EST400 - Assignment 2

Created By: Sebastian Britton & Georgia Lofthouse

1st lesson: Watch video followed by what type of bridge is best for certain situations

2nd lesson: Material selection and bridge designing time

3rd lesson: Bridge building competition

Introduction - Design Brief

Topic: Engineering - Bridge Building
Year Level: 3&4 - Three lessons
Curriculum Links:
- Investigate how forces and the properties of materials affect the behaviour of a designed
solution (VCDSTC024)*
- Critique needs or opportunities for designing and explore and test a variety of materials,
components, tools and equipment and the techniques needed to create designed
solutions (VCDSCD028)*
- Select and use materials, components, tools and equipment using safe work practices to
produce designed solutions (VCDSCD030)*
- Generate, develop, and communicate design ideas and decisions using appropriate
technical terms and graphical representation techniques (VCDSCD029)*
- Investigate the suitability of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment for a
range of purposes (VCDSTC027)*
- Plan a sequence of production steps when making designed solutions (VCDSCD032)*
Task Description:
Our unit will focus on bridge building, materials used in bridge construction as well as design
structure and how it affects the role and strength of a bridge. Within each lesson students will
undertake a variety of tasks so as to learn about the basics of bridge engineering prior to
creating their own bridge which will be made and tested during the final lesson. Students will be
assessed in both a formative and summative manner, which will take into account each
students planned design, appropriate material use in bridge construction and load bearing
capability. Student bridges will need to meet the following criteria:
- Ability to resist at least 1kg of weight
- Must span a distance of 50cm
- Must include some key structural bridge building aspects (eg. triangles)
- Must make use of relevant construction materials

Integration with other learning areas

Although our technology unit is based primarily around design and technologies, a number of
links can be made to other areas of the curriculum. Within science this task links directly to the
content descriptor Forces can be exerted by one object on another through direct contact or
from a distance, (VCSSU064)*. This is due to the fact that students will be testing the effect/s
that one object object (rock, toy car, etc) will have on their bridges (second object) structure,
and load bearing ability. Mathematics is also touched on in part as students will need to make
appropriate measurements to ensure that the bridge appropriately satisfies the design briefs
requirements (length, load bearing, etc), thereby linking directly to the descriptor Use scaled
instruments to measure and compare lengths, masses, capacities and temperatures
(VCMMG165)*.

*= Source Victorian Curriculum 2016

Skills and Knowledge

At every stage of the technology process of this unit students are expected to gain and in-turn
retain knowledge and skills relevant to the topic of engineering, in particular bridge building. At
the investigating stage of the unit students will be gaining and building upon knowledge of the
building materials, tools and the equipment they will be using when designing and building their
bridges. Students will be expected to learn about what materials are best for their designed
bridge, why these materials are best, as well as determine the most effective tools they can use
when building their product. Students will also develop skills relevant to the best shapes to use
in their bridge and should be able to explain how these shapes benefit the overall strength and
load capacity of their designed bridge. By developing and building upon these skills, students
are improving their critical thinking abilities, which in turn helps refine students ...effective
communication and problem solving abilities. (Doane University 2017, para. 2) In-turn creating
more informed and independent learners.

At the generating stage of the technology process students are expected to develop upon their
planning skills, as well as improve on their ability to discuss and explain their choices in terms of
design. Students will have also built upon their ability to work and collaborate with other
individuals and will be expected to have developed upon their communicative and choice-
making skills. This allows students to become more collaborative learners, leading to Higher
achievement and greater productivity (Laal 2011, p. 487) just one of a number of other benefits.
Safety is another skill area that will be built upon at this stage of the unit as students will
improve upon their knowledge of appropriate safety procedure, and learn about the best ways
they can prevent harming themselves or others when using tools and/or building materials (eg.
Heat-proof gloves when using a glue gun).

During the producing stage of the technology process students will be able to develop upon
their practical and decision making skills. These skills will be improved upon as students will be
building their product, therefore requiring proper technique during these processes so as to
create a sturdy and well built bridge based on their design. Students will also be expected to
have great skill in explaining why they have used the materials they have within their bridge,
describing the role of each material and how it benefits the bridges strength and structure.

