Design for Sustainability in the Victorian Essential Learning Standards

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Design for Sustainability in the Victorian
Essential Learning Standards

• Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority

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Sustainability The Brundtland Report (Our Common
Future, 1987)

• Meeting the needs of the present generation
  without compromising the ability of future
  generations to meet their needs

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Design for Sustainability

• Products can be considered as the embodiment of
  environmental harm caused by production,
  consumption and disposal.
• (Eve Heiskanen, Finnish environmental economist)
• Environmental impacts of a product locked in at
  the design stage but often not considered until
  disposal.

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Design for Sustainability

• Sustainable design considers a products
  environmental impact over its entire lifecycle.
• Products need to meet a range of requirements
  such as being functional, appealing and of an
  appropriate cost but they must also minimise
  their effect on the environment

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The Victorian Essential Learning Standards

• describes what is essential for students to know
  and be able to do
• Provides expected standards for the end of the
  six levels of the learning continuum
• give schools and teachers the authority to make
  their own decisions

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Three interwoven purposes

• Students will leave school with the capacity to
• manage themselves as individuals and in relation
  to others
• understand the world in which they live
• act effectively in that world

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Three core, interrelated strands

• Physical, Personal and Social Learning
• Discipline-based Learning
• Interdisciplinary Learning

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A whole school curriculum planning framework

• Three strands, equally important, interrelated,
  cannot be planned in isolation
• Schools determine how best to weave strands of
  essential learning together
• Use context of school priorities and students
  needs

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Physical, Personal and Social Learning
Knowledge, skills and behaviours in

• Health and Physical Education
• Interpersonal Development
• Personal Learning
• Civics and Citizenship

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Whats the Physical, Personal and Social
learning strand about?

• Responsibility for
• - physical well being
• - learning
• - relationships with others in local, national
  and global community

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Discipline-based Learning
Knowledge, skills and behaviours in

• The Arts
• English and Languages Other than English
• The Humanities
• Mathematics
• Science

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Whats the Discipline-based Learning strand about?

• Body of knowledge and ways of seeing the world
• Distinct methods of exploring, imagining and
  constructing the world

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Interdisciplinary Learning
Knowledge, skills and behaviours in

• Communication
• Design, Creativity and Technology
• Information and Communications Technology
• Thinking

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Whats the Interdisciplinary strand about?

• Cross discipline boundaries
• Preparing students as active learners and problem
  solvers
• Enabling domains

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Crossing boundaries in the curriculum

• Connections now need to be made between the
  domains some connections are easy others are
  more difficult
• Thinking, Communicating, Personal Learning and
  Interpersonal Development can be laid over almost
  every other domain.

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Design, Creativity and Technology

• Underpinning knowledge and skills- the
  design/technology process including use of design
  briefs
• - understanding characteristics of materials and
  systems
• -safe use of tools, equipment and machines
• Understanding impacts of design and technology on
  society/culture, the environment, the economy

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The Standards in the domain Design, Creativity
and Technology comprise three dimensions

• Investigating and designing
• Producing
• Analysing and evaluating

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Design, Creativity and Technology is about

• Design and technology processes and methodology
  for solving technological problems.
• This involves investigating and designing
  producing and analysing and evaluating. Students
  may work through these stages sequentially or
  return to an earlier phase, i.e. reflection and
  iteration are important

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Design, Creativity and Technology and links to
other domains
The design and technology process
Thinking processes
Social/cultural, environmental, economic impacts
Links to other domains

• Science (applying knowledge of materials,
  systems)
• Mathematics
• The Arts (aesthetics)
• ICT
• Interpersonal devt
• Health/nutrition/
• food (DC,T)

• Creative problem solving
• Communicating ideas
• Modeling
• Reflecting
• Risk assessment

• Creating wealth
• Enriching and enhancing daily lives
• Creating waste
• Using natural resources
• Sustainability
• Ethical issues
• Cultural meaning

• Investigating and designing
• Producing
• Analysing and evaluating

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Design process

• Greater prominence in Design, Creativity and
  Technology
• Models of the design process linear vs
  random/iterative
• Victorian government initiatives in design
• Many fields, many associated fields of knowledge
  (design factors and fundamentals in new Design
  and Tech SD)

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Creativity

• a process of challenging accepted ideas and ways
  of doing things
• divergent thinking
• imaginative activity that produces outcomes that
  are original and of value
• shown through originality making unusual
  connections
• about combining or reinterpreting ways of doing
  things or applications in new areas

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Risk assessment

• Process to determine likelihood of exposure to
  injury, illness or disease from any situation
  identified during the hazard identification
  process
• Greater level of regulation

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Sustainability

• Climate change
• Use of resources materials/energy
• The rise of China as a manufacturer

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Types of sustainability

• Economic
• Social
• Environmental/
• ecological
• (and all of the above combined)

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Why should we care about the sustainability and
the 4 R's?

• On average, over 80 of what we throw away can be
  recycled and/or reused
• Studies have shown that while we are recycling
  more, we are also throwing more away.

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Why should we care about the 4 R's?

