Publicly available information says that the Ministry of Education “worked closely with experts in the education sector and with the digital technologies industry to develop early drafts of the curriculum content” and “this combined international experience and New Zealand research on key learning in digital technologies. I have made an Official Information Request (equivalent of FOIA) for more details about which countries’ experiences this drew on.
In late 2017 the New Zealand Ministry of Education consulted the public on the draft digital technology curriculum through workshops, online surveys, and by accepting written submissions. The stated aims of the curriculum are helping to develop digitally capable thinkers, producers and creators. The Technology Curriculum learning area has three strands: Technological Practice, Technological Knowledge and Nature of Technology. These three strands are embedded within each of five technological areas:
The Ministry received 33 written responses and over 500 survey responses to its consultation (link to report on submissions received).
We need to train our students to consider the social and ethical impacts of the programs and developments they create at the point of creation. It is not good enough to say “I’m just an engineer” to absolve any responsibility for possible ill uses of a creation or development. This culture change - reintroducing an awareness of the impact of technology on real people - starts with teaching our students to critically think about the effects of technology and how it is presented. In the “nature of technology” strand of the curriculum students develop an understanding of technology as a discipline and learn to critique the impact of technology on societies and environment. I would hope this aspect includes a critical exploration about the manipulation of human behavior or thinking – how a product can be designed to present information to trigger a particular thought, or elicit a particular response.
In response to the question: Is learning about privacy / intellectual property / responsible use of digital devices part of the new curriculum? The Ministry responds: Many of these topics will be involved in Digital Technologies and Hangarau Matihiko learning – for example, students will consider ethics and the impacts of products they design on people. Additionally, these topics align against the key competencies within the National Curricula, and would be seen as an important part of self-management learning in in this digital age. The Ministry acknowledges the role for parents in this “Help your children understand that digital technologies gives them the tools; but they still need to know how to work together, communicate, lead, make ethical decisions and plan in order to succeed."
I look forward to seeing how the curriculum is applied in schools and how it adapts to new technologies and social challenges that are raised in the future. -- By RebeccaBonnevie - rewrite 6 Apr 2018