At the evaluating stage of the technology process students will develop upon their reflective
knowledge. Determining ways in which they could have improved upon their bridges design to
create a much stronger, sturdier and better end product. Students will also be expected to have
improved upon their critiquing ability in such a way that they can give appropriate feedback
(constructive criticism, suggestions, etc) to other students, as well as positively take in this
feedback themselves. By doing so students become better peer teachers, which is proven to
...promote active learning, reinforce their own learning by helping others and improve student
peer interaction (Saga Briggs 2013, para. 4).

Teaching of technological skills and knowledge

Each of the lessons has been designed in such a way as to teach students the skills and
knowledge they are expected to learn with great success. The investigating stage of the
technology process will be taking place during the first lesson of the unit. Students will begin the
lesson by watching a YouTube video titled What Makes Bridges So Strong? (What Makes
Bridges So Strong? 2015) which gives information regarding structures and shapes that make
bridges strong (triangles, even distribution, etc), as well as listing some of the different types of
bridges and what roles they fill. Following the viewing of this video students will take part in a
discussion where they will describe what the video was about, as well as what
structures/shapes are required when designing a bridge. The teacher/s will ask students open-
ended questions during this activity to prompt student critical-thinking and promote proper
student understanding of the concepts being taught. After this discussion the tools and materials
that students will be using during their bridge building will be introduced and they will need to
describe to one another how effective each material and tool would be during construction of
their bridge. Finally students will be given a range of scenarios that require the construction of
bridges and they will need to select the most appropriate bridge design according to the
scenario.

The second lesson will be where the generating strand of the technology process is focused on
as students (in pairs) will be required to collaborate with each other and plan a bridge according
to the design brief stated previously. The lesson will begin with the teacher/s showing the class
a bridge blueprint example, helping the students learn what a blueprint is and what you need to
put in a blueprint. Students will then be paired up and given the rest of the duration of the lesson
to create their own bridge blueprint/plan which they will base their physical product off of in the
final lesson. During this time the teacher/s will be able to question students on their design
choices, getting students to really think about how they can best design their bridge. This helps
to improve upon student collaborative and decision-making skills. Students will also need to
include in their plan the materials and tools they will use when constructing their bridges, as well
as the safety procedures they will follow during the construction of their bridge. At the end of the
lesson, students will present their plans to another group of peers where they will explain their
design choices before giving feedback. In essence promoting a collaborative, student-centred
learning environment.

Within the third and final lesson the production stage of the technology process will have been
reached and students will put their plan into action and build their previously designed bridge
with their partner. Teacher input will be minimal in this lesson as students will have the entirety
of the learning block to build their bridge prior to testing at the end of the session. During this
time the teacher/s will have the opportunity to observe student bridges, asking open-ended
questions about their designs to gauge student understanding of the concepts involved in the
unit. Following the building stage of the lesson students will have their bridges tested one-by-
one so as to determine whether or not their designs meet the requirements of the design brief.
During this time students have the opportunity to give each other feedback on their designs,
allowing for peer teaching and (once again) giving students the floor, making the task student-
centred. As has been proven, student-centred learnings active approach helps in getting
...students to actually work with information, and therefore learn it and store it (Qatar University
2017, para. 3) in-turn making these activities highly effective in teaching students the important
concepts behind engineering and bridge building.

Formative assessment-
In the investigating stage, students need to investigate the needs of the design solution, the
materials most suitable, and the type of bridges and which one they wish to make. In aligning
with the constructivist approach (Luescher & Kutz 2005) students will decide how best to
investigate. This may include creating a sample board, feeling different textures and strengths of
materials, or using the internet to research bridges and strong materials for example. At this
stage the assessment will involve discussions and observations of students work. This is just to
track student understanding of the task, and identify if there needs to be any clarification with
knowledge of bridges. Clarification can come from open ended questions to promote thinking
(Computing at home 2017, p. 11) for students to re-think their direction.

In the generating stage in lesson two, students will begin sketching ideas and decide on one
they think is their best design. This will be explained to the class, and why they think the design
will work. Both the presentation and sketches, will be a form of assessment for the teacher. It
will indicate whether students have grasped not only how to make meaningful choices, create a
bridge, in what way to join it together, how to construct it to be strong and reliable. Students may
need to be re-directed to the design brief if off track.

