Bushfire-Resistant Housing - Research Phase

Australian Curriculum content descriptions: 

Years 7 and 8 Design and Technologies:

• Analyse ways to produce designed solutions through selecting and combining characteristics and properties of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment (ACTDEK034)
• Critique needs or opportunities for designing and investigate, analyse and select from a range of materials, components, tools, equipment and processes to develop design ideas (ACTDEP035)

Syllabus outcomes: T4.3.1, T4.3.2, T4.1.1

General capabilities: Critical and Creative Thinking, Personal and Social Capability

Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability

Relevant parts of Years 7 and 8 Design and Technologies achievement standards: Students explain how social, ethical, technical and sustainability considerations influence the design of innovative and enterprising solutions to meet a range of present and future needs. Students explain a range of needs, opportunities or problems and define them in terms of functional requirements and constraints. They collect, authenticate and interpret data. from a range of sources to assist in making informed judgements. Students generate and document in digital and non-digital form, design ideas for different audiences using appropriate technical terms, and graphical representation techniques including algorithms.

This lesson is part of the wider unit of work Beyond the Bushfires: Bushfire Resistant Housing

Time required: 100 mins

Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – Facilitate class discussion, support student thinking, scaffold students through tasks and resources.

Be aware that the Design Process challenges the traditional roles in learning of instructors as the main disseminator of information and students having reduced agency. In this model, the instructor’s task is to challenge students’ pre-conceived ideas, foster their curiosity, pose challenging questions, and provide support and guidance to students as they are self-directed in pursuing knowledge.

• Design Document – physical or digital – one copy per student
• Device capable of presenting a video to the class
• Handling Sensitive Topics and Issues factsheet

This lesson is designed to build students’ competencies in the following skills:

• Critical thinking
• Digital literacy
• Enterprise
• Adaptability
• Initiative

In partnership with The Conversation, the Beyond the Bushfires series brings the words of scientists who are actively involved in research and science communication into classrooms throughout Australia. Students will explore evidence-based research embedded in the context of real-world practice.

Additional thanks to the Ian Potter Foundation, John T Reid Charitable Trusts and The Myer Foundation, for generously supporting the development of these lessons.