Meeting notes; Practitioner Roundtable 

Below are the notes taken during the meeting. There were many points raised. There were 17 teachers in attendance from a range of secondary settings. There was a cross section of secondary provision represented. State comprehensive, inner-city state, rural state, grammar, independent schools, boarding public schools and international schools were all represented. 

1. Motivation of students can be enhanced through the use of competitions, such as the V+A Innovate Competition and the Design Museum’s Design Ventura. The group discussed and recommended several other competitions alongside these.

2. The ‘D&T Days Gone By Museum’ at Ely College was described and other schools mentioned similar, small-scale attempts to have a handling tray, or a corner of a room, which pupils can use to help bring research to life.

3.  Departments which are able to evidence the wider work that they do, through communicating with parents and other staff in the school, may be able to support greater funding for the department.

4.  Communicating the good work that goes on in departments through exhibitions, parent’s evenings, open days, was considered a positive approach to increasing the value of the subject. When parents visit a school, they are often shown the D&T or art departments, as they are vibrant and exciting places, but the emphasis from school management is often the academic subjects.

5.  One of the innovations is the concept of a ‘sustainable department’. Where possible, waste is kept to a minimum, and recycled/re-used. Products and activities are carefully considered to make sure that the pupils are aware of the impact their designs will have on the wider environment.

6. Social media was raised as both a positive tool for collaborating, and a negative aspect due to the negativity displayed in some of the D&T Facebook groups. The Food Teachers Centre and Textiles Academy are carefully moderated to control what appears on their Facebook pages – there does not seem to be a similar approach in other D&T communities.

7.  Different pathways for pupils were discussed, including alternatives to GCSE/A Level. These included the WJEC construction course, based on building trades. This could be an engaging pathway for some pupils, as an alternative to the GCSE. The International Baccalaureate was also discussed, which may be engaging for a different section of pupils.

8. The value of the subject including expectations and aspirations was seen as an important thread of communication.

9. One school has a map of the UK with student destination data represented on it. This data is available from the careers (or equivalent) department in every secondary school.

10. There was a general agreement of moving from projects with a specified outcome, to an awareness of the need to develop skills appropriate to the intended destination, GCSE, A Level, FE, Workplace, apprenticeship, etc.

11. Curriculum design should not be seen as project based. Departments need to consider:

    1. 1. • What is the stuff the pupils need to know by the end of KS3?

          • What is the core learning?

          • What is needed in preparation for the next stage?

12. The GCSE in product design as a pathway for all pupils, is not appropriate. It is not a one size fits all solution, as it may have been intended to be. It was thought by some that there is too much content which leads to some teaching to the exam. In one school, the teaching of theory is left to private study, the pupils barter practical time with putting in time at home to do the theory.

13.  Many schools are firefighting on a daily basis, dealing with behaviour, wellbeing, funding, parental engagement, attendance, OFSTED, and other issues, which eats into the capacity of a department to develop innovation or a future vision for the subject.

14. The use of gaming apps, such as Minecraft were suggested to help pupils with their design work.

15. It was commented that the pupils represented in this meeting were very lucky – not all schools are able to engage with this type of meeting, and present a whole range of issues, including recruitment of staff, which means that a dedicated D&T teacher is a rare thing.

16. There are lots of specialist teachers in the departments, who still need CPD and training to broaden the range of activities that are offered in schools

17. The concern over access to relevant CPD and meetings, including time on INSET days for subject-specific training was raised. Some felt that this was not a priority in many schools, for D&T, and time was taken up on items that were not always relevant to D&T.

18. Teaching in a practical way – utilising equipment that is in the department, is a challenge when staff are not skilled in the use of the equipment or have not received previous training. The lack of staff training and expertise is a significant barrier in practical activities.

19.  It was suggested that departments should think carefully about removing kit/machinery, as once it is gone, that opportunity is also gone, and it is unlikely that it will ever return.

20. The funding in the state system can be supplemented through support from local companies. The group also discussed using links with the local community to support collaborative work, as well as engaging parents and helping with careers advice.

21. Under current requirements, private schools are expected to provide support through outreach activities. In some these may be related to D&T, but that is up to the individual schools. State schools could contact the local private school to enquire whether there is anything that could be developed. This is also true for universities, where these have courses which are relevant to D&T. They could be approached with a view to developing a direct link, for the benefit of the department, in terms of resources and support, but also for access for pupils – many who may consider a university place and would like to remain local.