In the producing stage (lesson 3) students, will make the product, using the sketches and prior
knowledge as a guide. Using their knowledge from the investigation of characteristics of
materials, they will build the product using specific skills and tools. Observations will determine
the collaborative nature of problem solving, which is an important skill (Luescher & Kutz 2005,
p.10). This also includes the production skills needed, specifically when using different tools to
join pieces together (tape and hot glue gun). Observation will provide insight, into if more
instruction is needed to hone these skills. Discussions with students about how they are finding
the process, any difficulties etc. will help advise the formative assessment, about construction,
knowledge about bridges and the strongest way to form them. Students also have the chance to
make any last-minute changes, this comments on students reflective skills to uncover if
students can identify possible issues with suitability (VCAA 2016).

In the evaluation stage the presentation, testing, POE and discussion around that will inform the
summative assessment. But the input and discussion coming from peers, will inform of the
understanding of how students engage with the whole process of building the bridge, the
effectiveness and quality. The reflection stage is just as important to consider, of how students
perceive their own and others works in these areas. Planning and management will be
achieved, by showing students how much time they have left, so they can self-regulate and
delegate tasks. The independence and giving students control is important to student-centred
learning (Campbell, MacPherson, Sawkins 2014, p. 68). Observations of students will indicate
how well they do this, and will also help in determining the quality of the bridge sketches and
final bridge. The teacher may need to guide students who fall behind in this area, aiding them in
focusing on planning in the future.

Materials, tools and equipment focused on-

In constructing their bridge students will use a range of materials, and will decide on the most
suitable for the task in the investigating stage. This will also include the type of bridge they wish
to construct. These materials include, popsicle sticks, string, cardboard, paper, toilet rolls, cups,
tape, straws and soft wood. The extensive list of materials will be supplied, as students in the
older year levels are more capable to deal with more complex materials, that may require more
work and detail to joining techniques. The materials are easily accessible to use in the
classroom, and are low cost to the teacher, if more materials need to be bought. They are
materials students will be familiar with and will be more confident in choosing and manipulating
them for their bridge. The range of materials ensure students arent limited to only one type of
bridge, but can be creative in their design. Scissors, tape and a hot glue gun will be the tools
used to assemble the bridge. Students will need to be shown how best to join materials together
using tape by demonstrating how tape needs to be put across both surfaces in a tight way.
Understanding the best use of tools will be a skill students will begin to understand, and will
advance their fine motor skills, through and coordination through the activity (VCAA 2016). As
students production skills improve, so will their design solutions (VCAA 2016).

Safety aspects-
During the lessons students, will need to be careful when using scissors in particular. Including
walking around the room with scissors, and making holes in materials like cardboard, need to
ensure its completed on a surface and away from fingers. If it's decided that a hot glue gun will
be needed, (that tape would be strong enough), students must be supervised and taught
explicitly how to use it. The expectations of use and ensuring only minimal that glue is used is
important. A station will be set up for the students to work at where they can be monitored.
Demonstrating/modelling to students how to use both items is important before they undertake
the task.

Summative assessment-
In the final lesson students, will be constructing their bridges in pairs using materials provided,
to hold an amount of weight. The assessment will be based on the planning and construction of
the bridge and ultimately if it can hold any weight. The final assessment will be looking at the
process and consideration of students to make the task. Students will display their bridge to the
class before testing it, and explain the process of understanding which materials are best, and
the design to go with it. Students will explain the design process involved with the task, and how
the knowledge gained from previous lessons, helped them to manipulate the production skills to
complete the task. The product must show how skills have been used to create it, e.g. how the
materials have been joined. It must also include knowledge of what makes a solid bridge.
Before testing the bridges, each pair will engage in predict-observe-explain task (Dalziel 2010,
p. 13). This will involve predicting what might happen to their bridge, and afterwards explain
what went wrong, and assess any modifications to be made to improve. The metacognition
involved in the reflection and understanding of what can be improved, is an important part of the
assessment (Dalziel 2010, p. 14). Without reflection about the process, students wont engage
with deeper learning (Dalziel 2010, p. 14). The reflection is an equally important part of the
summative assessment, as the testing and discussion of the product.

References:

Campbell, C, MacPherson, S, Sawkins, T 2014, Preparing students for education, work and
community: activity theory in task-based curriculum design, TESL Canada Journal, vol. 31, no.
8, pp. 68-92, retrieved 9 May 2017, <http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy-
f.deakin.edu.au/eds/detail/detail?vid=10&sid=205af7e1-7f09-497a-b5c3-
1e8630f8488c%40sessionmgr4010&hid=113&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c
2l0ZQ%3d%3d#db=eue&AN=100783251>.

