Design Technology : Children's Engineering [Paperback]

Susan Dunn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1989

This work is not designed to be exclusively a compendium of readily-adapted classroom ideas or engineering techniques, the authors' intent is rather to make a contribution to the repertoire of useful strategies for orchestrating design technology experiences. The book presents a grassroots, child-centred approach to true education transformation - educators may see this as part of a new progressivism which includes such elements as co-operative learning, the whole language approach to literacy, and inquiry approaches in science and mathematics. The chapters of the book roughly follow an approximation of the design process, from context to case studies.

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (December 1, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1850005907
• ISBN-13: 978-1850005902
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,306,502 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Constructivism Made Real, June 3, 2001

By 

L. Polin "lpolin" (CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Design Technology : Children's Engineering (Paperback)

I stumbled across the Dunn and Larson book a decade ago, when it was new. It is STILL a vital text, and I am dismayed to learn it periodically goes out of print.

The book builds upon the now-eroded British primary school(i.e,. elementary) school model called "design technology." Firmly rooted in the tradition of John Dewey and Lev Vygtosky, design technology sets students and teachers to work together to construct meaningful objects that are initially just beyond the reach of any one child alone. In working on their constructions, such as mechanical toys, students are assisted in working through a cycle of several processes: contextualizing, clarifying, inquiring, planning, realizing, testing, modifying, interpreting, reflecting, and back again to contexualizing.

What sets this book apart from others is that it is situated in real practice. Liberally illlustrated with classroom pictures of students and teachers at work, the book beautifully blends theory with practice. The authors can talk about the value of planning and how it unfolds for children, and also offer very practical planning scaffolds for children, e.g., planning webs, project calendars, and task sequencing, illustrated with real children's work.

While the book is NOT particularly oriented toward computer technology, the reader will find today's software tools (Inspiration, Lego Logo, etc.) crying out for integration into the design technology process.

The authors address assessment issues, offer information on additional resources, even provide staff development stories and photos. The book is gorgeous, very readable, inspirational, and yet practical. See also: Stephen Levy, Starting From Scratch: One Classroom Builds Its Own Curriculum (available here at Amazon).