EVALUATION

The garment produced was well executed with care and attention to detail showcasing great sewing abilities. Changes in the chosen fabric from the original design had to be altered due to available fabrics to use however the original colours in the design were kept. No issues arose during the process and little alterations were made. Changes included making the curve on the bottom front edges more defined and creating more of a scooped neck line than originally designed. The process journal included all aspects needed for submission however more in-depth research would enhance in showing how decisions were made.

Process Journal

JAPANESE RUNAWAY ASSESSMENT TASK

General Capabilities and Cross Curriculum Priorities

General Capabilities

The general capabilities are an important component of the Australian Curriculum. They encompass knowledge, skills, behaviours and dispositions that, together with curriculum content in each learning area and the cross-curriculum priorities, will assist students to live and work successfully in the twenty-first century (ACARA, 2015). The general capabilities play a role in forming successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens from the young people of Australia.

There are a total of seven general capabilities:

• Literacy.
• Numeracy.
• Information and communication technology capability.
• Critical and creative thinking.
• Personal and social capability.
• Ethical understanding.
• Intercultural understanding.

The general capabilities complement the key learning outcomes of the Early Years Learning Framework (COAG 2009) – that children have a strong sense of identity and wellbeing, are connected with and contribute to their world, are confident and involved learners and effective communicators (ACARA, 2015). They embody the knowledge, skill, behaviours, and dispositions and collectively with the cross-curriculum priorities and the content of the curriculum students will be assisted to successfully live and work within todays society.



Cross Curriculum Priorities

The Australian Curriculum is designed to meet the needs of students by delivering a relevant, contemporary, and engaging curriculum that builds on the educational goals of the Melbourne Declaration (ACARA, 2015). A total of three key areas are recognized to be addressed within the classrooms alongside the general capabilities and curriculum content; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia, and Sustainability. Providing students with the skills and appropriate language to understand and connect with the world locally and globally is the aim of the cross-curriculum priorities. Below are a few examples of how these cross-curriculum priorities can be incorporated in a textiles classroom.


Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures

• Students are to research Aboriginal or Torres Straight Island art, identify colours and symbols and use this as inspiration to design a patterned fabric. myPantone is a great app to identify colour pallets.
• Have a guest speaker come in to talk about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, identify what is sacred to their culture and what is allowed to be interpreted and manipulated, identify natural dyes used by their culture and demonstrate how it is done. Let the students have a go using this great website to identify natural sources of coloured dyes.

Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia

• Set a design brief to have students research Japanese Fashion and use inspiration from their search to design a westernised garment that could be sold in Australia. Tokyo Fashion is a great website that include  the late Japanese fashion trends, articles, photos, brands, and fashion map that students can use to get inspiration.
• Have students create a Glogster of a Japanese fashion trend.

Sustainability

• As an assessment task have students use Op Shop clothing items to reconstruct and create a new modern garment they would wear. Have them use Pinterest to source ideas, inspiration and possibilities.
• Have students to identify sustainable materials, research them, and design an appropriate garment that they would use this material for. Students can use Photoshop to show their designs.

REFERENCES

ACARA, 2015. Australian Curriculum. [Online] Available at http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/generalcapabilities/overview/general-capabilities-in-the-australian-curriculum

ACARA, 2015. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. [Online] Available at: http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/cross_curriculum_priorities.html

ACARA, 2015. Australian Curriculum, Assessment, and Reporting Authority. [Online] Available at: http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/cross_curriculum_priorities.html

WEB 2 TOOLS

Web 2 Tools are also known as Web 2.0 and is about revolutionising the classroom by using online tools to create, collaborate, edit, and share information. Information has never been easier or more accessible online and the up and coming generations of students are digital natives. It is important for teachers to use online tools to communicate and encourage learning in a mode that students feel comfortable and engaged to use. Web 2.0 encourages teachers and students to actively contribute by documenting, collaborating, using chat forums, wikis and blogging tools in order to achieve the syllabus outcomes in communication and collaboration. It can be used by the teacher to present information of by the students to complete set tasks or learn individually.