Dalziel, J 2010, Practical teaching strategies for predict-observe-explain problem-based learning

and role plays, LAMS International, New South Wales.
Computing at School 2017, Computational thinking, Computing at School, retrieved 11 May
2017, < https://d2l.deakin.edu.au/d2l/le/content/542216/viewContent/3444358/View>.

Luescher, A, Kutz, S 2005, Working it out by hand: construction as a creative act, Technology
Teacher, vol. 64, no. 5, pp. 10-13, retrieved 9 May 2017, <http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy-
f.deakin.edu.au/eds/detail/detail?vid=15&sid=205af7e1-7f09-497a-b5c3-
1e8630f8488c%40sessionmgr4010&hid=113&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c
2l0ZQ%3d%3d#db=aci&AN=16211958>.

VCAA- see Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority

Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority 2016, Design and technologies, Victorian
Curriculum and Assessment Authority, retrieved 16 May 2017,
<http://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/technologies/design-and-
technologies/introduction/rationale-and-aims>.

Appendices:
 LESSON 1 Introduction: Body: Conclusion:
Learning intention: To
understand bridge
structure and how
different designs can
affect the strength and
role of a bridge

Time 20 minutes 20 minutes 20 minutes

Activity (Skills/knowledge) Show What Materials and tools Bridge scenario

Makes Bridges So discussion is had in which students
Strong? prior to between students. will need to
class discussion in Students will have select the most
reference to the this time to effective bridge
video and how determine the role for each scenario
designs and of each material given to them.
shapes can affect and tool when
the strength of a constructing their
bridge. bridges.

Teacher action Teacher directed Teacher will ask Gathering

with whole class open-ended answers to each
following video questions to the scenario and
viewing. students regarding getting students
the to explain why
effectiveness/role they decided on
of each tool and that particular
material. design for each
scenario.

Assessment Answers ins Student answers

regards to the to the scenario
most effective task will be taken
bridges for a given as a form of
situation. formative
assessment.
 LESSON 2 Introduction: Body: Conclusion:
Learning intention: To
decide on bridge design
and investigate the best
materials to use.

Time 10 minutes 30 minutes 20 minutes

Activity (Skills/knowledge) Recap over the Students begin to Students sketch

types of bridges investigate what final idea for the
and showing the type of bridge they design they wish
materials on offer would like to make to create and
to students. and best materials what materials to
to do so. Can do be used. They
so by sketching, will show this to
creating a sample the class and
board, prototype, explain how they
research on the came to that
internet etc. decision.

Teacher action Teacher directed Observing students Listening to

with whole class while working and students show
revising the checking in with their design to
different bridges students about the the class and
direction of their explaining how
bridge. they decided on
that particular
design.

Assessment Discussion with Sketches will be

the whole class to taken as
gauge formative
understanding of assessment
task set for them
and the different
and best bridges.

LESSON 3 Introduction: Body: Conclusion:

Learning intention: To
build sturdy bridges and
understand how the
technology process is
needed to do that.

Time 10 minutes 35 minutes 15 minutes

Activity (Skills/knowledge) Teacher models Students build their Students discuss

safe practice with bridges ensure it the process of
scissors and hot meets the needs of planning and
glue gun. design brief using creating the
a range of bridge with the
Teacher reiterates materials. Deciding class. Other
with the students on how best to students can ask
what the task construct their questions about
involves model, using the their design.
tools provided. Students will
then test their
bridges and
conduct a POE
followed by a
self-reflection.

Teacher action Explicit instruction Guiding students Facilitating a

of what is who ask for help discussion about
expected of and monitoring students work
students, how to students at the and
safely use the station using the understanding
tools. hot glue gun. the process they
went through.
Teacher will
listen to students
presentations
and help with the
testing of the
bridges to ensure
its fair amongst
all students.

Assessment Check for Observations of The testing and

understanding by the students verbal
asking students to working by the explanation of
reiterate what the teacher to see if their bridge and
task involves. they are on the technology
right track. process used.
Self-reflection by
students what
worked well,
what could be
improved.