Pupils' Attitudes Towards Technology 43, Norrköping, Sweden, 2026
This is the official proceedings website for the PATT43, Pupils' Attitudes Towards Technology International Research Conference, Norrköping, Sweden, 15-18 June 2026. All accepted papers are published here electronically just before the conference. Contact: patt43@liu.se
Taste as an Analytical Lens for Students’ Interest in Technology Education
This paper conceptually explores how students’ interest in technology may be examined in situ through the concept of taste. Drawing on a pragmatist–Bourdieuan perspective, taste is understood as socially learned and enacted judgement, through which feelings, cognition, and norms are intertwined in social interactions. Using illustrative examples from programming activities with robots, the paper shows how students’ and teachers’ distinctions concerning procedures, language use, and ways of being become visible in interaction. These distinctions orient action in relation to the purposes of the activity and highlight how moments of frustration, alignment, and closure contribute to students’ participation and emerging interest in technology.
Copyright (c) 2026 Per Anderhag https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Intimacy in Intra-Action with Students, Material, and Emotions in the Laboratory
Practical activities and laboratory work are essential parts of technology education. It brings together theory and practice by applying theoretical knowledge through practical work. The handling of instruments and laboratory equipment develops experimental hands-on skills and technical competencies, such as data handling, process control, and monitoring. Another aspect of incorporating practical elements in natural science and technical education, often highlighted by teachers and in research literature, is that it makes the subjects more interesting and engaging. This can, of course, be the case, but it is just as common for practical activities to provoke other emotions, such as anxiety about making mistakes or about damaging expensive equipment. In this study, we use Barad's theory of agential realism to examine how upper secondary school technology programme students approach and establish relationships with the materials they need to use during laboratory work in biotechnology. Barad emphasizes that everything is entangled and that these entanglements create our reality. This means that both people and matter actively contribute to shaping our world. To describe the process that occurs in these entanglements, the concept of intra-action is used. We have observed and video-recorded experimental activity sessions on different occasions over the course of one semester. Through Barad's theory of the agency of matter, we conducted the observations with a focus on the intra-actions between the students' bodies and the materials used during the laboratory sessions, as well as the emotions that became visible. In the presentation, we will elaborate on the concept of intimacy to describe certain intra-actions in which the material seems to "call" to the students, prompting them to explore it in playful and emotional ways.
Copyright (c) 2026 Kristina Andersson, Annica Gullberg, Jenny Ivarsson, Henni Söderberg, Anita Hussénius https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The literature on the teaching of technology often refers to constructs like constructivism (including cognitive, radical and social constructivism), experiential, cooperative, inquiry- and discovery-based learning. It also supports problem-; project-; and design-based learning and teaching in authentic contexts. However, the said pedagogical constructs are dealt with in an arbitrary way without contextualising them within a rigorous theoretical framework. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to develop a rigorous theoretical framework for a pedagogy for technology education. The research questions are: What are the components of a theoretical framework for technology education pedagogy, and how do these components relate to one another? For over three decades, the research methodology has employed systematic literature reviews and qualitative meta-syntheses to explore the theoretical foundations of technology education pedagogy. Throughout my career, in collaboration with colleagues and postgraduate students, we have worked to develop and refine technology education pedagogy (or subject didactics) as a relatively new field by deriving it from general learning and teaching theory. By considering the philosophy of technology, we have reviewed relevant learning theories, perspectives on and sub-approaches to constructivism, and congruent teaching approaches or strategies. With the general theory of learning and teaching as a point of departure, we have deducted specific pedagogy for technology education, which has served as a fundamental aspect of our teaching programmes. The findings outline that the design-based teaching strategy is specifically relevant to technology education. It builds on problem- and project-based teaching strategies which are rooted in experiential, cooperative, inquiry and discovery learning as sub-approaches to constructivist learning and teaching approaches. Furthermore, design-based teaching strategies relate to the social constructivist perspective when students learn cooperatively, and to the cognitive and radical constructivist perspective when students learn individually.
Copyright (c) 2026 Piet Ankiewicz https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
In this study, we explore humour in engineering education and its relation to disciplinary culture. Previous research has shown that humour is not merely a form of entertainment or relaxation in educational settings, but a powerful discursive tool through which values, hierarchies, and belonging are negotiated. Our aim is to capture how students’ humour reflects engineering norms, as well as their engineering identity. In this study our empirical data consist of a video recording of four engineering students who were working on a project concerning the wolf population in Sweden. We zoomed in on moments when the students laughed of any reason. One particular episode, in which they made jokes about ill-conceived energy-saving solutions, was chosen for deeper analysis using positioning theory. The jokes were primarily ironic suggestions for solving energy shortages, such as installing wind turbines on cars or positioning two wind turbines to face each other. Thes jokes made everyone in the group laugh and the humour functioned both as a means of releasing tension and as a way of fostering group cohesion. However, our analysis also shows that the engineering students positioned themselves as knowledgeable about how energy works, in contrast to politicians, who were positioned as ignorant. At the same time, technical knowledge was positioned as the most valid form of knowledge. According to the jokes, engineers were positioned as more reliable decision-makers on national issues than politicians. In other words, although technology and engineering have traditionally been described as apolitical subject areas with a weak connection to social change, these engineering students constructed themselves as important contributors to society at large, through humour.
Copyright (c) 2026 Maria Berge, Johanna Lönngren https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Studying and Comparing Students’ Collaborative Practices in a Design Project
In technology and engineering education, there is a growing emphasis on curricula that include collaborative design projects. However, detailed studies of how students interact over longer periods of time are rare. In this study, students in a design project in the fifth semester of the Architecture and Design programme at [anonymous] University are studied. The students had the task to design a real office building in collaborative groups of 5–6 students. Video (2–5 cameras per group) was used in situ to record students’ preparation for an upcoming status seminar. Drawing on interaction analysis, we have examined how students’ activities in different groups unfold across an entire day. The social interactions were found to be complex and dynamic. Students fluidly shifted between individual work, dyadic and triadic engagements, and full group collaboration across different spatial configurations. Moreover, their collaborative work progress in the design project was not static, nor did they follow predefined scripts. Instead, they were temporally evolving, contextual, deeply embodied, and challenging conventional dichotomies between cooperation and collaboration. However, a comparative analysis of the social interactions between the groups also displayed differences in how the students collaborated and how well they worked together within a group. The groups organised, structured and designed their collaborative practices differently over the period of an entire day. This raises the question of what the characteristics of good collaboration and good collaborative skills are? Moreover, through visits to design projects in high schools and at various years in university-level engineering education, we have also observed an apparent progression in students’ collaborative skills. This raises a second question: How should the development of these skills be best facilitated at different levels of education?
Copyright (c) 2026 Jonte Bernhard, Jacob Davidsen https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT and Copilot are increasingly present in education, raising questions about their potential for both learning and bias reproduction. Building on a previous pre-study by the authors, this research explores how AI-generated storytelling can be used to foster critical thinking in technology teacher education. In a university course, pre-service teachers were asked to generate children’s stories using Copilot and then analyse the technological content using a framework derived from an earlier study by one of the authors. The students were instructed to use an identical prompt (i.e., create a technology story for primary school children), and common narratives in the Copilot-generated stories involved a child and a robot discovering the wonders of coding or saving the world through new technologies (that they had developed together). To interpret the students’ reflections, we draw on Langdon Winner’s critical philosophy of technology, using his perspectives as an analytical lens to identify how notions of neutrality, determinism, and the politics of artefacts appear in the students’ reasoning. Our analysis of the students’ written reflections shows that most of them present an uncritical view of technology. Few of the students demonstrated deeper critique of technological implications, ethical dilemmas, or socio-political dimensions. These findings suggest that without explicit scaffolding, AI-based storytelling risks reinforcing techno-optimistic perspectives rather than challenging them. We argue that integrating structured critical analysis – supported by frameworks such as Winner’s – is essential for developing reflective and responsible approaches to technology in teacher education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Johan Boström, Cecilia Axell https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Understanding Sustainability as a Concept Within R&D Design Projects
The present study investigates how students in the Dutch secondary STEM subject Research and Design (R&D), offered at Technasium schools, reason about the broad and multifaceted concept of sustainability. Within this educational paradigm, students are instructed through a combination of research and design projects developed collaboratively by R&D teachers, clients, and field experts. The concept of sustainability is often a explicit or implicit element in these projects, reflecting the Technasium vision of engaging students with authentic, socially relevant problems. The study focuses on grade K7 novice students (age 12), who attempt to understand and incorporate sustainability into their work through a design brief. The brief has a significant influence on outcomes, particularly when sustainability values are emphasised, so students' interpretations are pivotal. Values can differ, as evidenced by marked differences in design direction from prioritising greening with plants versus reusing materials. The students initially created a design brief without any prior knowledge of sustainability or of design brief formulation. Following the delivery of a concise workshop on the subjects, a revision of the briefs was initiated. Initially, students referred to broad, umbrella concepts such as environment, nature, recycling, and waste, while social and economic dimensions were almost entirely absent. Following the provision of instruction, references to social and economic sustainability increased, and the use of vague overarching terms decreased. The findings indicate that students benefit from developing a foundational understanding of sustainability before.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ward Brouwers, Snjezana de Haan-Topolscak, Anna Hotze, Marc de Vries https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Adaptive comparative judgement (ACJ) is increasingly used in technology and design education to assess open-ended student work through holistic pairwise comparisons. Despite strong evidence of reliability, much ACJ research continues to treat the method “as it is”, focusing on algorithmic efficiency and technical feasibility while leaving the cognitive basis of judgement largely implicit. This paper proposes a Cognitive Theory of Comparative Judgment to reframe ACJ as a problem of human decision-making under constraint. The paper (i) deconstructs ACJ as a judgement environment, (ii) advances four initial postulates concerning computational constraint, heuristic strategy, algorithmic tension, and the normative outcome of disagreement, and (iii) introduces OpenACJ, an open-access, adaptable platform designed to operationalise and test these postulates through configurable choice architecture and process data capture. The implication is a shift from asking whether ACJ “works” to explaining how it works, enabling theoretically grounded improvements to validity in the assessment of complex design capability.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jeffrey Buckley, Richard Kimbell https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Rapid social change requires education that supports young people to understand complex societal challenges and consider how they might contribute to meaningful solutions. Introducing social innovation in schools advances this aim by helping learners explore how new ideas and practices can improve community well‑being. Yet the conceptual and emotional depth of social innovation can be difficult to access through conventional materials. This paper examines how comics can serve as an effective pedagogical resource for exploring social innovation and argues that comics themselves can be understood as a form of social innovation. Comics integrate visual, spatial, and written modes, enabling learners to interpret information through multiple pathways. Their multimodal structure supports observation, sequencing, and meaning‑making, providing an accessible and engaging format for examining real‑world issues. Because comics communicate complex and emotive ideas through imagery as well as text, they accommodate diverse literacy levels, cultural contexts, and lived experiences. This inclusivity creates opportunities for students to consider multiple perspectives, unpack societal challenges, and imagine possibilities for positive change. The paper further contends that comics function as social innovation by expanding participation and fostering shared understanding. By representing cultural norms, social concerns, and personal experiences in resonant ways, comics help readers recognise common vulnerabilities and reflect on the contexts in which innovation is needed. Situated within the EU SIDE (European Social Innovation and Democratic Education) Teacher Academy, the paper uses social innovation competencies as a framework to analyse how comics empower learners to understand, participate in, and influence social change. It demonstrates that comics offer a valuable and socially innovative medium for supporting engagement with social innovation in design and technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jane Burns, Niall Seery, Anne Looney, Michael Flannery https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Collaborative Problem-Solving in Primary Technology Education
This study examined collaborative problem-solving among primary school students during hands-on activities in technology education. Participants were 24 students from two Australian primary schools, all operating within Piaget’s concrete operational stage of cognitive development, who worked in small groups to construct one of three mechanical models: a windmill (low cognitive load), a tower crane (moderate cognitive load), or a boat (high cognitive load). These model construction tasks required students to engage in group work involving shared planning, coordination of actions, and negotiation of responsibilities. Adopting a qualitative observational design informed by interactional analysis, the study examined students’ interaction patterns as they engaged with technological materials and processes. Group interactions were video-recorded and analysed using Rusk and Rønning’s Joint–Individual and Open–Closed analytical framework to examine how students balanced joint decision-making with individual contributions during collaborative problem-solving. Analysis also examined how task structure shaped participation and how student roles emerged and shifted throughout the construction process. Findings showed that students assumed a range of fluid student roles, including builder, organiser, guide, leader, and bystander, often transitioning between roles in response to task demands and peer interactions. While all groups demonstrated moments of effective group work, recurring challenges constrained collaborative problem-solving, including unequal participation, dominance by more confident students, difficulties articulating ideas, and limited strategies for negotiating disagreement. Task characteristics significantly influenced these patterns. The open-ended, high-load task supported creativity and exploration but increased the likelihood of fragmented efforts, whereas the closed, low-load task promoted focus and task completion while limiting opportunities for joint decision-making. Overall, the study highlights how task design shapes collaborative problem-solving, student roles, and group work in primary school technology education, offering insights for the design of hands-on model construction activities that better support equitable participation and coordinated collaboration.
Copyright (c) 2026 Milorad Cerovac, Therese Keane https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Ally Rather Than Mere Utility: Reimagining the Teacher and Generative Artificial Intelligence Relationship in Design Education
Advances in Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) are reshaping how design ideas are generated, explored, and justified in Design and Technology (D&T) education. While research on GenAI is expanding rapidly, limited attention has been given to how human and technological actors co-shape creative processes in authentic design contexts, or how these tools reshape pedagogical practice and professional judgement. This qualitative case study investigates how pre-service and in-service D&T teachers engaged with GenAI-enabled tools—Fusion 360 generative design and ChatGPT 1.5—within makerspace-based design activities. Drawing on interviews, classroom observations, stimulated recall, and artefact analysis, the study examines how GenAI becomes pedagogically meaningful within iterative workflows characterised by constraint, comparison, and decision-making. Findings show a shift from instrumental use toward dialogic, reflective engagement, where AI-generated outputs functioned as provocations rather than solutions. Teachers actively mediated GenAI through critique, justification, and ethical discussion, redistributing—but not relinquishing—pedagogical agency. Conceptualised through a sociomaterial and posthuman lens as orchestrated co-agency, these practices demonstrate how design learning emerges through negotiated relations among teachers, students, AI systems, and material constraints. The study contributes empirical insights into GenAI-mediated design pedagogy and offers implications for curriculum, assessment, and teacher education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Chris Chimwayange https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This study examines how user representation is embodied in students’ physical models in technology education design projects, and how this relates to the models’ function, structure, and overall design. Given that physical models are widely used in technology education, previous research has paid limited attention to how users become materialised in students’ models. Drawing on research that conceptualises modelling as a generative and epistemic activity, this study addresses this gap by analysing 45 physical models produced in a technology course for student teachers. The models were created in an individual design assignment based on a children’s book. Two versions of the assignment were used: one requiring student to design a technological solution represented in a model for a specific user within the book, and another using the book purely as inspiration for designing a solution. The models were analysed using an extended analytical framework that included graded categories of user representation model design character and structural representation. Findings show that user representation decisively shaped the character and overall design of the models. Models with clear user influence displayed explicit structural reasoning and integrated overall designs, whereas models lacking user representation tended to remain exploratory or centred on isolated functions. Importantly, user representation also emerged when not explicitly required, indicating that users functioned as interpretive resources in students’ design reasoning. The study contributes empirical and analytical insight into how user-related reasoning becomes embodied in physical models and highlights the need for further research and more robust analytical frameworks for examining physical models in technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Björn Citrohn https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Fashion, Sustainability and Textiles Education in England
Textiles education in England sits at a critical juncture. With the National Curriculum review already signalling an explicit requirement for sustainability to be embedded across subjects, including Design and Technology, the question of whether teachers are equipped to deliver this is key. The recent review by the Textile Skills Centre (2024) review found that whilst secondary textiles teachers are enthusiastic about sustainability, many lack the subject knowledge and confidence to embed it meaningfully within fashion and textiles teaching. This paper locates itself at the intersection of this professional gap and the policy moment created by the curriculum review. Drawing on a scoping review of literature on sustainable fashion education, alongside a qualitative content analysis of current National Curriculum programms of study for Design and Technology at Key Stage 3 and 4, this paper identifies the key opportunities and barriers to delivering quality, sustainable fashion and textiles education in English secondary schools. The literature review reveals that textiles education has significant, underexploited potential as a vehicle for ESD, whilst the curriculum analysis, structured using the twelve competency areas of the GreenComp framework demonstrates that the current programms of study fail to articulate sustainability as a core expectation. Several GreenComp competencies, particularly those related to envisioning sustainable futures and acting for sustainability, are largely absent, leaving provision dependent on individual teacher initiative. We argue that this combination of an unprepared workforce, an unspecified curriculum, and an imminent policy window, makes the case for targeted action. Frameworks drawn from the sustainable fashion education literature offer practical starting points for curriculum redesign and professional development. As the curriculum review progresses, this paper provides an evidence base to support textiles educators, curriculum designers, and policy makers in ensuring that sustainability becomes a consistent and meaningful feature of textiles education across English secondary schools.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sarah Davies, Dr Naomi Braithwaite https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Descriptions of Concept 'Research within Design' in STEM Design Projects
Design projects within STEM education often involve research, with students actively experimenting and testing to generate new insights. Even more often, the acquisition of existing knowledge necessary for designing takes place. In fact a previous study showed a discrepancy between what students indicate that research in design should be and what they actually recognize in their own design practice; actually often research consisting of looking up existing facts and knowledge. Students can articulate what research is and should be in design, but they do not recognize this in their own design practice and identify knowledge acquisition as research. This discrepancy suggests a lack of in-depth understanding of the concept of research in a design project. Therefore, this study examines teachers' descriptions of research that should be conducted within design projects. This is crucial because teacher-developed project descriptions form the foundation for design-based learning in the first three years of STEM subject Research and Design (R&D) project education (grades K7-9) at Technasia. The main goal is to determine based on these descriptions what is expected of students in a design assignment when it comes to research, to map the methods and tools used, and to determine at which stage of the design process research is considered. Twelve descriptions of design projects, one per school, from twelve different Technasium schools, selected by their teachers, are analysed for the required research implementation within the design assignment. Preliminary results indicate that most requested research takes place in the first phases of the design process during exploring and formulating the design problem. The required level of research suggests an informal, exploratory approach, trial and error, leading to little or no need for reliability and validity of the requested research.
