Brief+Development

back to **Technological Practice**  **Brief development**
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This component allows students opportunity to understand the values of others, as they identify an authentic need or opportunity based on a comprehensive exploration and critical analysis of a context, associated issues, and a wide range of stakeholders’ desires. In defining specifications, students will be required to understand a range of different values in order to ensure that fitness for purpose is established in its broadest sense. Stakeholder values from the wider community will therefore need to be analysed and compared, and any areas of contestation identified and resolved. Through such analysis, the brief can be developed in a way that is acceptable to all key stakeholders and for those who may be impacted on, indirectly or in the future. Having the opportunity to work with students who were wheelchair bound allowed a student to develop empathy for others as she came to appreciate specific challenges they face. Valuing the perspectives and values, alongside the physical requirements of her client group, was essential in developing a brief that guided the development of an outcome that was empowering for the client group and not merely functional.

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Context**
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’Context’ in technology education has been used to refer to the overall focus of a technological development or of a technological learning experience within technology education. In order to ensure that the contexts chosen provide for a range of diverse learning opportunities, programmes should include contexts in both senses as explained above. These contexts should cover a range of transformations associated with technology. That is, the transformation of energy, information and/or materials for the purpose of manipulation, storage, transport and/or control. When talking about the ** Context of a technological development **, the term refers to the wider physical and social environment within which the development occurs.  For example: The context of • Zambesi’s work was that of //rebranding an airline //, with a focus on the manipulation of information The context of wind generation is • //sustainable energy generation //, with a focus on the storage and control of energy The context of a packaged scallop product is • //marketable food products //, with a focus on the manipulation, transport and storage of material and information – Techlink case study When talking about the ** context of a technological learning experience **the term refers to all the aspects that must be thought about to situate the learning.  For example: The context in Meeting Seating was • //outdoor seating within a school environment //, with a focus on the manipulation of materials – see //Connected Series 2005 Volume 2 //  The context in • ICT Programming was //programme development in ICT //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">, with a focus on the control and storage of information The context in • Hairs your Gift was //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">hair care //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">, with a focus on the manipulation and storage of materials back to top


 * Issue**

An issue in technology refers to a specific subset of the context that will allow students to identify a need or <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">opportunity. For example: the issue in Meeting Seating was • //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">designing seating that enhances discussion //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">– see //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">Connected Series 2005 Volume 2 // <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;"> the issue in • ICT Programming was //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">developing educational programmes // <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">the issue in • Hairs your Gift was //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">developing hair products //

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 * Need or Opportunity**

A ** need **<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">in technology refers to an identified requirement of a person, group or environment. A need is identified from an issue, and sits within a context. Technological practice can be undertaken in an attempt to meet an identified need. For example, the need in Meeting Seating was //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">to develop a seat appropriate for a school garden where students could meet for discussions //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">– see //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">Connected Series 2005 Volume 2. //

An ** opportunity **<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">in technology refers to an identified possibility for a person, group or environment. An opportunity is identified from an issue, and sits within a context. Technological practice can be undertaken in an attempt to realise an identified opportunity. For example, the opportunity in Hairs your Gift was //<span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">to create a gift for a selected recipient. // back to top

**Stakeholders**

Stakeholders are any individuals or groups who have a vested interest in the technological development or technological outcome. Key stakeholders <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow; font-size: 121%;">are those people that are directly influential or will be directly impacted on by the technological practice itself and/or its resulting outcomes (including the technological outcome and any other by-products). Wider community stakeholders <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow; font-size: 120%;">are those people that are less directly influential for or impacted on by the practice or outcome. They can, nonetheless, be identified as having some level of influence, often through others, and/or they may be affected by the project or its outcome in the future. back to top

Attributes and Specifications**
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Attributes <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">are descriptive aspects of the physical and functional nature of a technological outcome. Specifications <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">define the requirements of the physical and functional nature of the outcome in a way that is measurable. For example, an attribute may refer to the outcome being small enough to be comfortably held, whereas the <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow;">specification would give the precise measurement in terms of length, width and depth. back to top

Fitness for Purpose in its BroadestSense** **
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The concept of ‘fitness for purpose’ is commonly used to judge the ability of an outcome to serve its purpose in ‘doing the job’ within the intended location, where the job to be done is clearly defined by the brief. When ‘fitness <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow; font-size: 120%;">for purpose’ is described as being ‘in its broadest sense’, the concept is extended to include the determination of the ‘fitness’ of the practices involved in the development of the outcome, (including such things as the sustainability of resources used, treatment of people involved in manufacture, ethical nature of testing practices, cultural appropriateness of trialling procedures, determination of lifecycle and ultimate disposal etc), as well as the ‘fitness’ of the outcome itself. Extending the concept in this way is an attempt to locate both the concept of ‘fitness for purpose’ and its <span style="font-family: Arial Narrow,Arial Narrow; font-size: 120%;"> application within a philosophical understanding of the nature of technology whereby the performance of any outcome is but one of the factors that justifies a positive ‘fitness for purpose’ judgment.

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