In technology education, assessment is challenging and underdeveloped as it is a nascent practice and teachers do not have a well-defined subject tradition to lean on when assessing students. The aim of this study is to explore Swedish secondary technology teachers’ cognitive beliefs about assessing students’ learning of technological systems, in relation to the assessment tools they use. Data for the study were collected through a questionnaire which was completed by 511 Swedish technology teachers in lower secondary education (grades 7–9). The data were analysed statistically in three main steps. Exploratory factor analysis revealed underlying dimensions in teachers’ cognitive beliefs, which was followed by correlation analysis to discern associations between dimensions of cognitive beliefs. Finally, comparisons were made between groups of teachers to discern how teachers’ cognitive beliefs are influenced by their experience and educational background. The results show that additional education in the technology and engineering fields relates to more positive cognitive beliefs concerning teachers’ ability to assess students’ learning of technological systems. Teachers’ cognitive beliefs about assessment therefore did not primarily relate to the content of technological systems per se but to increased engineering and technology competence more broadly, which may indicate the importance of a comprehensive technological knowledge base in order to be confident in assessment. Furthermore, strong cognitive beliefs about assessment were connected specifically to local, regional and national technological systems, which are generally well-known and visible types of systems, and to the human, socio-technical dimensions of the systems. Cognitive beliefs about knowledge for assessment were also associated with positive attitudes to assessment tools that followed the formative tradition, which may be explained by the prevalence of procedural epistemic practices and modelling in the design and understanding of technological systems. Technology teachers would need additional in-service courses in engineering to broaden their knowledge and increase their cognitive beliefs about assessment. Formative assessment should also be preferred, and it might be appropriate to begin teaching and assessment with well-known local and regional infrastructural systems with a clear socio-technical dimension.

Syftet med detta kapitel är att beskriva några svenska lärare och lärarstudenters uppfattningar om tekniska system som en del av en teknisk allmänbildning, i synnerhet när det handlar om avgränsning av tekniska system. Utifrån dessa uppfattningar diskuterar vi också utmaningar och möjligheter kring undervisning om tekniska system. Vi har genom två studier av yrkesverksamma och blivande tekniklärare visat att de ser en utmaning med att identifiera tekniska system bland olika former av tekniska lösningar. Detta ses tydligast när lärarna och lärarstudenterna försökte identifiera gränserna mellan artefakt och system, respektive mellan systemet och dess omgivning. En viktig del i att övervinna denna utmaning är att använda sig av relevanta systemmodeller som kan beskriva de mest centrala aspekterna av tekniska system och därmed möjliggöra jämförelse mellan system i teknikundervisningen. Just jämförelsen av tekniska system blir särskilt viktig när systemhorisonten beaktas, eftersom gränsen för när en teknisk lösning blir så komplex att den måste beskrivas som ett system kan se så olika ut.

Technology education is a new school subject in comparison with other subjects within the Swedish compulsory school system. Research in technology education shows that technology teachers lack experience of and support for assessment in comparison with the long-term experiences that other teachers use in their subjects. This becomes especially apparent when technology teachers assess students’ knowledge in and about technological systems. This study thematically analysed the assessment views of eleven technology teachers in a Swedish context. Through the use of in-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews, their elaborated thoughts on assessing knowledge about technological systems within the technology subject (for ages 13–16) were analysed. The aim was to describe the teachers’ assessment views in terms of types of knowledge, and essential knowledge in relation to a progression from basic to advanced understanding of technological systems. The results showed three main themes that the interviewed teachers said they consider when performing their assessment of technological systems; understanding (a) a system’s structure, (b) its relations outside the system boundary and (c) its historical context and technological change. Each theme included several underlying items that the teachers said they use in a progressive manner when they assess their students’ basic, intermediate and advanced level of understanding technological systems. In conclusion, the results suggest that the analysed themes can provide a basis for further discussion about defining a progression for assessing students’ understanding about technological systems. However, the findings also need to be examined critically as the interviewed teachers’ views on required assessment levels showed an imbalance; few students were said to reach beyond the basic level, but at the same time most assessment items lay on the intermediate and advanced levels.