Copyright (c) 2026 Snjezana de Haan-Topolscak, Anna Hotze, Marc de Vries https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
In design education the relationship between a prototype’s structure and its behaviour is an important one. In traditional fields such as mechanics and engineering, for example bridges or steam engines, both the structures and their structure-derived behaviour are observable. This visibility facilitates reasoning how this structure relates to behaviour and function. In more contemporary fields of technology like, ICT, nanotechnology and chemical engineering, however, the observable (macro-level) behaviour of a design often results from structural features at a non-observable scale. Consequently reasoning about structure and behaviour in these domains requires so-called multi-level thinking: using representations of micro level structures to explain or predict a macro-level phenomenon. Secondary school students often struggle with such structure-behaviour reasoning (SBR), particularly when it involves connecting invisible micro-level structures with observed behaviour. Likewise, teachers face the challenge of teaching ‘the invisible’ and assessing students’ proficiency in SBR. Chemical design activities can provide for valuable opportunities to address this challenge. By linking the molecular-level structure with the observed behaviour and design requirements, such activities can foster students’ SBR. In this research study we identified and characterized changes in students’ level of SBR in written answers to a prompt question before and after engagement in a chemical design activity. First, the students’ written answers were converted into reasoning diagrams. Then, these diagrams visualised students’ modes of reasoning and enabled categorization in one of the five levels. A small scale pilot test (N=16) revealed an increase in the level of sophistication of students’ written explanations with a modest effect size. Currently a large-scale data collection and analysis is in progress. At the conference we will present the results from the complete data set.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sebastiaan de Lavoir, Glenn Visker, Marie-Jetta den Otter, Erik Barendsen, Marc de Vries https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Investigating the Theoretical Grounding of Questionnaires to Study Technology and Engineering Career Choice
The shortage of qualified professionals in engineering and technology has become a critical concern. Research to understand factors influencing students’ career decisions has primarily focused on attitudes questionnaires. To address resulting limitations, role identity is emerging as a significant construct influencing study and career choice and persistence. The current research develops and tests an analysis framework, coherent with established theories, to evaluate instruments measuring attitudes and related constructs to investigate study and career choice. By applying this framework to seven paradigmatic instruments, several insights emerged. First, the framework proved useful for cross-disciplinary comparison and detecting gaps, but requires further refinement regarding depth in components and directional nuances. Second, the analysis revealed a lack of terminological clarity across instruments and substantial differences in how engineering and technology knowledge is operationalized. Future work should involve item-level analysis of a broader selection of instruments to ensure individual items map accurately onto intended theoretical dimensions, ensuring that the instruments are accurately measuring the specific constructs they are intended to assess and reducing conceptual ambiguities.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hanne Deprez, Cristina Simarro Rodriguez https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Mapping Futures: Comparative Analyses of International Design and Technology Education Curricula
South African Technology Education (TE) is designed to equip learners with broad knowledge, skills, and values that they can apply in solving real-world problems, implying substantial potential in its curriculum to prepare learners for their futures beyond school. The same could be true for comparative Design and Technology (D&T) subjects internationally. Although small comparative studies have been conducted across TE, D&T and similar subject curricula, those have been limited in scope and context. The vast potential of international Design and Technology Education (IDTE) to prepare learners for their futures has not yet been explored on a large international scale. One key purpose of this study was, therefore, to explore how learners are being prepared for their futures through IDTE curricula in various countries worldwide. In anticipation of a large international curriculum benchmarking study to address the overarching goal, several pre-determined themes were set for the larger study, but the finer details needed refinement to enhance the validity and reliability of the study. Therefore, an exploratory literature review was conducted to identify patterns in existing studies on learners’ future readiness that could contribute themes for the thematic curriculum analyses. The current paper reports on the findings of the exploratory literature review, providing insights regarding themes currently reported in relation to learners’ futures, or their 21st-century readiness. Key findings include that context is a key determinant of content and skill preferences in relation to future readiness, and that there exists a gap regarding D&T’s contributions to prepare learners for their futures.
Copyright (c) 2026 Adri Du Toit, Alison Hardy https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Scaffolding and Questioning in Engineering Design-Oriented STEM: A Qualitative Analysis of High School Technology Teachers’ Pedagogical Strategies and Perspectives
Engineering design-oriented STEM courses have been recognized as important approaches for cultivating students’ problem-solving and integrative thinking skills. Such instruction requires students to engage in challenging phases of the engineering design process, while teachers coordinate pedagogical actions such as curriculum unit design, scaffolding, and purposeful questioning to support iterative problem-solving. However, teachers’ pedagogical perspectives and instructional decision-making in these contexts remain insufficiently examined. This qualitative study investigates high school Technology teachers’ educational beliefs, curriculum design models, and the scaffolding and questioning strategies they employ to guide student engagement in engineering design-oriented STEM courses. Fourteen teachers from diverse regions in Taiwan participated in semi-structured online interviews (approximately 60–90 minutes each). The interview protocol, grounded in prior literature, addressed three dimensions: (1) educational beliefs, (2) curriculum design models, and (3) learning scaffolds and questioning strategies. Interview data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed through iterative coding and thematic analysis aligned with these dimensions. Triangulation was conducted through comparison with relevant literature and course documents provided by some participants. The findings reveal a strong consensus among teachers on the importance of systematically guiding students through the engineering design process to develop their ability to apply interdisciplinary knowledge for solving complex problems. Teachers commonly adopt phased curriculum structures, supported by learning portfolios and instructional exemplars, progressing from foundational skill development to student-centered engineering design projects. Instructional emphasis is placed on problem scoping and noticing, as well as predictive analysis, modeling, and evidence-based testing using interdisciplinary knowledge. Throughout the design process, teachers strategically employ diverse and interactive questioning to support students’ reasoning and decision making without providing direct solutions, thereby promoting reflective learning and student autonomy. This study offers implications for curriculum design and instructional strategies in engineering design-oriented STEM education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Szu-Chun Fan https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
“Technology is Like My Thing”: Swedish Preschool Children’s Digital Competence in Using an Infrared Camera
Digital technology has become a natural part of our life. Children in Swedish preschool are no exception. Digital tools are widely used in Swedish STEM education, from preschool to higher education. The Swedish preschool curriculum brings forth the technology subject as an important area and children should be given the opportunity to explore technology they encounter in everyday life. In preschool education, digital tools are primarily used as a teaching tool, but few studies have focused on young children’s ability to understand digital tools from a technology perspective. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate preschool children’s ability to interpret and use the affordances of a previously unknown digital tool, an infrared camera. Two planned teaching activities with eight children, 5-6 years old, were video observed in their preschool. The results show that the digital design of the infrared camera is functional for the children. Early in the activity, they express understanding of how different colours represent different temperatures. In addition, their previous experiences with touch screens and the mobility of the infrared camera enable them to explore its affordance independently. The study identifies a three-step process in the children’s exploration: The children first explore the artefact, showing strong interest in its affordances and functionalities, engaging with it as producers of images, and deleting and navigating among images. Second, they use the camera to investigate heat as a physical phenomenon, designing their own inquiries. Finally, the digital functions spur the children’s imagination, and they involve the infrared camera in play, combining investigative and imaginative activities, such using the infrared camera as a spy camera. In conclusion, the children show considerable digital competence in relation to a previously unknown digital tool.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jeanni Flognman, Janni Karlsson, Jesper Haglund https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Where’s the Beef? A Systematic Literature Review of the Relationship Between Technology Education and Student Achievement
Historically, technology education has struggled to assert and maintain its place in the general education curriculum of modern educational jurisdictions. From a Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada perspective the most recent issue has centred on a proposed restructuring of mandatory intermediate (students aged 12-15) technology education modules within the jurisdiction's K-12 curricula. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop an accurate account of any empirically supported relationships between K-12 student academic achievement and technology education to potentially assist curriculum decision makers moving forward. The study was positioned within the qualitative research paradigm using a descriptive systematic literature review methodology -in particular a scoping review method (Xiao and Watson, 2019). The study's research question was: What is the relationship between K-12 technology education curricula and student academic achievement? Preliminary analysis of the findings suggests that there are tangible benefits associated with K-12 students being enrolled in technology education curricula that cut across multiple subject areas and knowledge/skill domains. Significant research gaps and reproducibility issues have also been identified which present opportunities for further inquiry and research in this area.
Copyright (c) 2026 David Gill, Sana Jamil https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Gender and Diversity Awareness Among STEAM Teachers
Technology education faces the challenge of appealing equally to all learners, regardless of gender and background, and empowering them to actively participate in a technology-driven world. Raising awareness among teachers about gender and diversity issues plays a key role in this. The article focuses on gender equality in creative and technical educational contexts. For several years now, the focus has been on promoting girls and women in STEM subjects. Teachers of technical subjects should address this key educational and socio-political challenge, as gender-specific differences in interest and self-concept manifest themselves at an early age. This study examines the knowledge and attitudes of teachers in STEAM subjects (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) with regard to gender- and diversity-sensitive teaching. It is based on a quantitative online survey of N = 511 teachers from Tyrol (Austria), which was conducted using validated Likert scales. Differences according to gender, subject taught, and experience with monoeducative teaching settings were analysed. The results show that teachers with different educational backgrounds and experience in gender-segregated education show greater awareness of the importance of gender-equitable lesson planning. Finally, there is potential for further developing STEM programs into STEAM approaches, in which art and creative forms of expression are consciously integrated.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sebastian Goreth, Tim Lutz https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Instruments to Assess the Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) of Technology Student Teachers
Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) is key to teacher education, and the literature distinguishes between four methodologies to measure PCK in technology education. However, examples of such related instruments are scarce. The purpose of this paper is to present a set of theory-based instruments which were developed to measure technology student teachers’ PCK during practice in teacher education. The research questions are: What are the features of such instruments? In what way can instruments used for practice in teacher education be viewed as research instruments measuring PCK? The underlying theory is the Content representation (CoRe) approach supplemented by Pedagogical and Professional experience Repertoires (PaP-eRs). The CoRes contain sets of key ideas and a set of pedagogical questions/prompts which unpack each key idea. PaP-eRs are a narrative account of a teacher’s PCK for a particular topic and emerges from the actual practice. Based on the theoretical foundation of PCK, specifically a CoRe and PaP-eRs approach, and following desktop and action research, this paper presents a lesson plan, which requires technology students to reflect on the CoRes by relying on content knowledge, and the pedagogical questions which interrogate each big idea. A technology-specific observation schedule was also developed to elicit the students’ CoRes and PaP-eRs. An existing, generic lesson presentation assessment rubric, which is mandatory for all students across all subjects during their practical teaching, is also presented. In hindsight PaP-eRs are developed from student’s reflection on the lesson plan and presentation as well as detailed descriptions/reflections on and discussions about issues pertaining to the CoRes. The current PCK instruments hold substantial value for technology teacher education and research in developing contexts; however, their potential impact in developed contexts is even greater, provided they are systematically adapted to foreground Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) more explicitly.
Copyright (c) 2026 Rina Grobler, Piet Ankiewicz https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technology Education in Action: Integrating Action Competence in the Technology Subject
The global climate situation requires a comprehensive technological transition, which leads to an increased demand for a skilled workforce in science and technology. However, forecasts show that the number of graduates with environmentally relevant degrees is too low, which is identified as a bottleneck for Sweden's climate transition. Today, the gender distribution in technical education is severely skewed. In the academic year 2023/24, 82 percent of students in the technology program were men, and in the electrical and energy program, a full 96 percent were men. Even in higher education, only 30 percent of first-time applicants to the Master of Science in Engineering and Bachelor of Science in Engineering programs were women in the fall of 2024. A paradox is made visible: Women as a group, who are generally more committed to climate issues than men as a group, are unwilling to invest in technical education as a means to perform transformation. Conversely, men tend to choose technical education areas than women but without a corresponding environmental commitment. The differences can be attributed to norms surrounding femininity and masculinity. Feminine values ​​are linked to care work, and thereby also environmental commitment, while masculine values ​​are associated with interest and knowledge in ‘hard’ technology. To break these gender stereotypes and gender segregation, this project addresses inclusion of Action Competence for Sustainable Development as well as knowledge about gender norms, care and emotions in technology education in grades 7–9. The aim is to develop and challenge technology education by incorporating awareness of gender and emotions to promote action competence in the context of green transition. The project, which are still in the planning stage, will examine teachers' planning and teaching when knowledge about gender, emotions, and action competences will inform technology teaching.
Copyright (c) 2026 Annica Gullberg, Kristina Andersson, Maria Sundler https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Teaching Ethics of Technology in Swedish Secondary Education
Recently, there have been renewed calls for developing ethical awareness and judgement among young technologist and designers, not least in relation to societal unsustainability and rapid development of artificial intelligence. While there is a burgeoning literature on ethics as a topic of instruction in engineering education, suggesting that its status is contested, little empirical work have investigated how ethics is taught and understood at the level of secondary technology education. This paper reports on interviews with 11 technology teachers in secondary education in Sweden, where ethics of technology is an explicit albeit small part of the technology curriculum. Drawing on practice theory, the study unveils characteristic purposes, sayings, doings and relatings of ethics teaching, embedded in the architecture of a broader technology education practice. Findings suggest that teaching ethics of technology is a predominantly implicit endeavour, and that fragments of ethics teaching is embedded in three more prominent projects: 1) developing technological-analytical capacities, 2) developing socio-technical understanding and awareness, and 3) developing responsibility, agency and openness. The teachers’ commitment to fostering responsible users and developers of technology suggest that ethics of technology in certain respects may be better positioned in the secondary curriculum as compared to higher engineering education. At the same time, the teachers express significant challenges, concerning for instance motivating student to engage sincerely and making space for open-ended discussions in a crowded curriculum.
