Technology in the elementary school: Blind variation and selective retention |
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| Authors: | Dr Joan Solomon |
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| Institution: | (1) Centre for Science Education, Pentz Building, Open University, Walton Hall, MK7 6AA Milton Keyes, UK |
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| Abstract: | Teaching technology without reference to the human need which calls for it, not only gives students the wrong idea about the
nature of technology, it also hides the importance of the testing of artifacts for operation in the relevant environment.
The research reported in this paper began with the trialing of stories designed to show the social need which triggered new
invention, in the appropriate period of history, through the eyes of contemporary children of our pupils' age. The pupils
were asked to design their working models through drawings, to construct them, and then to test and evaluate them. The model
used to understand the interplay between the ideas in the minds of pupils, and the selection process which decided on their
worthiness, is one drawn from evolutionary epistemology. Data shows that some elementary school children do recognise the
mental nature of the design activity as the combination of parts of remembered mechanisms, and the grounds for selection as
fitness for the job in the chosen environment. This approach goes some way towards distinguishing aspects of technological
education from scientific education, including the high value accorded to creativity and personal invention in technology. |
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