Browsing by Subject "suunnitteluprojektit"

Aim. The goal of the study is to examine how pupils perceive the progression and the material challenges of technology education invention projects. These invention projects usually refer to multidisciplinary projects where pupils produce a concrete resolution to a problem they have chosen themselves by utilizing methods related to the field of technology education. These methods include co-operation, designing and programming which are also required in the curriculum. To illustrate the progression of the invention projects, different kinds of process models have been designed. A synthesis of these process models and Barlex's design-decision pentagon are used in the study to reflect on the material challenges of the pupils' invention projects and how the pupils responded to these challenges. Methods. The study was conducted by interviewing seven pupils who formed a total of three invention project groups. These pupils were a part of a robotics club, and they were aiming to compete in a robotics tournament hosted by the Innokas Network. These interview answers were analyzed using qualitative content analysis, and the pupils' descriptions were compared to the invention project process model and the Barlex's design-decision pentagon. Results. The pupils' descriptions of the invention projects featured different phases of the process model, although the differences between the phases were sometimes hard to discern. The pupils viewed the invention project process as very linear and described the process as forward-going even when they were backtracking in the process model. The material challenges the pupils encountered were related to both the programmable technology in the invention and the materials combined with the technology, such as cardboard and paper. Traditional crafts material wood was considered by one group, but textiles were not featured in any project. The motivations for the designing process were different between the groups, where one group was motivated by the aesthetic side of the invention and others by the function of the invention.