Copyright (c) 2026 Oskar Hagvall Svensson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technology and Engineering for Integrated STEM
STEM is arguably one of the most widespread and enduring educational visions of the early 21st century. Yet its meaning is largely unclear in a technology and engineering education context, for example, whether integrated STEM represents a sought-after epistemological position or merely a method for teaching technology and engineering. The present paper aims to synthesise research findings from the aSTEM research programme, which investigated the affordances of models and modelling for authentic STEM education, specifically in upper secondary technology and engineering education. In this paper we therefore conduct a qualitative evidence synthesis of all results generated within the research programme, as reported in the published articles and chapters from 2019-2025. The most important findings emerging from the research programme indicate that integrated, authentic STEM education must be taught in ways that are both interdisciplinary (STEM) and that respect the integrity of each included subject domain (S|T|E|M). Consequently, such an approach should be taught by specialised teachers who possess both strong subject knowledge and the ability to integrate disciplines. Furthermore, authentic STEM education projects are often viewed as being primarily technology- and engineering-based (engineering design), although they are not always explicitly labelled as such. Lastly, the research programme demonstrates that STEM subject integration is easier said than done, since in practice the integration of STEM content and methods rarely draws on more than two disciplines.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jonas Hallström, Charlotta Nordlöf, Per Norström, Konrad J. Schönborn https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technology Education Meets Invention Education
Technology education is a global phenomenon that is a widespread and critical component of school systems in many countries. At the same time, different conceptions of the nature of technology education may be challenging for teachers and hamper authenticity and real-world connection. The (engineering) design process can be found as a backbone of technology education standards and curricula in many countries and is furthermore a common phenomenon that features across STEM subjects as well. In this position paper, therefore, the aim is to propose an infusion of elements from invention education into technology education, to more firmly ground subject matter specifically around design and thus increase authenticity of the subject and motivate students. Invention education is a novel educational intervention connected to STEM that explicitly foregrounds the processes and activities by which inventors approach problem solving, which are closely related to design. It is concluded that technology education may gain access to a more invention-oriented conceptual framework from exploring aspects of invention education which can, in turn, inform signature pedagogies in relation to design. At the same time, invention education may benefit from integrating with a well-established disciplinary tradition that exists in many countries throughout the world from exploring technology education more deeply.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jonas Hallström, Adam Maltese https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Investigating the Link Between Professional Vision and Professional Action in Technology Education
Effective teaching requires the ability to swiftly and accurately interpret classroom situations - a skill known as professional vision (PV). PV is considered crucial for teaching quality. This article introduces two research instruments that have been developed to evaluate professional teaching practices and PV among technology and design teachers. The first instrument analyses teachers’ classroom videos using a structured observation manual focusing on cognitive activation and constructive support (N = 9). The second instrument assesses PV through instructional video vignettes depicting classroom situations that highlight pupils’ conceptions. Teachers respond to these vignettes by describing, evaluating, and proposing alternative instructional actions (N = 121). Together, the instruments provide complementary perspectives on professional competence by linking teachers’ interpretive processes with their enacted classroom practices. This combined approach allows an examination of how teachers perceive, interpret, and respond to pupils’ conceptions in instructional situations and provides a basis for investigating professionalisation pathways, particularly across different entry routes into the teaching profession.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dani Hamade, Sebastian Goreth https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Curriculum Integration Through Permaculture Gardening
This fourth paper in a series on curriculum integration, examines the long-term establishment and maintenance of a permaculture garden within a Māori-medium school context in Aotearoa New Zealand. Curriculum integration is defined in this paper as a continuum of practice, involving the application of a series of lenses in the planning and delivery of integrated content in the classroom context. The project, a collaborative effort involving students, their families and their teachers in 1998, was inspired in part by the release of the inaugural draft Hangarau curriculum [Māori-medium Technology]. Over more than a decade, the garden became a dynamic site for integrated learning and sustained inquiry. Using a longitudinal case study approach, combining documentary analysis of planning artefacts with reflective commentary, the paper explores the evolution of curriculum design and classroom practice from 1998–2010, and how pedagogical intent and coherence can be sustained across successive curriculum reforms. The permaculture garden served as both a learning environment and a living system through which students developed understandings of ecological relationships, sustainability, and kaitiakitanga [environmental stewardship]. Integration was guided by mātauranga Māori [Māori knowledge] principles, weaving together Hangarau, and all of the curriculum learning areas through culturally grounded inquiry and community engagement. The findings reconceptualise curriculum integration as a system-based, place-responsive practice sustained through designed environments rather than time-bound units. The paper situates this work within the broader landscape of Hangarau curricula development (1999, 2008, and the forthcoming refreshed curriculum), considering how kaiako might continue to align authentic, place-based learning with evolving national frameworks. A design heuristic is proposed to support educators in developing enduring, system-based approaches to integrated curriculum design in technology education contexts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tamsin Hanly, Ruth Lemon https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Establishing an International Comparative Framework for Design and Technology Education
Design and technology (D&T) education reflects diverse educational purposes across jurisdictions, variously emphasised as engineering and technology education, vocational preparation, or general education. Yet curriculum developments often occur in isolation, with limited systematic comparative analysis. This paper presents the methodological framework for the initial documentary analysis phase of a multi‑year international comparative project examining D&T curricula across 18 jurisdictions. The project adapts the Umalusi curriculum benchmarking framework—originally developed by South Africa’s Council for Quality Assurance for international curriculum comparison—for systematic documentary analysis. This validated framework provides rigorous analytical instruments while allowing flexibility across diverse cultural contexts. The methodology focuses on D&T within general (non‑elective) lower secondary education (approximately ages 11–14) in jurisdictions with published national curricula. Analysis encompasses eight core dimensions: curriculum design and format; aims and philosophical orientation; content coverage and breadth; time allocation and pacing; cognitive depth; curriculum integration; pedagogical guidance and assessment frameworks; and contemporary elements. Data collection uses an online survey integrating Likert scale items, open responses and document uploads, supported by Excel based analysis templates. A secure SharePoint workspace enables shared document storage and distributed ethical governance across participating institutions. The methodology’s key contribution lies in establishing a replicable, validated framework for international curriculum comparison in D&T education. It supports the participation of additional jurisdictions in subsequent project phases while offering a reusable structure for future independent studies. By adapting a proven benchmarking instrument, this approach provides baseline comparative data essential for evidence‑informed curriculum review and policy development, while building sustainable international research capacity through collaborative analysis and knowledge exchange among teacher educators and early‑career researchers.
Copyright (c) 2026 Alison Hardy, Adri Du Toit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
What Constitutes an 'Authentic' Project Context in D&T Education?
Authenticity is widely referenced in Design and Technology (D&T) education, yet the term is used inconsistently and rarely defined in ways that reflect the realities of lower secondary school teaching and learning. This paper addresses this gap by conducting a structured literature analysis across D&T, STEM and wider educational fields to examine how authenticity is conceptualised, enacted and constrained in school‑based design contexts. This paper addresses this gap through a structured literature analysis conducted in January 2026, involving searches across four major databases (Scopus, ERIC, Web of Science and the British Education Index) and the systematic screening of more than 41,000 records. Using an inductive–deductive iterative coding process, approximately 38 relevant studies were analysed to examine how authenticity is conceptualised, enacted and constrained in school‑based design contexts. Through screening, selection and synthesis, we develop a six‑dimension analytical framework that captures three interconnected strands of authenticity: the external features of tasks, users and practices; the internal, learner‑centred dimensions of relevance and agency; and the practical constraints that shape what teachers can design and pupils can do in lower secondary settings. The framework highlights how authenticity emerges not from any single feature but from the interaction of context, learner experience and classroom feasibility. This work provides researchers, curriculum designers and teachers with clearer criteria for analysing and designing authentic D&T project contexts, supporting more coherent discourse and more meaningful design experiences for 11–14‑year‑olds.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr Alison Hardy, Ngoc Quynh Nhu Vu, Dr Sarah Davies, Professor Kay Stables https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring Generative Artificial Intelligence in Upper Secondary Art and Design Education
This project investigates how generative artificial intelligence (AI) can be integrated into upper secondary art and design education, to enhance students’ digital competence, critical reflection, and digital judgment. The study is set within a contemporary context where generative AI is increasingly shaping education, work, and society. The Norwegian curriculum emphasizes digital skills as a core competency, highlighting this project’s relevance for today’s educational landscape. The aim of this project is to explore how teaching and learning with generative AI, can foster creative, ethical, and reflective practices in design education. By embedding AI tools into the classroom, the project seeks to investigate how this technology can serve as a resource to spark students’ creativity, while also addressing ethical challenges and encouraging critical evaluation of AI-generated outputs. Methodologically, the project applies educational design research (EDR), combining theoretical development with practical interventions. We designed an assignment where students use generative AI to create an advertising poster, focusing on visual devices, target audience, content and meaning. We used the qualitative methods unstructured classroom observation, semi-structured interviews and analysis of student work. 22 students, in two groups, and one teacher take part in two iterative design cycles. Thematic analysis is used to identify patterns in interaction, reflection, and learning among the participants. This project contributes to a further understanding of how generative AI can be adapted to educational contexts to strengthen students’ digital skills and critical thinking. It also sheds light on how teachers can facilitate meaningful learning experiences in response to a rapidly evolving digital world. By sharing insights from this research, we aim to contribute to broader discussions on how AI can be integrated in education in ways that promote creativity, ethical and critical reflection.
Copyright (c) 2026 Thelma Andrine Helland Gustavsen, Sofie Fliflet Sollie, Ingri Strand, Tore Andre Ringvold https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Learning Value in Participating in a STEAM Competition
Expanding on the three types of value in science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) competitions, namely value in radical, social and cognitive constructivism, this study developed more types of value of participating in a STEAM competition, specifically: (1) Physical growth, (2) STEAM knowledge building, (3) Career self-efficacy, (4) Learning attitude enhancement, (5) Thinking skill development, (6) Social-Emotional Development, and (7) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) concept building. This study surveyed 56 teachers who have long mentored students taking part in the iSTEAM-PowerTech competition to explore students’ multifaceted learning values. The results indicated teachers’ strong value of students’ participation. Among the value constructs, Physical growth scored the highest (M = 4.51), showing students’ improvement in motor control and coordination. STEAM knowledge building and Career self-efficacy followed, reflecting that participating in iSTEAM-PowerTech can enhance interdisciplinary STEAM knowledge learning, and career self-efficacy in STEM works. Although SDG concept building scored slightly lower, it revealed emerging awareness of sustainability and resource reuse. Overall, the iSTEAM-PowerTech competition effectively promotes students’ hands-on skills, cognitive thinking, emotional development, and sustainability awareness, embodying the STEAM pedagogy of learning by creating and doing through the design processes of iSTEAM-PowerTech. (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHnoNlntHYM).
Copyright (c) 2026 Jon-Chao Hong, Chi-Ruei Tsai, Chi-Chin Wong https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Topics in Technology Education Textbooks from Germany
Over time, textbooks have undergone significant transformation through digital enhancements, yet they remain central instructional media that serve an orienting function for teachers. Consequently, textbook research can offer insights into subject-specific impacts, including the support of learning activities and practical work (Larsson & Stolpe, 2025, p. 1825). This study employs a qualitative content analysis to examine 14 technology education textbooks from Germany with regard to the technical topics they convey. The findings reveal that the institutional positioning of technology education, whether as a dedicated subject or as part of an integrated subject, has a substantial influence on the scope and thematic selection of textbook content. A comparison with the contexts of the international Standards for Technological and Engineering Literacy (ITEEA) shows that the areas of "Medical and Health-Related Technologies" and "Agricultural and Biological Technologies" are not present in the analysed textbooks. Instead, topics of a cross-cutting character are integrated ("Sustainability", "Vocational Orientation", "History of Mankind and Technology", and "Descriptions of Lesson Methodologies"), which can be explained by the German tradition of subject-specificity.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tillmann Hoyer, Isabelle Penning https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Observations as a Method in Practice-Based STEM Research
Strengthening the scientific foundation of schools increasingly requires involving student teachers in practice-based research, a priority highlighted in recent Swedish education policy. Although practice-based research is intended to bridge professional challenges with systematic inquiry, little is known about how student teachers can meaningfully participate during compulsory school placement (VFU). The aim of this study is to develop a method for involving student teachers in practice-based research through observations carried out in connection with their VFU. The study was conducted over five years and involved student teachers, in-service teachers, VFU supervisors, and researchers collaboratively observing communication during laboratory activities. Direct, systematic observations were carried out using evolving observation protocols that included predefined categories and time spans. These protocols were iteratively refined across several cycles based on practical challenges, observer experiences, and theoretical grounding. The findings show clear opportunities for involving student teachers in research. Structured observation increased students’ awareness of classroom interactions supported course learning goals, and enriched teachers’ reflections on their own practice. When the observations were well integrated into coursework and accompanied by preparation and discussion, student teachers perceived the work as valuable and sometimes continued using or developing protocols independently. Certain challenges emerged. Students did not benefit when the observations were insufficiently connected to course aims, and large numbers of observers made consistent interpretation difficult. Time constraints, coordination between teacher educators and researchers, and the dual roles of teacher educators also posed obstacles. Across five cycles, the study identified key features of effective observation protocols: clearly defined terms, shorter time spans, theoretically grounded categories, and calibration among observers. The results demonstrate that thoughtfully designed observation protocols can serve as a viable method for engaging student teachers in practice-based research during VFU.
Copyright (c) 2026 Helena Isaksson Persson, Marie Danielsson, Cecilia Kozma, Tanja Kramer Nymark https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
An International Modified Delphi Study on Validating the Concept and Components of Digital Literacy
This study aims to systematically conceptualize and validate a comprehensive digital literacy (DL) framework through an international modified Delphi process. In the field of technology education, DL has been defined in diverse ways by scholars worldwide, highlighting the growing need for a shared and consensus-based understanding at the global level. To address this issue, the study systematically analyzed prior research conducted worldwide since 1995 to derive an initial conceptual framework of DL. Subsequently, three rounds of Delphi surveys were conducted with experts from South Korea’s academia and school sectors to refine the framework, followed by two rounds of international Delphi surveys with 14 experts from four continents—Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas—to examine cross-cultural validity. The final outcome of this study presents a DL framework supported by cross-cultural expert review, comprising six interrelated components organized across developmental stages (basic–intermediate–advanced): technological competence; digital content understanding, search and evaluation; digital content application and creation; digital communication; computational thinking (CT)-based problem solving; and social contribution and ethical responsibility. Each component is further specified through a total of 64 subcomponents, systematically articulated to reflect developmental progression and educational applicability. This framework clarifies the concept of DL within technology education and offers an internationally applicable standard for curriculum design, assessment, and policy development across diverse educational contexts. South Korea demonstrates a high level of information and communication technology (ICT) capacity, and digital transformation is rapidly advancing across industries, including education. In particular, technology education is closely linked to this digital shift. By integrating international expert perspectives into a framework initially shaped by the insights of South Korean researchers, this study broadens understanding of DL by incorporating multi-perspective insights and deepens international connectivity and mutual understanding in technology education, thereby informing ongoing global discourse in technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hanul Jang, Ingyu Go, Jiyeon Choi https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Authentic Users as Catalysts for Human-Centred Design Inquiry in Key Stage 3 Design and Technology
Design and Technology (D&T) education in England has been criticised for privileging procedural making over authentic design inquiry. Design Thinking Integrated Learning (DTIL) offers a promising pedagogical response; however, classroom practice frequently relies on hypothetical users or teacher-constructed briefs. This study investigates how embedding real end-users within a DTIL-based Key Stage 3 (KS3) D&T curriculum reshapes students’ design activity and perceived 21st-Century Skill development. An embedded multiple case study was conducted across ten student teams (n=40) undertaking twelve weeks of DTIL-structured design projects with different adult end-users from the school and local community. Data included group presentations, classroom observations and a post-intervention focus group. Reflexive thematic analysis examined how authentic user engagement influenced design reasoning and collaboration. Findings indicate that real users acted as pedagogical catalysts through three interdependent mechanisms: empathetic reframing of problem spaces, social accountability that drove iterative persistence and collaborative negotiation of meaning. These mechanisms transformed classroom design tasks from procedural activity into socially situated inquiry, making skills visible and meaningful to students. The study contributes empirical evidence that authentic user engagement is an epistemic condition for human-centred design learning. As a bounded case study, the research offers analytically generalisable insights and proposes authentic user collaboration as a transferable design principle for strengthening inquiry-driven D&T curricula.
Copyright (c) 2026 Philip A. Jones, Matt McLain https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Can a Bestiary of Metaphors Help us to See Ourselves in Relation to Sustainability?
This paper explores how we may see ourselves as technology educators and how we see technology education in the world of education by the playful but earnest use of animal metaphors. The paper focuses on the relationship between technology education and sustainability education, and on how metaphors can encourage new ways of thinking. Inspiration for the paper draws on several threads. First, there is the circumstance that technology itself is often described as the elephant in the room – ever-present but never talked about. This phenomenon contributes to a general lack of ‘seeing’ technologies for the fullness of their effects on our worlds. Second, the multi-faceted (and, at times ephemeral) nature of technology education indicates a range of species struggling to co-exist harmoniously. Third, for a sustainable world, all species should to be protected. Thus, a fourth thread suggests dilemmas around whether some species of technology education are actually compatible with sustainability education. Metaphors can help us comprehend one concept in the light of another concept even when the two concepts seem outwardly quite different. A metaphor can change our conceptual system and can radically modify our perception of a particular situation. The paper explores a range of animal metaphors (species, traits, behaviours, needs, etc) to reflect on the nature and role of technology education in relation to sustainability; to ask questions about our technology education practices; and, to imagine alternative paths to the future. In order to address the central question of ’Which animal(s) are we?’, the paper invites consideration of four Vs: vanity, victims, vision, and volition.
Copyright (c) 2026 Steve Keirl, Maria Svensson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Dialogue and Variation as a Didactic Model in Technical Vocational Education
Using didactical models when planning and conducting teaching can be a way of basing teaching on scientific research. However, when it comes to organising teaching and learning in relation to vocational education and technical objects of learning, there is a lack of didactical models. A central part of technical vocational education is teaching and learning how to handle tools related to the vocation students are training for. Previous studies show that teaching about tools in technical vocational education can have different focuses (cf. Asghari et al, 2025) and be based on teachers’ experiences and situations arising ad hoc, which can make teaching in this area unequal (Asplund et al., 2022). Therefore, we have been carrying out didactic modelling in three phases - extraction, mangling and exemplifying (Wikman et al., 2020). In this study we focus on how a didactic model emphasising dialogue and variation can create conditions for students’ learning of how to use tools in a preferable way in a vocational school workshop. In an intervention study, using learning study as a method, teaching and learning has been documented and evaluated. In this study, video recordings of teaching sessions in car mechanics and building and construction workshop classrooms have been analysed using CAVTA (Conversation Analysis and Variation Theory Approach) as the theoretical and methodological framework (cf. Asplund & Kilbrink, 2020; Kilbrink & Asplund, 2020). Data also consists of interviews with students after the video recorded teaching sessions. Preliminary findings indicate that using a didactic model emphasising dialogue and variation can contribute to students’ learning about tools in vocational workshops.
Copyright (c) 2026 Nina Kilbrink, Stig-Börje Asplund https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Community Involvement as a Resource for Teachers’ Professional Practices in Technology Education Projects for Young Learners
Hands-on technology education is regarded as an important aspect in developing wide range of skills among young learners aged 5–8 years. While previous research has emphasized the major role of teachers in supporting learning such skills, less attention has been given to the role of community involvement (CI) as part of teachers’ professional practices in technology education (TE). This study examines how involving the local community can support teachers in planning and implementing hands-on TE projects for young learners. The study presents experiences of twelve teachers working in pre-primary education and early primary education and how they describe the role of CI in TE projects. The teachers participated in in-service training on TE and worked with university experts to plan and implement TE projects for young learners. Parents, grandparents, and local services were involved in the projects with different means and in different phases of projects. After the projects, the teachers took part in semi-structured group interviews where they reflected on planning and implementing the projects, participating in in-service training, and the value of CI. The interviews were analyzed using theory-driven content analysis guided by the Multidimensional Adapted Process (MAP) model for teaching. This study focuses specifically on CI as a dimension of professional practices recognized in the MAP model. The findings indicate that teachers valued the participation of parents and other stakeholders, local services, and university experts in the projects. Collaboration with parents, grandparents, museums, libraries, and nearby learning environments were seen as an essential asset for implementing hands-on TE. Collaboration with university experts was beneficial for supporting the integration of technological content. The study suggests that CI has great potential to support TE in early educational settings. Implications for advancing both pre-service and in-service teacher training are discussed.
