With the iPad roll-out across Glasgow schools, pupils across all stages have access to a device either for the full day (P4-7) or as timetabled by the DLOL (P1-3). This allows for digital technologies to be embedded in all areas of the curriculum.

What key resources are used to support learning and teaching?

The key resources used throughout the school include:

• Glasgow City Council’s Technology Curriculum Framework
• https://education.gov.scot/media/irimoozl/technologiesbenchmarkspdf.pdf
• https://education.gov.scot/media/nqgj0egw/technologies-es-os.pdf