Activity Introduction
Quick summary: This lesson is one of six lessons for Years 3-8, designed to support you and your students to produce quality films for the MobileMuster Film Competition, with the aim of encouraging the community to recycle more of their old and unused mobile phones. The 2021 MobileMuster Film Competition is open and the theme is ‘The Science of Recycling’. For information about the Film Competition, visit the MobileMuster website.
This lesson introduces students to the benefits of mobile phone recycling as identified by MobileMuster. Students will explore the principles of sustainable design and life-cycle assessments. They will understand the importance and value of designing products deliberately to be reused and recycled. Students will also consider consumer, manufacturer responsibility linked to sustainable product design and conduct a case study analysis. If your class is new to mobile phone recycling this lesson is a great way to engage them in the topic before planning their short films in the follow-up lesson: MobileMuster Film Competition – Designing for Sustainability 2 – Years 7 & 8.
Learning intentions:
- Students will understand the importance of recycling mobile phones.
- Students will understand the principles of sustainable design.
- Students will understand the principles of cradle to grave and cradle to cradle product life cycles.
- Students will understand consumer and manufacturer responsibility as it relates to eco-design.
21st century skills:
Australian Curriculum Mapping
Content descriptions:
Year 7 & 8 Design and Technologies
- Investigate the ways in which products, services and environments evolve locally, regionally and globally and how competing factors including social, ethical and sustainability considerations are prioritised in the development of technologies and designed solutions for preferred futures (ACTDEK029)
- Analyse ways to produce designed solutions through selecting and combining characteristics and properties of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment (ACTDEK034)
Syllabus outcomes: T4.1.2, T4.1.3, T4.4.1, T4.6.2
General capabilities: Literacy, Critical and Creative Thinking, Ethical Understanding
Cross-curriculum priority: Sustainability
Relevant parts of Years 7 & 8 achievement standards: Students explain factors that influence the design of products, services and environments to meet present and future needs. They explain the contribution of design and technology innovations and enterprise to society. Students explain how the features of technologies impact on designed solutions and influence design decisions for each of the prescribed technologies contexts.
Topic: Sustainability. STEAM. Consumption. Waste.
Unit of work: MobileMuster Film Competition.
Time required: 100 mins.
Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – facilitating class discussions and guiding research activities.
Resources required: Student Worksheets – one copy per student. A device capable of presenting a video to the class. Assessment Matrix. Sustainability Factsheet (optional).
Keywords: sustainability, design, sustainable design, Mobile Muster, phones, recycling, mobile phone, waste, consumption, manufacturing, cradle, circular economy, case study.
Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.