Copyright (c) 2026 Arttu Korkeaniemi, Eila Lindfors, Leena Kiviranta https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Inspiring Youth To Programming Through Engagement With Space Technology
This paper describes a study of the effect that participating in the coding challenge Astro Pi has on children’s interest and motivation for science and technology, as perceived by their teachers. The European Space Agency (ESA) offers children and young adults the opportunity to run their computer codes on specially designed raspberry pi computers aboard the International Space Station (ISS). This ESA-project, called Astro Pi, allows the participants to learn and practice python programming while also engaging with space and space technology. In addition to developing programming skills, the Astro Pi project studied here also includes elements of art, as the task is to create a piece of pixel art to be displayed for the astronauts at the ISS. As part of an interdisciplinary, authentic learning project general skills such as teamwork, communication and problem solving are practiced. Since both the authentic learning approach and space as a subject have been shown to contribute to increased motivation among pupils, Astro Pi has great potential to increase pupil interest in STEAM. In order to evaluate the effect on pupil interest and motivation of participating in this program a series of interviews was conducted among teachers who had participated in the Astro Pi challenge. Our main findings were that Astro Pi engages most pupils, and teachers especially mentioned the girls’ interest. The fact that it is ‘real’ and about space provides initial motivation to get started, but for most pupils, the task itself becomes motivating. It was also a learning process for the teachers themselves. Challenges they pointed out were that the project required more time than recommended and that especially the younger pupils lacked general computer skills. They also saw the possibility to make a shorter and more structured guide for the pupils to use.
Copyright (c) 2026 Cecilia Kozma, Tanja Kramer Nymark https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Redefining Technology in Rural STEM: School Leaders’ Perspectives on AI
The rapid integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into primary and secondary education necessitates a re-evaluation of Technology Education, specifically how the Technology component within STEM is conceptualized and led in schools. While AI offers transformative potential, its integration in rural contexts faces unique boundaries ranging from infrastructure deficits to pedagogical gaps. In rural Pingtung County, Taiwan, this integration faces unique challenges, including infrastructure deficits and pedagogical gaps. This study shifts focus from classroom practitioners to the strategic gatekeepers of curriculum innovation, school principals. It investigates how rural school leaders perceive AI not merely as a tool but as a core knowledge area within modern Technology Education and assesses their readiness to lead this transformation. This study employs a convergent mixed-methods design involving six school principals. Qualitative data from focus group interviews were analyzed using deductive thematic analysis supported by AI-assisted coding, while quantitative data from the Intelligent TPACK survey provided a triangulation profile. The findings reveal that rural principals conceptualize Technology in STEM through three key dimensions: evaluative literacy, AI-enabled praxis, and ethical stewardship. Rather than emphasizing technical proficiency, leaders prioritized the ability to verify AI outputs using disciplinary knowledge. Furthermore, AI was viewed as a boundary spanner capable of mitigating rural resource deficits by acting as a virtual colleague for isolated teachers. However, ethical concerns regarding the digital parenting void and the preservation of human-centric social-emotional learning dominated the leadership discourse. The study contributes to the field by defining a leadership-centric model of Intelligent TPACK, suggesting that for rural principals, effective technology leadership is less about operational fluency and more about critical evaluation and ethical responsibility.
Copyright (c) 2026 Chih-Jung Ku https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Towards a Framework of Knowing in Technical Vocational Education and Training (VET)
Technical vocational education and training (VET) is shaped by tensions between policy‑driven, measurable notions of competence and the situated, relational, and materially embedded forms of expertise that define vocational practice. To address this tension, the study employs knowing as an analytic lens to examine how vocational knowledge is enacted, recognised, and valued within the visual cultures of Swedish VET. Four analytical dimensions—content, embodiment, valuation, and temporality—guide the exploration of how knowing becomes visible in 144 marketing images representing four VET programmes. Through a collaboratively conducted analysis of the visual material, the research team examined recurring representational patterns during a two‑day analytic session in the Norrköping Decision Arena. The analysis identifies contrasting vocational ontologies. In Building and Construction, knowing is associated with durable materials, large‑scale processes, externalised plans, and collaborative work extending across longer temporal horizons. In Hairdressing and Styling, knowing appears through fine‑grained embodied gestures, aesthetic judgement, and dialogic interaction with clients, characterised by immediate outcomes and short, repeatable cycles. Similarly, distinct ontologies were identified within Industrial Technology and Natural Resource Use, indicating broader patterns in how vocational knowing is visually structured across VET. The analytical framework has enabled a more nuanced reading of the visual material, clarifying how various forms of expertise are made visible, legitimised, or backgrounded through specific representational choices. This contributes to a more refined understanding of how vocational knowing is visually constructed and communicated across different educational contexts. While the visual data necessarily restrict the analysis to what images render observable, the framework supports a deeper examination of how vocational knowing is organised, negotiated, and valued across programmes with distinct material and epistemic conditions.
Copyright (c) 2026 Andreas Larsson, Emelie Fälton, Nina Kilbrink https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Design, Control and Experimental Validation of a Wireless Power Transfer Charger
This paper presents the systematic design and control of a wireless power transfer (WPT) charger, from early modeling to experimental validation. The study begins with a detailed analytical modeling of the resonant WPT system to analyze its electrical behavior and identify key parameters influencing efficiency and stability. Based on this analysis, the power stage—including the coils, compensation network, and inverter—is designed in accordance with the SAE J2954 standard to ensure compatibility with emerging electric vehicle charging requirements. Several control strategies are then developed and compared using MATLAB/Simulink, focusing on maintaining battery charging current and voltage regulation under variations in coupling and misalignments. The most effective control approach is implemented on a microcontroller and experimentally tested on a 500 W laboratory prototype. Measurements confirm stable operation, efficiency above 80 %, and robust performance against misalignment. The work provides a pedagogical yet realistic example of the complete design process for modern WPT systems, illustrating how modeling, control design, and hardware validation can be integrated to bridge theory and practical engineering education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Abdellah Lassioui, Hassan El Fadil, Brahim El Fadil, Ahmed Mohamed Hamed, Mohammed Chiheb https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Reflective practice is widely positioned as central to Initial Teacher Education, yet novice reflection often begins as descriptive, compliance-shaped, and closely tied to assessment demands. Rather than treating this as a deficit, this paper asks how reflection in Technology Teacher Education might be supported to deepen over time into a more interpretive, ethical, and professionally generative practice. Drawing on a historical archive of reflective journals written during a ten-week school placement in Technology education subjects, the study adopts a critical autoethnographic approach to examine the process of reflective becoming. A two-cycle coding process identified recurring tensions around teacher identity, gender, discipline, workshop safety, assessment, inclusion, and subject pedagogy. Findings are organised through three scenes emerging from the archive: becoming the Technology teacher, ethical recognition in the workshop classroom, and a gradual movement from reflection as record toward reflection as inquiry. Framed within Irish Initial Teacher Education and informed by Céim’s emphasis on identity, reflective practice, and ongoing professional formation, the paper argues that historical novice journals can function as a valuable pedagogical resource for rehumanising reflection. In response, the paper proposes the HEARTS framework, Human Connection, Ethical Recognition, Assessment for Professional Becoming, Reflective Intentionality, Trust through Modelled Vulnerability, and Subject Informed Judgement, as a conceptual model for reflective becoming in Technology ITE. The paper concludes that reflection in Technology Teacher Education is most usefully understood not as a polished demonstration of competence, but as part of the uneven and relational work of becoming a teacher.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ross Leacy https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Preliminary Effects of STEAM Programs on Students’ Career Variables in the Republic of Korea’s K-12 Classrooms: Meta-analysis and Systematic Literature Review
In South Korea, STEAM education policy has been implemented since 2011. STEAM education has also been implemented with the aim of promoting students’ interest in pursuing careers in STEM fields; however, existing studies on the impact of STEAM programs on career-related outcomes remain limited. The purpose of this study is to identify trends in STEAM education research related to students’ career-related benefits and to examine its effectiveness. A systematic literature review was employed to describe key trends in STEAM education related to career-related benefits. A multilevel meta-analysis was also conducted using R for Statistical Computing (Version 4.5.2) to achieve the research goal. This study included only theses and dissertations published between 2011 and 2025. A total of 27 studies were selected, all focusing on STEAM programs that examined career-related variables. From these studies, 35 effect sizes were extracted for analysis. STEAM education showed a moderate positive effect on students’ career-related outcomes (Hedges’ g = 0.45), with most programs being science-centered and primarily focusing on short-term outcomes such as career awareness and interest.
Copyright (c) 2026 Yubin Lee, Hyuksoo Kwon https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Workforce Development for Emerging STEM Career Areas: Upper Primary Student Career Perceptions in Microelectronics
Microelectronics (ME) are an important part of our everyday technologies and they represent an in-demand industry in many parts of the world. Early learning experiences may help students understand ME and become interested in ME-related careers. Guided by Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), this preliminary study explored how upper primary school students perceive ME-careers and how these perceptions changed after participating in ME-focused instructional units. A total of 93 students in grades 3–5 from several schools in the Midwestern United States participated in the study. Students completed pre- and post-surveys that measured their exposure to ME and their motivation to learn about ME and ME careers. As the survey responses were collected in a dichotomous (Yes/No) format appropriate for this age level, a McNemar’s test was used for the data analysis. Results showed significant increases in students’ exposure to ME across all the related survey items. However, only one motivation-related survey item demonstrated a statistically significant increase. While a significant difference was found on only one motivation items, there was no indication of reduced motivation toward ME careers. These findings suggest that ME-focused instruction can increase elementary students’ awareness of ME. However, short-term lessons alone may not be enough to strongly change motivation. Longer and repeated learning experiences may be desired to support early career development in ME.
Copyright (c) 2026 Yubin Lee, Deana M. Lucas, Greg J. Strimel, Silas Owen, Morgan M. Hynes, Selcen Guzey, Tamara J. Moore https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Rethinking Vocational and Academic Pathways in Senior Secondary Education
This paper presents the preliminary phase of a structured literature review, establishing conceptual, historical, and policy foundations for an analysis of how senior secondary curricula can disrupt entrenched hierarchies, positioning vocational and academic learning as mutually reinforcing rather than oppositional. Particular attention is given to the Aotearoa New Zealand context, where recent reforms highlight tensions between policy intent, system design, and educational outcomes. Drawing on national and international literature, the paper examines how curriculum design, assessment structures, and pathway architectures shape perceptions of knowledge, credibility, and progression. It introduces a set of preliminary codes to guide the full review: status and hierarchy; pathway permeability; curriculum and assessment architecture; and equity. The review identifies a range of strategies employed internationally, including rebranding initiatives, hybrid school-work learning models, and multiple entry routes to higher education, with mixed evidence of effectiveness. The findings suggest design principles and structural conditions associated with more equitable access and credible progression. As a preliminary paper, these insights will inform and shape the subsequent structured literature review and contribute to ongoing discussions about how senior secondary pathways in Aotearoa might be redesigned to support diverse learner trajectories without reinforcing existing hierarchies.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ruth Lemon, Kerry Lee, Richard Edwards https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Analysing Teaching Materials for Interdisciplinary Technology Education through a Didactic Model
Interdisciplinary STEM education is increasingly promoted in compulsory schooling, yet the role of the technology subject within such approaches remains unevenly articulated. This study examines how technology is positioned in pre-designed teaching materials intended to support interdisciplinary instruction in Swedish lower and upper secondary education. Fourteen materials were analysed using a qualitative, theory-informed content analysis guided by a didactic framework conceptualising teaching practices in terms of what is taught, how teaching is organised, and why activities are framed as educationally meaningful. Through iterative comparison across materials, three recurring configurations of technology emerged: technology-centered, thematically embedded, and tool-oriented projects. While many materials emphasise societal relevance, sustainability, and student engagement, explicit opportunities for students to develop technological knowledge and core design-related practices are often limited. Technology is frequently positioned as contextual support for scientific or societal themes rather than as a distinct epistemic domain. The findings highlight tensions between interdisciplinary ambitions and the disciplinary visibility of technology education and contribute a conceptual framework for understanding how technology is represented in interdisciplinary STEM contexts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Helena Lennholm, Susanne Engström https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
An ongoing challenge in contemporary technology education lies in bridging the gap between students' initial ideation and the development of practical, tangible solutions. While project-based learning is widely recognized as an effective approach, its success depends on a structured pedagogical framework that systematically cultivates Engineering Thinking (ET). This paper introduces the Project Approach in Learning (PAL), a comprehensive model developed and refined over the past five years to provide educators with a robust blueprint for fostering meaningful innovation. The PAL model emerged from longitudinal action research rooted in a 10-year school-wide STEMaker program and was further consolidated through a 5-year initiative supporting 14 primary schools. Analysis of this work revealed that impactful projects require a holistic system. Consequently, the PAL framework is organized into three integrated components: 1) Project Planning, which defines a project's architecture through five key features—Scenario Leading, Problem Based, Knowledge Connectedness, Exploration & Elaboration, and Tangible Production; 2) Lesson Arrangement, which structures delivery using a "Three-Act" narrative framework; and 3) Instruction Strategy, guided by the "4Cs" of Connectedness, Coherence, Continuity, and a unique fourth C—Convergence—to ensure all activities align toward tangible outcomes. This paper explores the theoretical underpinnings of the PAL framework and its alignment with the cultivation of Engineering Thinking. It then deconstructs the model’s components, presenting concrete examples, lesson plans, and project guidelines drawn from validated practice. By offering a practical and replicable structure, this research provides a proven strategy to guide students across the critical boundary from abstract ideas to robust solutions, transforming technology education and equipping students to become adaptive, innovative problem-solvers.
Copyright (c) 2026 Wai Yip Antony Leung, Hoi Yan Keynes Yau https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technology Education Inspires Innovation: The Value and Framework of Engineering Thinking
The rapid advancement of Generative AI (GAI) and Large Language Models (LLMs) is fundamentally reshaping the K-12 educational landscape, disrupting traditional, siloed subject-based teaching methods. This paradigm shift calls for reimagining pedagogy, moving beyond the conventional transmission of knowledge to nurturing creative, adaptive problem-solvers capable of thriving in an AI-driven world. While STEM education has laid a foundation for interdisciplinary approaches, a critical gap remains between theoretical advocacy for innovation and its practical application in classrooms. Observations reveal that when students are tasked with solving authentic, real-world problems, many struggle to move beyond initial brainstorming stages. Few succeed in conceptualizing and developing their ideas into robust, actionable solutions. Although established frameworks such as the Engineering Design Process and Design Thinking provide procedural guidance, these models often prioritize process over the cultivation of the cognitive skills and mindsets essential for genuine innovation. This paper argues that operationalizing engineering thinking offers a viable pathway to bridging this gap. Through a systematic review of innovation methodologies, engineering principles, and design theories, we propose the “The Integrated Design and Technology Engineering Mindset (IDTEM)“. This model translates abstract principles and mindsets into six actionable components: Materialization of Ideas, Visualization of Designs, Optimization of Solutions, Systemization of Structures, Internalization of Physical Intuition and Spatiotemporal Sense, and the Habit of Documentation. To demonstrate its practical utility, the paper presents teaching examples that integrate this framework into classroom practice, providing educators with a clear, actionable guide for fostering innovation. By equipping students with structured and flexible tools for problem-solving, this research offers a replicable strategy for cultivating the next generation of innovators in the context of rapidly evolving AI technologies. Ultimately, the proposed framework bridges the gap between theoretical aspirations for innovation and the practical realities of K-12 education, empowering students to thrive in an increasingly complex world.
Generative Artificial Intelligence in STEM Learning Assessment
In STEM education research, a primary concern among many researchers is the issue of assessment, particularly in evaluating interdisciplinary STEM competencies. For example, when assessing interdisciplinary problem-solving skills, there is a notable lack of appropriate assessment tools. STEM learning environments often involve complex problem designs, requiring students to deconstruct the context collaboratively during the problem-solving process. How to effectively apply knowledge from various STEM fields remains a challenge that existing assessment tools have not yet fully addressed. With the development of generative artificial intelligence, there are now more tools available to analyze students' discussions throughout their learning journey. The aim is to explore what do AI-based analyses of students’ group discussion discourse reveal about their interdisciplinary problem-solving processes in STEM projects. Besides, based on these findings, what are the potential limitations of using AI to assess students’ interdisciplinary problem-solving processes. By applying generative AI tools to analyze group discussion dialogues, the research aims to uncover critical areas for future focus in STEM education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Kuen-Yi Lin, Chia-Pin Kao https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Student-Generated Visualisations and the Development of Technological Literacy in Technology Education
In technology education, knowledge is often communicated through visualisations such as artefacts, models, sketches, and images (Citrohn et al., 2023; de Vries, 2016; Svensson et al., 2019). However, less is known about how student-generated visualisations support students’ development of technological literacy through classroom interactions. By engaging with student-generated visualisations alongside verbal interactions, students are provided with opportunities to develop technological literacy while gradually advancing their representational competence. This paper theoretically explores this relationship by examining how representational competence functions in students’ meaning-making with visualisations. Representational competence, understood as the ability to use and interpret representations to make sense of and communicate understanding (Kozma & Russell, 2005; Daniel, 2018), becomes visible through work with visualisations in classroom interactions, which provide opportunities to elaborate, negotiate, and discuss ideas about technological issues (Lind, 2025). Drawing on Kozma and Russell’s (2005) conception of representational competence, this paper proposes an analytical framework for examining how student-generated visualisations are used to express and develop technological understanding. The contribution is thus an analytical framework rather than a finished didactic model, offering teachers and researchers a conceptual tool for analysing how student-generated visualisations can support representational competence and students’ development of visual and technological literacy.