• Each Australian produces on average about one
  tonne of rubbish per year
• 22.45 million tonnes of waste was sent landfill
  across the country in 2002
• Rubbish volume in landfills indicate Australia is
  one of the highest waste producers in the world

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Projected outcomes of a sustainability learning
focus

• Well being
• Knowledge of beneficial vs detrimental/destructive
  activities
• Preservation of life and the environment
• Human rights and equality (openness,
  accountability, inclusive)
• Balance of interests and values

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Concerns

• Humans using up earths resources
• Population explosion
• Technological boom
• Economics over care and respect for biological
  ecosystems
• Over consumption
• Limits to human activity for survival of planet

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Key messages

• Connectedness with other domains provides greater
  substance, strengthening and enrichment and
  provides authentic and deeper learning
  opportunities and lifelong learning
• Design, innovation and creativity are keys to a
  successful future we need to take learning DCT
  into the 21st century

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Links between Economics and Design, Creativity
and Technology

• Economic choices including resource use
• Making informed economic and consumer decisions

• Management and choices of materials
• Analysing social and environmental impacts of own
  and others designs, products and technological
  systems

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Links between Geography and Design, Creativity
and Technology

• Understanding of environmental issues based on
  inquiry
• Propose ways of ensuring the sustainability of
  resources

• Management and choices of materials
• Analysing social and environmental impacts of own
  and others designs, products and technological
  systems

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Links between Science and Design, Creativity and
Technology

• Explain the relationships, past and present, in
  living and non-living systems, in particular
  ecosystems, and the human impact on these systems.

• Management and choices of materials
• Analysing social and environmental impacts of own
  and others designs, products and technological
  systems

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Links between ICT and Design, Creativity and
Technology

• Use a variety of drawing and modelling techniques
  to visualise design ideas and concepts
• record and communicate their ideas using a
  variety of media that includes information and
  communications technology equipment, techniques
  and procedures.

• Select and apply ICT tools and editing functions
  that support the filtering, classifying,
  representing, describing and organising of
  concepts, issues and ideas

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Links between Civics and Citizenship and Design,
Creativity and Technology

• Participate in school and community events and
  participate in activities to contribute to
  environmental sustainability

• Analysing social and environmental impacts of own
  and others designs, products and technological
  systems

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Sustainability themes in VELS

• Waste management
• Packaging
• Housing for animals
• Energy efficient transport/housing
• Product e.g. container that incorporates recycled
  materials

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Sustainability themes in new VCE study designs
(Design and Tech)

• Unit 2, Outcome 1 social, economic, ethical and
  environmental issues related to design and the
  selection of materials and processes
• (pages 18 and 19)

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Sustainability themes in new VCE study designs
(Design and Tech)

• Unit 3, Outcome 1 how a designer collects and
  develops relevant information .includingenvironm
  ental concerns (page 24)

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Sustainability themes in VCE study designs
(Design and Tech)

• Unit 3, Outcome 2 .aspects influencing design,
  production, distribution and use of products
  including..environmental management and
  ecological factors such as the use of Life Cycle
  Analysis (LCA)
• (factors that influence the design, development
  and manufacture of products within
  industrial/commercial settings) (pages 25 and 26)

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Sustainability themes in VCE study designs
(Design and Tech)

• Unit 3, Outcome 2 - Style obsolescence and
  technical or functional planned obsolescence and
  the benefits and problems for the producer and
  consumer, and associated environmental issues
• (page 25)

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Sustainability themes in VCE study designs
(Design and Tech)

• Unit 4, Outcome 1 analyse the impact on society
  and the environment of a product and one other
  similar product in terms of materials and energy
  used to make and/or maintain the product, safety
  and disposal at the end of its life, and its
  recyclability or reuse (page 31)

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Sustainability themes in new VCE study designs
(Systems Engineering)

• Unit 1, Outcome 3 analyse the effect of a
  selected technological system on society and the
  environment and evaluate social and environmental
  issues and trade-offs
• (page 16)

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Sustainability themes in new VCE study designs
(Systems Engineering)

• Unit 2, Outcome 3 the current forms of
  alternative energy and alternative fuels
• review and present information about the ways new
  and emerging technology interacts with society
  and the natural environment (pages 21 and 22)

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Sustainability themes in new VCE study designs
(Systems Engineering)

• Unit 3, Outcome 3 Energy use and effects on
  engineered systems and the environment (pages 27
  and 28)

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Big questions

• Can designers and makers help lift people out of
  poverty?
• Can technology alleviate or reverse climate
  change?
• Do you agree with the statement that every
  technology has expected and unexpected outcomes?
• Others?

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Resources from UK and USA

• STEPS and Practical Action (UK)
• -Websites
• -Worksheets and activities
• The Impact model (USA)

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Resources

• Websites
• http//vels.vcaa.vic.edu.au
• http//www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/blueprint
• http//www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/studentreports/index.
  htm
• Student Learning February 2006 DVD

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Contact details

• Lorraine Tran
• Technology Curriculum Manager
• tran.lorraine.i_at_edumail.vic.gov.au
• [phone]