The subject matter of technological systems is central in compulsory school technology education in Sweden. However, technology teachers would need more support in their endeavors to interpret the curriculum as both educational and philosophical research lack a clear answer to the question of what technological systems are. A better conceptualization of technological systems could also facilitate communication between teachers and students, and even improve learning about systems. The aim of this study is thus to investigate Swedish technology teachers’ conceptions about technological systems. We interviewed 11 technology teachers in compulsory education from various parts of Sweden. The transcripts from the interviews were analyzed with thematic content analysis and resulted in four characteristic system properties. In the teachers’ collective depictions of technological systems, the first two system properties focused on the technological core of the system, closely related to a philosophical conception of technology as objects. In contrast, the last two system properties illustrated the teachers’ descriptions of technological systems as something that is closely connected to a socio-technical understanding of systems where humans play a significant role for their evolution. There was one exception to this, namely how the systems are controlled, and here the teachers were ambivalent as to how much humans can intervene. The conception of technological systems as objects and the uncertainty about human control over these systems, are two obstacles to well-designed systems teaching that will lead to technological literacy for students.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, 2013) defines its views on necessary skills for 21st century citizenship and life-long learning, advocating a generic skill set of literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving in technology-rich environments. Other sources also include critical thinking as a vital 21st century skill. There are also those who question the concept of 21st century skills, claiming that, although very important, these skills are in fact old and have been around for decades, or even centuries. Therefore, in many countries, skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving are already addressed in technology education as part of the core subject matter, especially regarding competencies connected to technological literacy. Critical thinking and particularly problem-solving have been well researched in technology education, but seldom from the teacher’s point of view. 

The aim of this article is to investigate Swedish compulsory school technology teachers’ views on problem-solving and critical thinking as curriculum components and as skills addressed in teaching. Twenty-one teachers were subjected to in-depth qualitative interviews. The findings of the study show that the interviewed teachers can be said to express three approaches to teaching about technology in a critical thinking and problem-solving mode: (1) the design approach, (2) the system approach, and (3) the value approach. Even though the present Swedish technology curriculum does not explicitly mention these skills, the teachers say they incorporate critical thinking and problem-solving in different settings within the subject of technology. Problem-solving and critical thinking are not seen as generic capabilities but they are always connected to and integrated with subject content in technology by the teachers. The teachers mix the approaches depending on the teaching content, especially when teaching about complex technology, although there is a tendency to disregard critical thinking capabilities when dealing with design, and neglect problem-solving skills when addressing values.

The concept of 21st century skills has several definitions. Sweden, as well as other countries, address 21st century skills under various labels in technology education, especially in terms of competencies connected to technological literacy. However, regardless of used definition, two of the most occurring items concern problem solving and critical thinking. Previous research in the field of technology education lacks descriptions of the relationship between 21st century skills and teaching about technology within the compulsory school system. By investigating Swedish compulsory school technology teachers’ views on problem solving and critical thinking capabilities, this study aims at identifying different aspects of the relationship between technology education and 21st century skills. Through the use of in-depth qualitative interviews, this study was able to determine different teacher perspectives addressing problem-solving and critical thinking activities in a classroom environment. The study also explored how the 21st century skills of critical thinking and problem solving were dealt by the teachers and how they perceived that the skills were implemented in their teaching. Additionally, the study shows that the interviewed teachers expressed utilised three perspectives on teaching about technology in a critical thinking and problem solving mode. These were; (1) the artefact driven perspective, (2) the system perspective, and (3) the holistic perspective. In conclusion, even though the present Swedish curriculum does not explicitly mention 21st century skills, the teachers incorporate critical thinking and problem-solving in different settings within the subject of technology. The authors found that the teachers mix the perspectives depending on the teaching content, especially when teaching about complex technology.

Technology education is regarded as a new school subject in comparison with other subjects within the compulsory school system – both nationally and internationally. As such, the practice of teaching and assessment in technology lacks the long-term experiences that other teachers within other subjects can use in their own practices. This becomes especially apparent when technology teachers assess students’ knowledge in and about technological systems. Studies have shown that technology teachers lack experience of and support for assessment. Consequently, technology teachers’ (implicit) experiences constitute a crucial factor in the making of the course design and shaping students paths to knowledge about technological systems.

This paper describes the assessment views of five technology teachers and their elaborated thoughts on valuing systems knowledge for students aged 13 to 16 in the Swedish compulsory school through the use of semi-structured qualitative interviews. The research aim is to describe the teachers’ assessment views in terms of types of knowledge, spanning from basic to higher understanding of technological systems. Six focused areas of interest when the teachers assess knowledge about systems are presented. The teachers experienced three levels of understanding - basic, intermediate and advanced. In conclusion, the gap between basic and higher levels of understanding can be defined as a linear, uni-dimensional understanding of systems on a basic level, but a non-linear, multi-dimensional understanding on both an intermediate and advanced level.