Copyright (c) 2026 Johan Lind https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Bringing the Philosophy of Technology into Dialogue with Educational Practice
Technology has long been interwoven with education, and over the past decades digital tools have played a central role in shaping both pedagogical practices and conceptions of what it means to learn, and to teach. When emerging technologies such as accessible artificial intelligence (AI) enter the educational landscape, they bring with them a complex interplay of promise and peril, sparking tensions around how and when AI can or should be used – or deliberately avoided. While much attention has been given to questions of implementation and ethics, less focus has been placed on how these technologies reshape the very conditions of education. Such questions cannot be resolved merely through practical or ethical guidelines; they require reflection not only on what AI can do, but also on how it mediates human intentions, judgment, and responsibility. The aim of this paper is therefore to explore how philosophical perspectives can illuminate the reflections that underpin technology teachers’ choices and support a more reflective engagement with AI in technology education. These reflections are grounded in interviews with three technology teachers who describe their encounters with AI in their teaching. The analysis is guided by philosophical dialogues, engaging teachers’ reflections with the work of philosophers whose ideas resonate in today’s debates on emerging technologies. By bringing together philosophers’ and practitioners’ reflections through our analysis, the paper situates AI in technology education within a broader societal context, under the themes AI technology as potential, as disruption, and with awareness. Such an orientation invites teachers to view AI not merely as a pedagogical tool, but also as a technology that both shapes and is shaped by human actions.
Copyright (c) 2026 Louise Lundberg, Jonas Hallström https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Decoding Design Thinking: Deepening the Lens on Values and Capabilities
Design thinking is widely recognised as a fundamental aspect of technology education, yet its meaning remains inconsistently applied across research, policy, and classroom practice. The term has been used to describe a broad spectrum of activities, dispositions, and cognitive processes, and these interpretations often vary substantially between contexts. As a result, the field lacks a well-defined and commonly accepted framework that can support meaningful connections between design thinking and the broader aims of technology education. Previous research has attempted to address this issue by identifying common trends in the use of design thinking and by grouping its characteristics into a set of components. From this work, eleven components have been proposed, organised across two levels: technical components, which relate to processes and actions involved in designing, and value- and capability-focused components, which capture underlying attitudes, dispositions, and ways of engaging with complex design problems. Due to the nature of the previous study being a rapid review, only a surface level identification of components was developed. This paper extends the earlier research which only provided a broad overview by providing a deeper and more nuanced exploration of the value- and capability-focused components. Drawing on a review of the literature, this paper analyses these components and examines the ways in which they manifest within common practices in technology education. In doing so, the paper highlights how value- and capability-based aspects of design thinking support authentic engagement in technological problem-solving and strengthen alignment with curricular priorities. Ultimately, the paper seeks to clarify the nature and significance of the value- and capability-focused components of design thinking, providing insights that can inform future research, support pedagogical practice, and contribute to the development of a more coherent and commonly understood framework for design thinking in technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Liam Maquet, Rónán Dunbar, Jeffrey Buckley https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
‘You Are Just a Teacher’: A Researcher’s Insider Perspectives During a Collaboration with Teachers While Designing and Implementing a Student Renewable Energy Technology Project
This paper explores the notion of consultation, collegiality, and cooperation during researcher-teacher collaboration while conducting inside research. Insider researcher is given access more easily to the researched location and its culture compared to an outsider researcher. This is because the researcher normally works at the researched location and this may encounter unforeseen challenges, especially when collaborating with nonresearcher insiders. Moreover, how important decisions, defined as critical incidents, have been treated in the collaboration between an inside researcher and teachers are the scoop of this paper. Identifying potential pitfalls in a researcher-teacher collaboration in technology education are important to be aware of due to future similar collaborations. The collaboration studies in this paper was intended to improve educational practices where students were working on a student project regarding renewable energy technology from sustainable perspectives. The study was based on design-based research, where a student project about renewable energy technology was developed and implemented in two iterations in collaboration with two colleagues. The empirical material consisted of teacher interviews where both teachers and researcher described and reflected upon the collaboration. This paper has utilised content analysis and focused on critical incidents in the collaboration when decisions and judgments about technology are made, which potentially can influence design-based research, and particularly the researcher-teacher collaboration. The critical incidents can indicate that the teachers’ perception of the researcher as a researcher varies between outsider researcher and insider researcher or colleague. Factors, such as power relations and honesty, can be influenced, both positively and negatively, during collaboration between teachers and insider researcher due to strong collegiality and trust. Nevertheless, the research results can also indicate that inside research with features of outsideness is generally a positive endeavour but may contain elements of unfortunate episodes that can influence design-based research, the collaboration but also the student project.
Copyright (c) 2026 Øyvind Mathisen https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Teachers’ Conceptualisations of Spatial Ability & Implications for STEM
Spatial ability is a key component of STEM education, shaping how learners visualise, manipulate, and reason about objects and relationships. Despite its importance, little is known about how teachers conceptualise spatial ability and how these beliefs influence classroom practices. This study investigates Irish post-primary teachers’ conceptualisations of spatial competency, using online card-sorting and spatial self-efficacy tasks. In the card-sorting task, participants classified everyday activities, such as parallel parking, assembling flat-pack furniture, and taking notes, as ‘spatial’, ‘somewhat spatial’, or ‘not spatial’. The self-efficacy task assessed confidence in performing spatially demanding activities, including puzzles, map reading, and interpreting working drawings. Results indicate that disciplinary background strongly shaped conceptualisations: Engineering and Graphics teachers consistently rated multiple tasks as fully spatial, while Mathematics, Science, Technology, and Materials Technology Wood teachers applied more distributed classifications. Biology and Physical Education teachers used the full range of categories, suggesting flexible understanding. Across disciplines, subtle or traditionally gendered tasks were often under-recognised as spatial, reflecting implicit norms. These findings highlight that teachers’ spatial epistemologies are influenced by disciplinary culture and task experience, potentially affecting which skills are emphasised and how students develop spatially. The study underscores the need to broaden teachers’ conceptualisations of spatial ability and integrate its development intentionally across STEM curricula.
Copyright (c) 2026 Meryn Mc Nea, David Tanner , Diarmaid Lane , Reena Cole https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring the Participation of Students with Additional Educational Needs in STEM Education
There is growing interest in supporting neurodiverse students and those with additional educational needs (AEN) through inclusive practices. While differentiated approaches are essential in the teaching, learning and assessment of all subjects, there is a scarcity of research targeted at how technology education can be adapted to meet the needs of students with AEN. This paper is situated within a larger study which seeks to inform the pedagogical approaches to supporting the inclusion of students with AEN in technology education at second level. To achieve this there is a clear need to review the existing body of evidence investigating how students with AEN and STEM education are supported, with a particular focus on technology education. Much of the existing research suggests that there are limited studies highlighting research informed pedagogical strategies to cultivate the capability of students with AEN. In addition to this, although there is some evidence to suggest that students with AEN, in particular ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), have an aptitude towards creativity and high degrees of empathy, very few studies have explored the methods to support the development of these aptitudes. To address this gap in our understanding, this paper presents a scoping review to synthesise the existing research in the field, exploring the support of students with additional needs in STEM/Technology education. This paper aims to inform future research by highlighting current evidence of inclusive practices to make suggestions for the development of pedagogical practices to support students with AEN.
Copyright (c) 2026 Maria McCarthy, Donal Canty, Nicolaas Blom https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Investigating the Progression of Students’ Designerly Capability in Technology Education through a Grounded Theory Project
Technology education strives to foster active citizens who have an appreciation and understanding of the made world and the impact of the use, modification and manipulation of technology towards positive change. Being designerly has been identified as a central attribute to this shared goal, where possessing designerly capabilities will enable active participation and engagement in society. Design holds a significant position within technology education internationally and this recognition is evident in curricula and research activity, although there still exists a lack of consensus towards a shared understanding of what it means to be a designer that designs, how designing unfolds, and how designerly capabilities can be fostered. This paper presents a point during the second phase of a grounded theory project where the central research objective is to investigate the complexities of learning through designing with the following research question: what does the progression of designerly capability look like for students in technology education? Two technology education academics with experience in design and one design education academic were theoretically selected. Unstructured interviews were conducted and analysed according to the principles of classical grounded theory, where both open coding was utilised for this initial analysis. In this paper, key findings identify the transferability of designers, the assessment barrier and the future of design education. These insights provide further focus for future data collection of this phase, to investigate the progression of students’ designerly capability.
Copyright (c) 2026 Manus McDyer, Nicolaas Blom, Jeffrey Buckley https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technologies in Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence 2011-2025
Scotland stands at a pivotal moment for technological education. After a decade of stagnation, the recently launched Curriculum Improvement Cycle (CIC) and Education (Scotland) Act 2025 mark the most significant structural reforms since Curriculum for Excellence. For the Technologies, in particular Craft, Design, Engineering and Graphics (CDEG), this moment offers the chance to redefine subject identity, rebuild professional confidence, and reconnect Scotland to international design and technology education research. Since McLaren’s Technologies in Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence: Time for Change? (2011), there has been little sustained research, professional association activity, or policy attention focused on CDEG. The field remains constrained by outdated perceptions, declining ITE recruitment, and the absence of a coherent subject voice. These disciplinary weaknesses have combined with systemic inertia to erode CDEG’s vitality and place within secondary education. This paper argues that the convergence of curriculum reform, qualification redesign, and new institutional structures constitutes a unique opportunity to arrest, and reverse, this decline. It positions the author’s role as National Advisor, a post created to lead the CIC’s reform of the 3–18 Technologies curriculum, as part of a wider renewal of vision and research culture in Scottish technological education. Reviewing Scottish policy and literature since 2011, the paper synthesises evidence from national reviews, legislative developments, and sector analyses to recontextualise McLaren’s earlier optimism and diagnose the sources of inertia. The analysis identifies three interrelated insights: CDEG’s decline stems from structural neglect rather than curricular irrelevance; current reforms represent an unprecedented opportunity for revival; and sustained progress will depend on rebuilding subject identity, research capacity, and workforce stability. This paper invites the PATT community to engage with Scotland’s renewal of technological education, both as a case study in systemic transformation and as a call for collaborative scholarship to ensure that CDEG’s “time for change” is finally realised.
Copyright (c) 2026 Caroline McFarlane https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This paper offers a critical discourse analysis informed discussion of UK policy texts that have shaped design and technology (D&T) education in England from the early twentieth century to the present, drawing exclusively on the provided annotated corpus of Acts, statutory orders, curriculum documents, and white papers. Treating these texts as discursive artefacts, the analysis traces how D&T has been problem‑framed, how learners and teachers have been constructed, and which policy levers (statutory status, accountability measures, and assessment architectures) have materialised these framings in schools. Five eras are identified: (i) handwork for character and citizenship (1904–1918); (ii) post‑war technical modernity (1944-1949); (iii) the invention of D&T as design capability within the national curriculum for England (1988-1999); (iv) standards, choice, and accountability with the marginalisation of non-English Baccalaureate subjects (2002-2016); and (v) skills/productivity and technical pathways (2016-present). The corpus also evidences the consolidation of statutory frameworks (1996), primary‑phase turbulence (2009), and the reconfiguration of vocational pathways (2011). A sustained policy contradiction is visible: economic and skills strategies valorise design and technical capability, while accountability regimes simultaneously decentre D&T at Key Stage 4. A coherent national settlement requires realigning performance measures or restoring statutory guarantees, so school‑level incentives match national ambitions.
Copyright (c) 2026 Matt McLain https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Mapping Subjective Perspectives in Technology, Engineering and/or Design Education
As technology, engineering, and design (TED) education continues to navigate competing priorities around sustainability, capability, curriculum purpose, and assessment, researchers increasingly require methodological approaches that illuminate (not flatten) diverse value positions. Q methodology provides a robust means of examining subjective perspectives by identifying coherent typologies of viewpoint rather than relying on consensus or averaged positions. Building on Part I of this primer series, which introduced the theoretical foundations of Q methodology, this Part II paper demonstrates its practical application through a fully worked example grounded in a TED‑relevant context. Using a fictional but methodologically realistic study on stakeholder perspectives regarding sustainability in design education, the paper models each stage of the seven‑stage Q methodology process, with particular emphasis on factor analysis and factor interpretation. The worked example is designed as a pedagogical resource, making analytical decisions transparent and accessible for researchers new to Q methodology. By situating the process within a TED education context, the paper illustrates how Q methodology can support researchers and practitioners in engaging rigorously and reflexively with the plurality of viewpoints that shape contemporary debates in TED education, offering methodological clarity alongside practical relevance for future research, curriculum development, and policy work.
The Rise and Fall (and Recovery?) of Design and Technology Examination Entries in England Over Three Decades
This paper presents a longitudinal quantitative analysis of General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) Design and Technology (D&T) examination entries in England from 1996 to 2025, examining long‑term participation trends in relation to major curriculum and accountability reforms. National GCSE entry data were analysed using descriptive visualisation, percentage‑share analysis, and epoch‑based trend modelling. Three policy‑relevant epochs were identified to compare patterns of uptake under contrasting policy conditions, including the removal of compulsory provision at Key Stage 4 (upper secondary), the introduction of the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) and Progress 8, and GCSE qualification reform. Logarithmic and linear trend analyses indicate a period of rapid growth followed by a sustained and accelerated decline, with the strongest and most consistent trend behaviour observed during the second epoch (2005–2018). Supplementary chi‑square analysis was undertaken to explore associations between entry type and policy epoch, though results were constrained by low expected cell counts. While recent data suggest a slowing of decline, this is better characterised as tentative stabilisation rather than substantive recovery. The findings demonstrate a clear temporal alignment between education policy interventions and shifts in D&T participation. The paper contributes longitudinal empirical evidence to debates on curriculum policy, subject equity, and the strategic role of D&T in supporting national design, engineering, and manufacturing capacity.
The Digital Shift and AI Integration in Undergraduate Education: Exploring Learning Experiences Across STEM and Non-STEM Disciplines
The rapid global digital shift, driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies, is transforming higher education environments. This study examines how undergraduate students engage with these technologies and how such interactions are associated with personalized learning, student engagement, digital literacy, and adaptive learning across STEM and non-STEM disciplines. The research was conducted in Qatar as part of the Summer Internship Program at the Qatar University Young Scientists Center (QUYSC). A validated survey instrument was used to measure four key learning-related dimensions associated with students’ interaction with these technologies. Quantitative analysis, including descriptive statistics, reliability testing, and correlation analysis, examined relationships among the constructs. The findings revealed strong positive associations across all dimensions, indicating that engagement with these technologies is associated with students’ perceived learning readiness and digital competence. STEM students showed slightly higher levels of digital engagement, possibly reflecting differences in prior exposure to technological systems, while descriptive variations were observed across gender and nationality. From a technology and engineering education perspective, these findings suggest that students’ engagement can be understood as interaction with technological systems through which technological awareness and interaction capabilities are developed. This study contributes to technology and engineering education by conceptualizing students’ engagement with AI-enabled platforms as interaction with technological systems that support these capabilities.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sumaiya Muneer, Hiba Jafer, Mohammed Osama Elnajjar, Hind Salah Abdulbagi, Jolly Bhadra https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Examining Grade-Level Differences in Design Awareness through Learning Various Technological Contents in Japanese Junior High Schools
Design activities are regarded as an important component of technology education; however, there is limited empirical evidence on grade-level differences and possible developmental tendencies in students’ awareness of design through accumulated learning experiences in lower secondary education. This study explores the characteristics of students’ awareness of design and examines grade-level differences in this awareness in Japanese junior high school technology education. A questionnaire survey was conducted in November 2025 using a web-based form during regular technology education classes. Participants were 1,357 students in Grades 7–9 from lower secondary schools in multiple municipalities, of whom 1,227 valid responses were analyzed, providing a large-scale dataset for examining students’ design awareness. The questionnaire included Likert-scale items measuring design-related awareness and open-ended questions. Design awareness items were categorized into six perspectives, and grade-level differences were examined using the Kruskal–Wallis test. Open-ended responses were analyzed inductively to identify the frequency of design-related perspectives and perceived connections with other subjects and ICT. The results indicated statistically significant grade-level differences across all design awareness categories, suggesting possible developmental tendencies in students’ awareness of design as learning experiences accumulate. Awareness related to user perspectives showed consistently high values across grade levels, while awareness of ICT use tended to increase in higher grades, although it remained limited overall. Analysis of open-ended responses showed that students frequently emphasized user needs, whereas references to prototyping, collaboration, and ICT were relatively limited. Perceived connections with other subjects were mainly associated with mathematics, science, and art. These findings suggest progressive grade-level differences in students’ awareness of design in technology education, while explicit recognition of collaborative, iterative, and interdisciplinary aspects of design remains limited.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hisashi Nakahara, Tetsuya Uenosono, Keita Sera, Jun Moriyama https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Assessing the Engineering Design Process in Technology Education
One aspect of technology education that can be seen throughout the school curriculum is the teaching of processes such as the engineering design process. This process forms part of what students should learn at the upper secondary level in Sweden. However, teachers have the flexibility to select and adapt examples and subject content to suit their students and the local context. While this flexibility can enhance the relevance and engagement of teaching, it can also lead to challenges when it comes to comparing and collaborating with other teachers, particularly with regard to assessment. Assessment and grading are challenging aspects of teachers' work. Previous studies have highlighted the need for increased support in assessing technology education, especially regarding the evaluation of processes involved in technological development, such as the engineering design process. The aim of this study is to investigate how teachers perceive assessment in relation to the engineering design process and to identify which aspects of assessment teachers emphasize. The participants are seven teachers in Sweden’s upper secondary school technology programme. Data collected through focus group interviews was analysed inductively using thematic analysis. The results reveal three themes: the first theme covers what is being assessed, the second theme concerns the differences between higher and lower levels and the third involves challenges of assessment. One conclusion is that there is a need for teacher support in assessment related to technology education and the engineering design process.
