Abstract
If teachers are not equipped to teach Technology Education subject nationally and internationally, the continent of Africa will continue to bear the brunt of unsavoury results unless radical interventions are implemented to transform the situation. It is against this background that action research methods became a useful site-based support to empower Technology teachers at three sampled schools from Tshwane South Circuit in Gauteng Province of South Africa. The purpose of this study was to share fresh perspectives on how a sample of Technology teachers responded to content-related classroom practices during reflective action research activities that took place during community engagement contact sessions. These teachers, who are under qualified and unqualified to teach this subject, were engaged in circular and spiral action research cycles. The teachers’ engagement brought forth the development of Technology Education Cascading Theory. It was evident that community engagement activities served as a podium to transform teachers’ teaching of Technology Education and enhance learners’ achievement. The study was underpinned by cooperative enquiry theory and engaged participants in reflective practices of developmental action paradigm. Interaction with Technology Education teachers further revealed that most of them need their schools to budget for this Technology subject they are teaching.
Highlights
Technology Education has developed over the past 50 years from a skills-based school subject that focussed on tool usage and product making that assisted learners with future employment to a programme for studying technological literacy that develops technological problem-solving skills through hands-on project designs (Ritz and Bevins 2016)
This study intends to respond to the following research question: How did community engagement, site-based support with teachers constituted the development of a Technology Education (TE) cascading theory?
This study intends to display how action research practitioners can actively involve their participants through community engagement practices as part of displaying participants’ empowerment and how the participants benefitted from previous action research cycles
Summary
Technology Education has developed over the past 50 years from a skills-based school subject that focussed on tool usage and product making that assisted learners with future employment to a programme for studying technological literacy that develops technological problem-solving skills through hands-on project designs (Ritz and Bevins 2016). Most of the teachers are still faced with the hurdles of TE pedagogy and didactics (Pudi 2007) It is against this background that the study purports to share fresh perspectives on how the action research approach, within community engagement with ill equipped TE teachers, has led to the development of a TE cascading theory. In support of the preceding statement, Mapotse (2017: 169) stressed that the situation for Technology teaching was exacerbated by many educational changes that had taken place in South Africa over the last few decades. These changes included the overhauling of curricula followed by a strategic and symbolic review which was a sign of change since the first democratic election of 1994. This study intends to display how action research practitioners can actively involve their participants through community engagement practices as part of displaying participants’ empowerment and how the participants benefitted from previous action research cycles
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