Copyright (c) 2026 Charlotta Nordlöf https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Expanded PBL Curriculum Model for Diverse Educational Settings
Over the years, engineering education has continually adapted to meet the changing needs of society, technological progress, and industrial demands. In recent years, these drivers have included societal challenges such as sustainability and ethical innovation, technological advances like artificial intelligence (AI) and the growing electrification of homes and transportation, and industrial demands for engineers with strong cross-disciplinary collaboration, communication, and management skills. At the same time, engineering education institutions are facing new and growing challenges, including larger, more diverse student cohorts alongside limited institutional budgets. To address these drivers and challenges, researchers in engineering education have recommended the use of more flexible, student-centred, and active learning strategies, designed to reflect authentic engineering environments. One such suitable strategy is problem and project based learning (PBL), which can be implemented in traditional face-to-face, online and blended environments. However, recent research and global events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, have highlighted the need for clearer guidance to support engineering educators in adopting PBL in digital learning environments. In this paper, the authors seek to support engineering educators’ development, implementation, and evaluation of PBL in online and blended environments by explaining the PBL spectrum and proposing an expanded PBL framework. This proposed framework builds on the PBL Curriculum Model developed by Kolmos et al. (2009) by including additional consideration for diverse educational environments.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sean O'Connor, Jason Power, Nicolaas Blom https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Artificial Intelligence in Primary Science and Technology Education with a Focus on Implementation of AI in a Learning Context: Results of a Scoping Review
Artificial intelligence has become an integral component of 21st-century life, necessitating ongoing adaptation to the profound social and technological transformations it precipitates (Yim & Su, 2025). AI impacts not only the everyday world, where it encompasses a wide range of technologies and applications, but also future primary education. Primary education faces the challenge of raising awareness among learners and teachers for an AI-driven living environment and leveraging the technology’s potential responsibly (Irion & Kuzu, 2025). In everyday school life, AI can be used particularly in science and technology lessons in primary schools, as this is where a basic understanding of the technological environment is acquired, as well as the ability to cope in an increasingly complex world. It is important to investigate how AI can be integrated into both instructional preparation and classroom learning activities, contributing to the ongoing development of primary education (Irion & Kuzu, 2025). Building on these perspectives, there is a need for structured frameworks that specify which AI-related -should be fostered in primary education in order to systematically support learners’ understanding and use of AI in their everyday lives. A theoretical framework for AI-competences in primary education is adopted and divided into fundamental knowledge, use & control, reflection (in everyday life). This article presents a scoping review of the literature on the use of Artificial Intelligence in a teaching and learning context in primary science and technology education. The scoping review identifies central aspects of AI use in primary science and technology education and outlines the current state of research in this field.
Copyright (c) 2026 Malin Osnabrügge, Claudia Tenberge, Sabine Fechner https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Mapping Student Motivation Across a Long-Format Transdisciplinary Design Project
Design-based learning, a common educational practice within technology and engineering curriculum offers students open-ended challenges that can spark high levels of initial engagement. However, the large scale and time span of these design projects can cause fluctuating motivation as learners experience design realities, such as ambiguity, iteration, and a demand for meaningful outcomes. These “highs and lows” of engagement, analogous to a motivational rollercoaster, can deter students from persisting through difficult stages of their design projects, thereby reducing the potential impact of the project on learning, skill development, and production of valuable design outputs. This paper proposes a study to map changes in student motivation and engagement across a semester-long transdisciplinary design project situated within an upper-level undergraduate course integrating human-centered design and innovation development. In this study, students will complete repeated survey measures at four key points during the project using the Situational Motivation Scale and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale – Student Version. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted at the end of the semester to further explore students’ experiences and perceptions. By examining longitudinal patterns in motivation and engagement, this proposed study aims to identify critical periods of motivational decline and growth during long-format design projects. The findings establish a baseline understanding of students’ motivational trajectories that can inform the design and timing of future instructional interventions intended to support sustained engagement in design-based learning environments.
Copyright (c) 2026 Silas Owen, Greg Strimel, Deana Lucas https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
With the growing emphasis on creativity, collaboration, and reflective thinking in technology and design education, technology labs are expected to shift from technical priorities to open, collaborative spaces. Designed within an existing technology education facility, the paper explored what it means to “technology lab” that merges the technical with the reflective, the cultural with the material, and the innovative with the contemplative. This paper presents the intellectual and aesthetic journey of creating an innovative makerspace within a technology education context and explains how this work embodies a sustainable model for training future technology educators. Our approach was informed by the belief that traditional technology labs and makerspaces provide foundational tenets, such as promoting foundational literacy, while also promoting the spirit of community and tinkering, respectively. With this background, we developed a lab that emphasized culturally inclusivity and relevance through the bridge of technology and holistic learning. From this framework emerge three intersecting, vital pillars that make the makerspace unique and relevant in an urban context: contemplation, creativity, and sustainable design and material reuse, and contemplative practice as a mode of inquiry. By uniting design, technology, and reflection, Innervate offers a model for culturally responsible technology education laboratory. It demonstrates how reimagining space, materials, and pedagogy can bridge inner and outer worlds, transforming making into a pathway toward meaning and community.
Copyright (c) 2026 Raaghav Pandya, Euisuk Sung, Caroline Darin https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Navigating the Tension Between Confidence-Building and Professional Responsibility in Technology Teacher Education
This study examines how teacher educators in technology teacher education for grades 4–6 describe their didactic approaches to strengthening student teachers’ confidence when engaging with programming. As programming has become a mandatory component of technology education in Swedish primary schools, it has also entered technology teacher education. While previous research has focused on the integration of programming and on student teachers’ attitudes or competence, less attention has been paid to how teacher educators respond didactically to student teachers’ hesitation and uncertainty. The study draws on semi-structured interviews with teacher educators responsible for teaching programming in technology education. The interviews focus on their teaching aims, task design, and strategies. Using qualitative content analysis, the study identifies patterns in the ways in which teacher educators support their student teachers’ confidence, paying particular attention to their didactic considerations. The findings show that teacher educators lower thresholds, normalise uncertainty, and create positive experiences in order to reduce fear and encourage participation. However, the study also reveals a tension. While teacher educators prioritise strategies that build confidence and enable participation, questions remain about how this work supports professional readiness for independent teaching. Confidence-building emerges as necessary, yet not sufficient in itself. The study contributes a more nuanced understanding of how emotional and professional dimensions are balanced within the structural constraints of technology teacher education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Anna Perez https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring the Affective Domain in Technology Education
This research explores the affective domain within Irish Technology education, focusing on how the presentation of emotions, values, and motivation in our written curriculum influences teachers’ professional learning, pedagogical decision-making, and perceptions of technological capability. Considering the lived experiences and reflections of teachers, with participants (n=36) ranging from experienced teachers to student teachers undertaking initial technology teacher education (ITTE), we seek to understand how affective learning processes shape teacher engagement with technological teaching and learning practices. Drawing on three interrelated theoretical perspectives, this study constructs a theoretical framework through which affect and balanced technological capability is analysed; (1) Biesta’s (2010, 2017, 2022) conception of subjectification and educational purpose emphasises how teaching should cultivate “human flourishing” rather than focus solely on skills or knowledge; (2) Mitcham’s (1994) philosophy of technology as human activity, situates technological activity as a deeply human and value-laden practice; (3) Krathwohl et al. (1964) taxonomy of the affective domain offers a structured framework for exploring emotions, attitudes, and values in learning. Together, these perspectives offer a holistic, reflective and value-informed practice which contributes to teachers’ professional identity formation. Grounded in a constructivist and pragmatic paradigm, the research employs Charmaz’s Constructivist Grounded Theory (2006, 2014) to explore how teachers interpret, express, and act upon affective experiences in their teaching of technology. Data are gathered through reflective questionnaires and follow-up focus groups. The iterative process of theoretical sampling, coding, and memo writing enables the development of an emergent, data-driven model of affective engagement in technology education. Methodological and ethical rigour is maintained through ongoing reflexivity, recognising the influence of researcher identity, positionality, and bias on interpretation. The study aims to generate a grounded theoretical understanding of how affective factors inform teachers’ practice and professional growth, offering insights for teacher education, curriculum design, and affective pedagogy in technological learning contexts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sheila Plunkett, Dr Rónán Dunbar, Niall Seery https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Towards Reflective Incorporation of Generative AI in Design Practice and Education
This paper examines the experiences of novice designers as they incorporate generative AI (GAI) technologies into their design processes. We aim to investigate how novice designers engage with GAI technologies, how these tools transform the design thinking process, and how designers’ beliefs and practices shift with continued use. Previous research has revealed both benefits and risks of GAI incorporation, including efficiency gains, cognitive offloading, loss of ownership, and diminished critical thinking. However, little is known on how working with GAI is actually experienced by novice designers actively engaged in the learning process. To explore this, we conducted a study spanning 14 weeks with 11 international User Experience Design students, completing a series of design activities in which different GAI tools (LLMs and text-to-image models) were incorporated. They were encouraged to experiment and reflect on their processes and, upon completion, report on their experience in semi-structured post-interviews. The semi-structured interviews were analysed through reflexive thematic analysis. Findings reveal that an effective incorporation of GAI tools in creative design practice is not a straightforward process. Rather, it develops gradually. We uncovered novice designers’ beliefs, conceptualisations, and intentions of incorporating GAI technologies evolve with their reflective involvement with the tools. Initial perceptions of the technology as inherently powerful shift with a better understanding of the role of the tools within design practice, through experience and engagement. Two intention-driven uses of GAI were identified: using GAI as an efficiency enhancer and as a performance enhancer, intentions that imply different impacts on learning outcomes. These shifts are accompanied by substantial changes in designers’ cognitive approaches, as the interaction design of GAI tools imposes constraints on both creativity and problem-solving. These insights inform future educational strategies that support metacognitive awareness, foster intentional use, and support cognitive resilience.
Copyright (c) 2026 Andreea-Roxana Popescu, Alice Schut, Christian Detweiler https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This study examines the extent to which the goals of both an individual course and the overall M.Ed. program 'Integrative STEM Education' are achieved, as reflected in students’ reflections. The program aims to deepen understanding of interdisciplinary STEM, develop PCK and TPACK related to integrative pedagogies, and prepare students to lead interdisciplinary STEM education in various frameworks. It is grounded in constructivist and constructionist pedagogy and emphasizes engineering design, sustainability, and ethics in STEM education. Project-Based Learning (PBL) serves as a central methodological pillar, implemented through courses in which students design solutions to real-world, ill-defined problems, fostering innovation, problem-solving, and STEM literacy. Courses are intentionally interconnected and scaffold learning through an interdisciplinary lens. Extensive reflection, in multiple formats, is embedded throughout the program as a formative process supporting both learning and assessment. This aligns with perspectives such as Dewey’s ‘reflection as inquiry', Schön’s 'reflection-in-action/on-action', and Mezirow’s ‘transformative reflection’. Reflection fosters metacognition, conceptual understanding, interdisciplinary integration, professional growth, and evidence of emerging skills—serving not only as a learning mechanism but also as an indicator of achievement. The aim of this study is to analyze how students’ reflections correspond to the intended learning outcomes of several courses and how they reveal alignment with the broader aims of the program. Qualitative thematic analysis was conducted on students’ reflections to explore: (1) What themes emerge from students’ final reflective tasks? (2) To what extent do these reflections indicate achievement of course-level learning outcomes? (3) How do the reflections demonstrate alignment between individual course goals and the overarching program objectives? The findings reveal strong alignment parallel to exposing authentic challenges, informing the program’s iterative refinement within a design-based research framework. A key methodological contribution of this study lies in using reflective tools to evaluate integrated goals at both the course and program levels.
Copyright (c) 2026 Noa Ragonis, Osnat Dagan, Dafna Goldman https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Relationship Between Computational Thinking and Design: Insights from the Implementation of the 4P4CT Pedagogical Framework
Computational thinking (CT) is widely recognized as a set of essential cognitive and social skills that support complex reasoning across disciplinary domains. This study adopts a broad view of CT as a transferable thinking paradigm and introduces an analytical perspective that examines how CT skills can be theoretically connected and pedagogically applied to the design process. The study is grounded in the Four Pedagogies for Developing Computational Thinking framework, which is inspired by constructivist and constructionist learning theories and integrates active, project-based, product-based, and context-based learning. The framework was implemented in an academic course for preservice K–12 teachers from diverse disciplines and in a course for the general public, in which learners applied core CT skills—decomposition, abstraction, and generalization—while developing computerized simulations of computational processes. Computational processes were defined as dynamic representations of domain-specific concepts and the relationships and interactions between them, realized through animated scripts in environments such as Scratch. The research question examines the extent and manner in which students’ reflections while applying CT skills correspond to different components of the design process. Analysis of students’ reflective responses, mapped onto the design process, revealed that although the design process was not explicitly taught, students implicitly articulated its six accepted components: problem understanding, idea generation, planning, building, testing, and improvement. The findings suggest that CT-based simulation development naturally elicits design thinking. Articulating these connections explicitly may further strengthen both design learning and computer science education within technology education, as well as teacher education in these domains.
Copyright (c) 2026 Noa Ragonis, Orit Hazzan https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Balancing Generative AI use in Creative Processes
Artificial intelligence (AI) text-to-image generators have quickly become influential in art, design, and media education. While some view it as a fruitful supplement to their creative processes, as it can stimulate idea generation and make image creation quicker and more accessible, others fear that the generators will replace the human creator and eradicate creativity. Furthermore, AI generators are known to reproduce stereotypes, and it can be challenging to control their output. Due to the emergent nature of the technology, there are many studies where the authors themselves or participants have explored using generative technology in specific tasks given by the researchers or in researcher-led educational interventions. Teachers, designers, and artists’ perceptions of text-to-image generators are also well studied, but there is less research on how they actually use generative AI in their everyday professional lives. As the technology now has been in common use for a few years, it is time to explore how early adopters have integrated text-to-image generators in their professional practice. We have conducted semi-structured interviews with teachers in Norwegian upper secondary art, design, and media education, strategically chosen due to their advanced use of generative AI. In the interviews, we have asked how they use the technology in their work, both in educational projects with students and in their professional development. We have also asked them to reflect on how they understand and seek to develop their students’ AI literacy, as well as the technology’s limitations, practical and ethical challenges of educational use of AI. This paper provides insights into how generative AI is used in art, design, and media education, including innovative practices and how the teachers seek to balance its positive and negative aspects in an educational context.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tore Andre Ringvold, Ingri Strand, Peter Andre Haakonsen, Stephanie Hoebeke https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Reframing Engineering Literacy: A Comparative Synthesis of International Competence Frameworks
Based on a systematic literature review of international competence frameworks that aim to integrate engineering-related practices into general school education in STE(A)M contexts, this paper examines how central ways of working and thinking in engineering can be located and operationalised within school-based technology education. Using a comparative synthesis, the analysis identifies recurring dimensions across a heterogeneous body of models and classifies the identified approaches into three overarching framework types: (1) design- and problem-solving-oriented frameworks, (2) competency-oriented frameworks, and (3) curricular or domain-specific frameworks. Across these types, a patterned asymmetry becomes visible: procedural elements (engineering design cycles) and cognitive elements (engineering habits of mind) are typically described in teachable terms, whereas the normative dimension (explicit evaluation and responsibility in relation to societal, ecological, and economic consequences) remains underdeveloped and is often treated merely as contextual “constraints”. Rather than proposing yet another national model, the paper develops a synthesis that consolidates distinctive features of existing approaches, discusses their compatibility with the Common Reference Framework for Technology (GeRRT), and argues for a hybrid perspective that links iterative process structures with transferable habits of mind while making normative evaluation an explicit educational outcome.
Copyright (c) 2026 Lennart Rohlfs, Jan Landherr https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Studies show that novice programmer use a range of self-made strategies when problem solving. They step through code, insert print statements, and test incrementally. Yet their debugging skills are often unsystematic. This is partly due to cognitive overload and reliance on habitual practices. Teachers also struggle to interpret students’ questions when prior actions remain hidden in what has been written in the code. Consequently, teachers require a didactical tool that support the reconstruction and interpretation of what made the students’ question important in the first place. In the paper, we draw from pragmatism and a student case where novice programmers are solving syntactical, contextual and semantical problems simultaneously, to argue for a problem space. The concept serves as a didactic tool to support teaching and learning problem-solving in programming, as teacher and students become aware of the different problems, when the problematic situations translate into inquiries. The concept does so without disclosing the solutions to students’ problems and opportunities to gain valuable insights.
Copyright (c) 2026 Lennart Rolandsson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Finnish National Core Curriculum for pre-primary education emphasizes fostering children’s interest in science and technology, creative designing and making, problem-solving, exploration and experimentation with structures and materials, and reflection on the processes and products, with all competences approached in an integrated way. The study illustrates a learning process in which technology education and arts activities (STEAM) are integrated into the joint objective of exploring and interacting with my environment. During the learning process, children created a robot that was inspired by nature-themed children’s books and artistic activities in an outdoor environment. The learning process study was carried out with a pre-primary group in Western Finland during the spring of 2022. The group included 19 children, 12 boys and 7 girls, all aged 5-6. The primary data consists of children's outcomes – photographs of land art pieces serving as sketches for the robots, designs of the robots and ready-made robots– and the secondary data consists of children's written documents of their oral stories about the robots. The research question of the study was: how does an integrative approach support technology education, especially designing and making a robot. The analysis of the data was conducted through a data-driven content analysis. The findings reveal that integrating technology education to artistic activities and outdoor learning inspired children to create detailed and individual robots as well as concentrate on designing and building their robots. The oral storytelling linked to the learning process highlighted the meanings the children attached to their robots and enhanced their understanding of the significance of the robots for the makers. The robot's implementation was motivating for the children and supported the learning of technological details. Furthermore, these findings suggest that careful pedagogical planning and multisensory experiences can support the implementation of diverse STEAM projects and deepen children’s involvement.
Copyright (c) 2026 Marja-Leena Rönkkö, Juli-Anna Aerila https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Structured Making in Technology Education
Structured making is proposed as a pedagogical approach in which making activities are deliberately designed rather than assumed to be educationally effective. Prior discussions within Maker Education often attribute learning outcomes to creative activity itself, while empirical evidence on the actual learning processes involved remains limited (Wiemer & Rothe 2024). Similarly, existing competence models and frameworks associated with the Maker Movement provide descriptive structures but offer only tentative indications of their relevance for technology education, as systematic evaluations are still lacking. In response, a maker task was developed to operationalise structured making through five core principles: iteration, materiality, structured openness, technical functionality and reflection. The task is intended to create learning situations in which learners engage with open problem spaces, encounter material constraints and articulate reasons for technical decisions Initial empirical insights are based on learning journals produced by prospective technology teachers. The journals document decision-making processes, perceived challenges and developing lines of reasoning during the task. The analysis suggests several preliminary tendencies: iterative redesign cycles are experienced as demanding but potentially conducive to deeper engagement; material behaviour is frequently identified as a catalyst for problem analysis; structured openness leads to varied solution pathways but also to uncertainty regarding appropriate justification; and reflective entries indicate emerging attempts to relate technical, aesthetic and occasionally ecological considerations. These tendencies should be interpreted cautiously, as they do not yet provide evidence of task effectiveness, but they highlight aspects of the learning process that merit further examination. The contribution outlines the conceptual grounding of structured making and presents exploratory empirical findings from the maker task. The aim is not to validate the approach, but to identify promising directions and open questions for future research.
Copyright (c) 2026 Marius Rothe https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Spiral Curricula for 21st-Century Technology Education
The increasing complexity of 21st-century society requires skills that enable handling technological, social, and economic changes. The need for 21st-century skills, like digital literacy, problem-solving and critical thinking, has grown since 1980, when the transformation to a knowledge- and information-based society began (Gervé, 2022; Van Laar et al., 2017). New skills, known as 21st-century skills, became relevant in order to deal with changing situations. Computational thinking (CT) as a 21st-century skills integrates digital and mechanical problem-solving across disciplines and serves as a core competence for a digital society. Since schools prepare students to participate in society, CT should be integrated into technology education (Gervé, 2022; Wing, 2010). This includes mechanical and digital principles, artifacts, and their combinations. To develop targeted skills appropriately for the educational level, a spiral-curricular development could be helpful (Bruner, 1976). Research indicate that children can solve various technological problems (e.g. Beinbrech, 2003; Eickelmann et al., 2024). It remains unclear, whether a spiral-curricular approach to promote mechanical- and digital-technological problem-solving can be successful. There's little evidence regarding the effectiveness of spiral-curricular approaches for solving technological problems. Therefore, this study aims to develop a spiral-curriculum promoting technological problem-solving and examine its ability to enhance problem-solving. The article presents the redesign of the intervention and test development based on qualitative and quantitative pilot results and provides an outlook on how the future study design will be structured.
Copyright (c) 2026 Nele Schemel, Claudia Tenberge https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Role of Teachers’ Interest and Self-Efficacy in Implementing Technological Topics in Primary Education
The increasing societal pervasiveness of technology demands a solid foundation of technological literacy in primary education. In Germany, technological education is institutionally embedded within Sachunterricht, a multi-perspective subject unique to the German-speaking context (GDSU, 2013). Despite its curricular importance, empirical evidence indicates that technological topics remain significantly underrepresented in classroom practice, accounting for only 10.5% of instructional time (Möller et al., 1996; Steffensky et al., 2024). While structural explanations have been discussed (Möller et al., 1996), teacher-related dispositions – specifically individual interest and self-efficacy beliefs – require a systematic re-examination under contemporary conditions. Building on the TeBiS study (Möller et al., 1996), this paper reports results from the third pilot phase of an extended replication (N=16) with pre-service teachers during their practical semester. The study differentiates rigorously between individual interest (Krapp, 1992), self-efficacy beliefs (Bandura, 1997), and implementation behaviour. Results indicate a slightly below-average individual interest (M= 2.39) and moderately pronounced but highly heterogeneous self-efficacy expectations (M= 2.69). Correlational analyses reveal a non-significant negative relationship between interest and implementation (r= – 0.33) and a weak positive relationship for self-efficacy (r= 0.16). Contrary to linear assumptions, the pilot data suggest that individual dispositions alone do not sufficiently explain implementation behaviour. These findings underline the necessity of modelling implementation as a multi-level phenomenon that integrates macro- (policy), meso- (school context), and micro-level (teacher) factors. Due to the small sample size, conclusions remain exploratory and primarily serve instrument refinement for the main study in 2026.
Copyright (c) 2026 Lea Schneider, Claudia Tenberge https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
“They Really Need to Handle, Inspect, and Experience Things”
Taking pupils’ diverse needs into account is considered a central requirement of inclusive education (Booth & Ainscow, 2016). These needs are—according to Ainscow’s (2007) inclusive turn—not primarily ‘special educational needs’, but diverse needs of all learners. For the rather segregated German educational system, this endeavour applies especially to primary education, where needs are still developing and pupils are not yet assigned to different types of schooling according to their needs and abilities. Despite a substantial amount of research on pupils’ basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and social relatedness (Ryan et al., 2022), strategies that technology education teachers apply in this regard are not yet well understood. Besides interventional studies on technology education, indicating effectiveness of self‑directed and action‑oriented teaching and learning, there is a dearth of research on how teachers address different needs as a routine. The purpose of the presented study is therefore to investigate and systematize actions and strategies teachers apply, and to specify how pupils' needs are considered when teaching technology education on a given topic. The overall study used a mixed-methods approach to the question how pupils’ needs are characterized by themselves and by their teachers, and how they were taken into account in a lesson adapted and delivered by the teachers. In the sub-study presented here, participating primary school teachers were interviewed about their consideration of pupils’ needs whilst planning and conducting a technology education unit on the functionality of robots. The results gained from qualitative content analysis of the interviews indicate that although the anticipation of different needs is considered challenging, teachers possess a substantiate amount of practices and strategies to take them into account. The paper systematizes the practices teachers described in structured interviews within strategies and discusses the contribution of taking basic needs into account for inclusive technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Franz Schröer, Claudia Tenberge https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
How Do Design Students Use ChatGPT When Ideating?
This paper explores how design students use Generative AI (GAI) tools, in particular ChatGPT, during the ideation phase of a design process. Although design students use GAI tools to support ideation, little is known about how they apply them and how this relates to their creativity. This explorative study describes how design students interact with ChatGPT during ideation and considers what this might mean for teaching creativity in design education. The study took place within an existing project course and analysed the individual concept generation of 44 User Experience Design students. The dataset includes ChatGPT chatlogs, three resulting concepts per student, and short self-reported descriptions of tool use. Two analyses were conducted: a qualitative content analysis of the chatlogs and a comparative analysis of the concepts developed from the generated output. These findings show that ChatGPT-supported ideation is often initiated through broad, task-driven prompts with limited output steering. Iterative interaction occurs, but is not the default mode. At the concept level, generated content often informs concepts directly, with purpose, form, and meaning more frequently retained, and interaction more often adjusted. The most common configuration consists of concepts in which all four dimensions remain the same, indicating direct transfer of generated content. Alignment analysis further shows that concepts often remain more closely aligned with generated output than students’ descriptions suggest. Taken together, these findings indicate that AI-supported ideation unfolds through differing configurations of interaction and concept development. The prevalence of limited steering and direct adoption suggests a lack of consistent creative engagement. At the same time, instances of more iterative use and loosely inspired concepts show that alternative forms of engagement do occur. This highlights the need for more deliberate and reflective engagement with generative tools and a crucial role for design education in teaching and supporting this type of engagement.
Copyright (c) 2026 Alice Schut, Arnold-Jan Quanjer, Jos van Leeuwen, Christian Detweiler https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Post-Digital Images as Boundary Objects in STEAM Subject Art
In Austria, a shortage of qualified STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) teachers is affecting creative subjects such as art and design and is increasingly leading to the use of teachers from other disciplines as well as those in the midst of career changes. Concurrently, digital and image-based media are shaping the everyday lives of students and teachers alike, and the continuous emergence of new digital image cultures is progressively blurring the lines between analogue and digital worlds. Against this backdrop, questions arise regarding the potential these digital images offer for art education and how they can be used for teaching and learning processes. This research project presents an examination of students and art teachers' post-digital image practices in the context of visual literacy as well as differences in the professional knowledge levels of qualified subject, out-of-field, and career-changing teachers. The aim is to investigate how post-digital images can support collaborative teaching and learning processes while relativising existing knowledge asymmetries in the classroom. As part of an exploratory mixed-methods cross-sectional study, secondary school students (N = 360) and art teachers (N = 45) at schools in Tyrol (Austria) were surveyed. This project seeks to make the use of post-digital images visible and to develop starting points for well-founded, everyday, and collaborative art education. Due to the everyday relevance of post-digital images, another goal that underscores this work is to determine to what extent integrating these images in teaching is beneficial for alternatively qualified teachers.
Copyright (c) 2026 Charlotte Leonore Schwarz, Jan Guido Grünwald https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Digital fabrication technologies such as 3D printing are increasingly used in school education and are often associated with creative making. However, previous studies have pointed out the risk of superficial making, where students focus on visual outcomes rather than engaging in design reasoning. This study examines the educational potential of 3D printing by exploring how students conceptualize its role in relation to a contrasting fabrication method, woodworking. A design-based research (DBR) approach was employed in an open-ended problem-solving task combining woodworking and 3D printing with 177 first-year lower secondary students in a Japanese public school. Students freely selected materials and fabrication methods based on their design ideas. questionnaires, and open-ended reflections. Among 120 analysed cases, products were classified into functional and decorative groups based on the role of 3D-printed components. Quantitative results showed no significant differences in enjoyment or perceived difficulty between groups. However, the functional group demonstrated significantly higher awareness of the characteristics of 3D printing. Qualitative text analysis revealed that while the decorative group emphasized ease of use and appearance, the functional group more frequently referred to design considerations, complex geometries, and the complementary relationship between fabrication methods. These findings suggest that the educational value of 3D printing depends not merely on access to the technology, but on how it is positioned within design decision-making. Learning environments that juxtapose multiple fabrication methods can support learners in developing a more conceptually grounded understanding of materials, processes, and design.
Copyright (c) 2026 Keita Sera, Shinichi Yamamoto, Hirotaka Hisamatsu, Tomohiro Shinya https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The purpose of this study was to understand the classroom pedagogical practices of post-secondary engineering educators in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. In particular, engineering educators and students representing a range of disciplines from a degree-granting institution and from a diploma-granting institution were asked to reflect on their experiences and perspectives regarding teaching methods. There exists a body of research advocating for active learning over passive approaches with scholars calling for greater implementation in engineering education, where passive learning is viewed as being prevalent. This study captured the extent to which this calling has manifested in engineering education within the locale while simultaneously explicating educator and student perspectives on engineering education pedagogy. The research was situated within an interpretivist framework and adopted a qualitative intrinsic single-case design with embedded units. Data were gathered through an online questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis of the resulting data highlighted recurring patterns associated with instructional practices, instructional preferences, and challenges that helped answer the main research question: What are the classroom pedagogical practices of post-secondary engineering educators across the province of Newfoundland and Labrador? The findings revealed a complex and evolving pedagogical landscape in engineering education within the province. While traditional, lecture-based methods remain prevalent, there is growing momentum toward integrating more active, student-centred approaches. Educators recognize the value of balancing passive and active learning strategies to accommodate diverse student needs, backgrounds, and learning preferences.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hitesh Sharma https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Secondary School Technology Teachers’ Views on the Core Ideas of Technology
For decades, discussions in science education have debated the inclusion of technological literacy and its relationship with scientific literacy. Early Science-Technology-Society (STS) approaches helped link science to social relevance but often reduced technology to a by-product of science rather than a distinct human activity. Although some countries eventually introduced technology as an independent subject, it still faces structural and epistemological challenges: there is no universal definition of this discipline, leading to curricula and standards that vary in both structure and content. Despite existing frameworks intended to clarify technological knowledge in education, yet these models have not fully clarified the specific conceptual core of technology, somehow still subsumed to scientific conceptual knowledge. Moreover, with the search of its own identity still unresolved, technology education faces other challenges such as its relationship with engineering education. In this context, and with a focus on disciplines that have a more consolidated body of didactic knowledge, such as science, this study explores how secondary-school technology teachers identify the core ideas of their subject. Drawing on the tradition of science education and its construct of “big ideas,” eleven teachers participated in collaborative sessions analysing national and international curricula and proposing possible “big ideas for technology”. Through thematic analysis of their written and oral contributions, 33 concepts were identified, but only 14 appeared in more than one group, revealing limited consensus. Common ideas included materials, energy, mechanisms, control, and communication, but teachers mixed conceptual, practical, and ethical dimensions without a coherent classification. Understanding teachers’ difficulties for constructing a comprehensive view for technology core ideas can help to develop a useful didactic framework to guide teaching and curriculum design. As a first approximation, the authors propose an epistemic three-level framework for structuring technological knowledge: natural resources and phenomena used by technology, processes and devices, and useful applications.
Copyright (c) 2026 Cristina Simarro https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring Facilitators’ Beliefs of ‘Making’ in German Makerspaces
Making activities for children and teenagers are offered in a variety of settings and formats. They are primarily designed and offered by so-called makerspace facilitators. Despite their relevance for such educational activities, little is known about the beliefs of these facilitators. This paper presents initial, preliminary findings based on a subset of the sample (n = 6). In particular, it explores the question: "What understanding do makerspace facilitators have of making?" The results indicate that makerspace facilitators describe both a narrow, technology-focused understanding of making and a broader perspective, with the technical dimension predominating. Furthermore, making occurs in three context-dependent forms: as a single act in guided making activities, as a transition from an act to process within these making activities, and as a complex process in free projects. These findings contribute to ongoing discussions in maker education regarding the conceptualization of making. The results provide a starting point for investigating, for example, the influence of technologies and resources in makerspaces on facilitators’ beliefs. Moreover, they not only contribute to a deeper understanding of makerspace facilitators’ beliefs, but also serve as a foundation for further research into the relationship between facilitators’ beliefs and their pedagogical practices, as well as the didactic innovation potential of making for existing approaches for formal technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Nikita Solodilow, Martin Fislake, Isabelle Penning https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Implementing STEAM Education in Estonian Basic Schools: Smart Learning Materials for Experimentation and Exploration in Science, Creativity, and Innovation
STEAM education has emerged internationally as a key interdisciplinary approach aimed at integrating disciplinary knowledge into meaningful and creative learning. This paper reports on the development of STEAM-oriented courses for lower secondary technology education and examines within-subject integration opportunities. The study focuses on two Grade 7 technology courses (Automata and LED Lamp) designed as design-based, hands-on learning processes. Teacher input was gathered through collaborative idea generation and semi-structured interviews. Analysis addressed how teachers perceived STEAM-related integration and how such perceptions supported feasible integration within the disciplinary logic of technology education. Findings suggest that technology education offers a natural platform for STEAM integration without mandatory cross-curricular collaboration. Integration manifested mainly through design processes, artefact construction, and reflective activities. The work also underscored the need to systematise teachers’ ideas to distinguish viable integrations from less feasible proposals. The paper positions technology education as a potential core carrier of STEAM and outlines next steps for piloting and broader implementation.
Copyright (c) 2026 Mart Soobik, Mait Pinsel https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Design and Technology (D&T) education in England occupies an increasingly precarious position within the school curriculum. In response to declining participation, reduced curriculum time, and policy marginalisation, recent and ongoing advocacy by the D&T Association (D&TA) has sought to secure the subject’s future through economic justification. D&T is positioned as essential to national productivity, industrial competitiveness, innovation, and labour market preparedness. Drawing on Ball’s work on performativity and neoliberal policy (2003, 2012), the paper conceptualises economic justification as an ‘epistemic trap.’ It argues that in seeking legitimacy through economic rationality, Design and Technology accepts a mode of valuation that is expedient, volatile, and misaligned with educational purpose. This not only marginalises the subject’s intellectual foundations but accelerates the conditions of its potential decline. The paper uses critical rhetorical analysis of a D&TA policy-facing advocacy document, whilst using Toulmin’s model of argumentation (Magalhaes, 2020) as a methodological framework, examining how economic claims are constructed, supported, and qualified. Particular attention is given to the strength of warrants and backing, the absence of meaningful qualification, and the reliance on industry authority. Using Toulmin’s framework, aligned with Ball’s (2003) concept of performativity, reveals how policy certainty, urgency, and measurability shape the argument, whilst Fricker’s (2007) work exposes the epistemic injustices that result. The findings, based on rhetorical analysis, demonstrate that the economic argument relies on weak educational backing, authority substitution, and unqualified claims. This framing produces an epistemic injustice by deflating the credibility of the subject’s educational value, by obscuring D&T’s distinctive practices. Paradoxically, the more convincingly the subject aligns itself with economic rationality and success, the more it undermines its existing precarity. The paper concludes that long-term sustainability for D&T depends not on economic alignment, but on reclaiming epistemic autonomy and articulating educational value beyond performative metrics.
Copyright (c) 2026 David Spendlove https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Vision for the Treatment of Technology Education within Integrated STEM
Since the inception of the term ‘STEM’ (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in the late 1990’s, a persistent challenge for educators has been the STEM gap. Inequities in participation across socioeconomic status, race and sex have challenged educators and policymakers alike. Integrated STEM (iSTEM) education has emerged as a promising meta-discipline which is attractive to a wide variety of learners. iSTEM’s value lies in its ability to offer interdisciplinary, student-centred learning experiences, mirroring the real-world complexity of global, and local issues. Despite this, iSTEM still faces considerable challenges. Conceptualisation and enactment of iSTEM experiences remain fragmented, particularly within technology education disciplines. Educators battle to navigate broad and varying definitions, pedagogies, and levels of integration. Building on two previously proposed frameworks, the first addressing the content of iSTEM from an educator’s perspective, the second addressing the learning context from the learner’s perspective, this paper presents a combined theoretical framework for iSTEM education. In this framework, technology education disciplines are foregrounded as disciplinary domains, not merely a pedagogical tool. This combined framework encompasses findings from a work-in progress systemised literature review. In addition, it spotlights students’ volition over their educational journeys, highlighting self-efficacy and social cognitive career theory (SCCT) as key influences. This paper contributes to the ongoing discourse, offering a unified model for iSTEM implementation. It aims to support educators in creating inclusive, coherent and transformative learning experiences and in fostering a lifelong interest in STEM. For students, the framework recognises iSTEM’s potential in affording greater volition over their educational and career trajectories. Future research will explore how iSTEM experiences can shape students’ educational and career trajectories, with a focus on empowering underrepresented learners through inclusive, affective and authentic STEM provision.
Copyright (c) 2026 Eamonn Stack Mulvihill, Clodagh Reid, Rónán Dunbar https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Phenomenographic Study of Chinese Junior Secondary School Students’ Conceptions of Technology
Fostering students' comprehensive conceptions of technology (COT) is a critical goal of technology education. While international research on COT is extensive, studies focusing on mainland China—a context with a unique technological history—remain scarce. This phenomenographic study investigates the COT of 61 Chinese junior secondary students (aged 13-15) through semi-structured interviews and photo-elicitation. The findings reveal that students conceptualize technology across five dimensions: attributes, generation, operation and use, mastery, and functions. Compared to their primary school counterparts, junior secondary students exhibit both more nuanced rational views (e.g., technology as activity, symbol of civilization) and persistent partial understandings (e.g., fragmented views of experiential vs. scientific technology). The study highlights the influence of sociocultural context and weak school-based COT education on student understanding. The findings offer empirical insights for technology educators and policymakers in China and similar cultural settings, suggesting the need for curricula that explicitly integrate the multidimensional nature of technology.
Copyright (c) 2026 Xun Su, Professor https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Technical Blindness and the Limits of Artefact Thinking
This pilot study explores whether an iterative noticing-and-reflection activity, supported by children's literature, can help pre-service teachers broaden what they see as technology. Three students in Swedish primary teacher education (grades 4–6) participated in a three-phase sequence that included taking photographs and reading children's literature, with an explicit focus on the question "What is technology?". The analysis examined how participants described technology in terms of (i) function and use, (ii) explanations of how or why it works, and (iii) contextual and ethical considerations. Across the three phases, participants initially tended to identify technology mainly as artefacts, particularly electrified devices. After the seminar discussion and repeated documentation, the photographic examples more often included non-electrified tools and everyday technologies, suggesting a shift in what participants noticed and categorised as technology, which was made visible using a STEAM perspective. Participants' written justifications also moved, in some cases, from naming objects toward brief reasoning about purpose, constraints, and alternatives, while contextual and ethical aspects appeared less frequently. As a small exploratory study, the findings do not support any general claims. Still, they indicate that staying with definitional and boundary questions about technology, in combination with aesthetic and narrative resources, may help future teachers in technology education lead the way out of pupils' technical blindness.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ulrika Sultan, Frida Olsson, Erik Sjöstedt https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
What is the Problem with Girls in Technology?
Efforts to increase girls’ engagement in technology and STEM are widespread, yet the “problem” these interventions address is often taken for granted. This scoping review examines how out-of-school technology and STEM interventions represent this problem and how these representations shape assumptions, subject positions, and intervention logics. Twenty publications identified through ERIC were analysed using Bacchi’s “What’s the Problem Represented to be?” (WPR) framework. The analysis identifies five recurring problem representations. By making these problem representations explicit, the study shows how different framings are associated with distinct assumptions and distributions of responsibility, directing attention either towards engagement conditions and institutional practices or towards individual learners. The study contributes to research on technology education and gender equity by showing how interventions not only respond to, but also actively construct, the problems they seek to address, thereby shaping what becomes visible and which equity strategies are pursued.
Copyright (c) 2026 Ulrika Sultan https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Raising Sustainability Consciousness: A Call to Action for the PATT Community
Following a funded research initiation project, The Blindspot Declaration (2025) was developed by a multidisciplinary group of academics in response to educational concerns about the acknowledgement of technologies in sustainability discourse and vice versa. One of the Declaration’s key concerns relates to technology blindness – around how technologies are intricate to our lives yet remain unproblematised and largely in the background of our worlds. This paper reports on foundational work leading to the project, beginning with an overview of global sustainability conditions and followed by a brief overview of literature from both technology education and sustainability education. These analyses informed the development of the Declaration and prompted the authors to also reviewing how the PATT community has engaged with sustainability issues over time by investigating proceedings from PATT between 2003-2025. The paper outlines the main findings and concludes by presenting the Declaration’s call to action as a point of reflection for raising sustainability consciousness within the PATT context.
Copyright (c) 2026 Maria Svensson, Steve Keirl https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Journey from Liverpool to Norrköping: Taking Action to Challenge Technology Blindness Concerning Sustainability
The paper is written in the spirit of finding new ways of supporting PATT colleagues in their sustainability work, to model strategies of multidisciplinary academic collegiality and, above all, to try to do better for the planet. In conversation at PATT40 in Liverpool, the authors discussed a shared concern – the perception of an absence of technological discourse regarding sustainability and a reciprocal absence of sustainability discourse regarding technologies. This paper describes the authors’ initial conversations, the strategies undertaken to build a collegial network, applying for funding, and the outcomes to date of the project. The first stage of the journey involved identifying the problem through literature reviews, exploring international reports and discussing the issue with colleagues from beyond the PATT community. Three conclusions quickly emerged. First, that our initial concern was justified; second, that a multidisciplinary approach was essential; and third that funding would be needed to facilitate deeper and broader discussions with others. We developed a draft of the problem and a call to action. These became the first version of the Blindspot Declaration. The work behind the Declaration gave the basis for both a funding application and a one-page document with which to approach potential participants. Professors external to the field of Technology Education were invited to critique the draft as well as to nominate colleagues who might identify with its intentions. Over time, a group of co-participants was identified for their academic alignment with the concerns and their willingness to take action in line with the Declaration. In June 2025, ten academics from a range of disciplines and countries met for two days to discuss, refine and (mostly) ratify the Declaration. The Declaration is written to stimulate ongoing discussions, critique, and actions – together, addressing technology blindness concerning sustainability.
Copyright (c) 2026 Maria Svensson, Steve Keirl, Nina Christensson, Magdalena Svanström https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The background to this paper was a 2002 seminar that brought together various stakeholders, including teacher trainers, local authority advisors and inspectors, professional associations, government departments, and secondary school teachers. This collaboration aimed to investigate whether creativity was indeed in crisis within the design & technology classroom. The purpose of this paper is to investigate and analyse the opportunity for creativity in design and technology learning in England. The methodology used was a thematic document analysis focused on the English National Curriculum from 2002 to the present day. The key finding is that across the four pedagogical approaches to teaching design and technology, there are many opportunities to encourage creative activity. However, this paper asks: has anything truly changed since 2002? The seminar's findings were published in 2002 as Creativity in Crisis by Nuffield Design & Technology and the Design and Technology Association.
Copyright (c) 2026 Joanne Taylor, Dr HildaRuth Beaumont https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring Student Attitude Development in Engineering and Arts/Humanities Design Activities
Design-oriented activities are a central pedagogical strategy for integrating science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics (STEAM). Among these, engineering and arts/humanities design represent two distinct approaches with differing instructional processes and philosophies. Prior studies show that students’ motivations and affective responses vary across these approaches, influencing their attitudes towards technology education. Grounded in the PATT (Pupils’ Attitudes Towards Technology) framework—which addresses interest, perceived difficulty, gender roles, curriculum value, and career aspirations—this study systematically reviews research on engineering and arts/humanities design within technology education. Using keyword searches in major journals and a coding scheme developed for this study, PATT-related literature was analyzed. Descriptive results and key findings are synthesized to inform future research and instructional practices in technology-based curricula.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sy-Yi Tzeng, Shao-An Chiu https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Logics of Sustainability in Swedish Technology Education
In the global north of today, it is common to view technological progression as a means of achieving a sustainable future. This is true also in technology education. That is, sustainability is seen as dependent on technological progression – endlessly developing technologies. In this study, I explore how sustainability teaching in Swedish upper-secondary technology school is articulated in the Technology course syllabus and in six interviews with technology teachers about sustainability. I aim to understand why ideas of technological progression have such a grip on views sustainability in technology education. I use logics of critical explanation to explain and articulate the discursive structures that make this social practice possible. I pay attention to social logics (the characteristics of a practice, e.g. certain views on teaching), political logics (how practices are normalised or contested), and fantasmatic logics (how fantasies are used to defend or change practices). The findings show logics that support the hegemony of technological progression both in the syllabus and among the teachers. This happens through the articulation of an imagined future where technology is portrayed as the way to sustain modernity. These logics render arguments against technological progression and engineering-inspired teaching approaches invisible. I argue that such a practice risk creating a fixed view of teaching sustainability in technology education, while alternative ways of teaching sustainability are left unexplored. It also risks fortifying the instrumental idea of technology education as an education for the industry.
Copyright (c) 2026 Stefan Westin https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The use, or perceived use, of generative AI (GenAI) has spread throughout society, including among secondary education pupils. The availability of this technology affects education as a whole, and technology education in particular, as the subject that may have to lay the foundation for pupils' understanding of AI. There have been numerous studies on how teachers and pupils perceive GenAI, as well as research into its use. However, there has been little study of how the changes in education due to GenAI impacted pupils’ overall school experience. The present paper reports on the open-ended answers (n = 807) from a survey completed by Swedish upper secondary pupils in May 2024 (n = 1266). Through an inductive qualitative content analysis, main and subcategories were identified. Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) is used as a lens to conceptualise how GenAI mediates education. The pupils’ responses reveal that GenAI mediates pupils’ activity systems both through direct use and through institutional reactions to its presence. My analysis identifies several contradictions as pupils and teachers navigate the existence of GenAI as an available tool. These contradictions have eroded several dimensions of trust. The strongest of these is the teachers' trust in pupils, but also affected are pupils’ trust in their peers, pupils’ trust in the educational system’s ability to provide fair education and grading, to compensate for individual difficulties, and to provide an education that adequately prepares them for the future. Implications include the need for schools to address the consequences of their responses to GenAI and the importance for technology education to provide structured education and support for the use of GenAI.
Copyright (c) 2026 Mattias Wickberg Hugerth https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
From Quantitative Findings to Qualitative Insights
Building on a quantitative survey of 147 makerspaces in Germany that examined educational goals and methodological practices within an extended 4C skills framework, this paper presents a qualitative follow-up study. The preceding study revealed a strong emphasis on action-oriented goals such as technical skills and creativity, a comparatively lower relevance of computational thinking, and a predominant use of open formats such as open making and project-based learning. While these findings describe central patterns across makerspaces, they leave open questions regarding the educational rationales and interpretations underlying these priorities. The aim of this study is to deepen and contextualize the quantitative findings by reconstructing educational logics in makerspaces through guided expert interviews with Maker educators. The qualitative study follows an explanatory mixed-methods design and examines how skills within the extended 4C framework are conceptually understood, pedagogically justified, and enacted in practice. A central contribution of this paper is the development and theoretical grounding of an interview guide derived from the extended 4C framework and systematically linked to the results of the preceding quantitative study. The paper presents the methodological design, the structure and validation of the interview guide, and reflections from its pretesting. By linking quantitative patterns with qualitative insights, the study contributes to a more differentiated understanding of competence development and educational practices in makerspaces within technology education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tobias Wiemer, Gergö Degen, Quirin Schuldt https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Integrating Technical Expertise and Inclusive Pedagogy
Vocational technology teachers teach technology-related subjects in vocational and technical institutions. Preparing “dual-qualified” teachers, those competent in both technical expertise and pedagogical practice, is central to current reforms in vocational and technical education in China. “Dual-qualified” (双师型) teachers possess both industry-based technical credentials and formal teaching qualifications. This educational approach aims to bridge the gap between industry practice and classroom teaching by integrating technical knowledge with effective pedagogy. Yet in the Chinese context, the process through which these competencies are developed and enacted within teacher education remain under-theorised. This conceptual paper introduces a model that integrates technical expertise and inclusive pedagogy, understood as pedagogical approaches valuing learner diversity and authentic participation, into vocational technology teacher education. The model is developed through an integrative theoretical synthesis of literature on vocational technology teacher preparation, boundary-crossing learning, and sociocultural perspectives on learning transfer. It conceptualises teacher learning as participation in communities of practice spanning industry, university, and vocational institution contexts, where teachers recontextualise technical knowledge through participation, developing professional identity and pedagogical capacity. This model positions vocational technology teacher education as a boundary space where learning, belonging, and knowledge integration co-evolve. It proposes that the development of dual-qualified teachers is best understood as occurring through inclusive communities of practice that connect technical and educational cultures. It provides a conceptual basis for future empirical research examining how boundary-crossing, learning transfer, and inclusion shape teacher learning and identity. The first phase will investigate pre-service teachers’ experiences in Chinese technical normal universities, followed by studies of practicum partnerships and school–industry collaborations. These collaborations aim to co-design models that reflect inclusive, dual-qualified professional identities and strengthen connections between universities, vocational schools, and industry. The paper contributes to international discussions on preparing vocational technology teachers advancing inclusive and innovative practices in diverse educational contexts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jia Xu, P. John Williams https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploring MUFY Students’ Perceptions of Gender Inclusivity and Engagement in Technology-Enhanced Learning
Digital learning is now embedded in MUFY classrooms, shaping how students interact with knowledge, peers, and educators. As technology becomes central to teaching, questions about gender inclusivity remain crucial, particularly in educational stages that influence entry into STEM and technology-related fields. This study explores the perceptions of Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) Chemistry students towards gender inclusivity and engagement within a technology-enhanced learning environment. The MUFY programme is an internationally recognised Australian Year-12 qualification that prepares students for undergraduate studies. A structured questionnaire was administered, and responses were analysed using descriptive content analysis. Findings reveal encouraging trends as 89.6% of respondents believe male and female students are equally capable of succeeding in technology-enhanced learning environments, while 91.7% agreed that instructional materials reflected gender inclusively. Technology exposure appeared to increase interest, with 83.3% reporting enhanced curiosity about technology-related subjects or careers. It was good that 93.7% of students affirmed that educators encouraged creative and confident technology use for learners of all genders. Additionally, 89.4% indicated that coursework demonstrated how technology addresses real-world challenges across diverse communities. Nearly all respondents (97.9%) viewed gender equality in technology education as essential for building an inclusive future workforce. These results suggest that integration of digital tools can positively shape learners’ confidence and interest in technology. The findings carry practical implications for curriculum development, digital resource design, and professional learning in MUFY programmes seeking to foster equitable engagement in technology fields.
Copyright (c) 2026 Isabel Yee https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0