The following are some examples of Web 2.0 tools that can be used in the classroom:

Presentation Tools - Slide Share, Prezi, Glogster and Picsviewr

The above online tools brings new meaning to 'show, don't tell' and allows the presentation of information to be far more engaging than the old PowerPoint slides. It also allows the opportunity to share the presentation to anyone at anytime. SlideShare is a tool to upload already created presentations and share them, a good way to present information in a Flipped Classroom environment. Prezi takes the slideshow to a new level by presenting on a giant canvas, great to  engage an audience. Glogster combines all kinds of media on one page to create interactive posters that really present an engaging story. Picsviewr is a great way to present images, it could be used to create and present a moodboard perhaps.

Video Tools - Animoto and YouTube

Integrating video tools in the classroom for projects or presentations engages students and gives students an ability to present tasks through a medium they prefer. Animoto turns photos, videos, and music into a presentation to engage the classroom and other audiences. It can be used in the classroom to present information to the students or for the students to present tasks or assessment items, what about using Animoto to advertise a student events like a workshop  or runway. Click on this link to check out a few examples. YouTube is a great video sharing tool great to use for tutorials, in class learning or for students to watch set videos at home.

Collaboration Tools - Wikispaces and Edmodo

Create a blended learning classroom and join global learning communities to discover and share information. Students are engaged in learning by these modern environments and find it easy to use these web tools that the already know and enjoy. Use these tools for collaborative writing, classroom newsfeed or organising and monitoring student progress. Both of these tools are great for communicating with students outside the classroom.

Social Media Tools - Pinterest 

Pinterest is a visual discovery tool that can be used to find ideas for projects and interests. Pinterest is one big pin board allowing users to search and save creative ideas onto their profile. Pinterest is the best tool for a textiles classroom to provide students with ideas and inspiration to use for classroom tasks, activities and assessment.

THE FLIPPED CLASSROOM

WHAT IS THE FLIPPED CLASSROOM-

The flipped classroom describes a reversal of traditional teaching where students gain first exposure to new material outside of class, usually via reading or lecture videos, and then class time is used to do the harder work of assimilating that knowledge through strategies such as problem-solving, discussion or debates (University of Queensland, 2015).


The roles and expectations of students and teachers within a flipped classroom environment include:

• students take more responsibility for their own learning and study core content either individually or in groups before class and then apply knowledge and the skills to a range of activities using higher order thinking.

• teaching  'one-to-many' focusses more on facilitation and moderation than lecturing, though lecturing is still important. Significant learning opportunities can be gained through facilitating active learning, engaging students, guiding learning, correcting misunderstanding and providing timely feedback using a variety of pedagogical strategies.

• There is a greater focus on concept exploration, meaning making and demonstration or application of knowledge in the face-to-face setting.

Advantages of a flipped classroom include:

• Versatile, engaging way to share content.

• Students control their learning.

• Increased 1-1 contact between the students and the teacher.

• Allows more collaborative learning which raises the energy level in the classroom and gives students time to practice collaborative skills.

• Exposure to a discovery-based, open-ended experimental learning environment.

• Students become more engaged in the learning process and develop those necessary learning skills.

The Flipped Classroom is extremely beneficial for a home economics classroom as more time can be used on practical learning during class time. It enables teachers to reach a wider variety of learning styles by providing different modes of learning the same content. The following are some learning activities the teacher can request the students to participate in outside classroom hours.

Produce a colour wheel-

Watch instructional video-

Create a mood board-

Add to your specific terms glossary-

References:

University of Queensland, 2015. Retrieved from: http://www.uq.edu.au/teach/flipped-classroom/what-is-fc.html

De Bono's 6 Thinking Hats

Six thinking Hats is a time-tested, proven, and practical thinking tool. It provides a framework to help people think clearly and thoroughly by directing their thinking attention in one direction at a time (De Bono Schools, 2015)

Below is an example of how to incorporate De Bono's Six Thinking Caps into assessment and classroom activities.

Individual Activity

• Students are presented with an upcycled garment.
• Students are given a hat colour at random.
• Students must use the thought process associated with that colour to assess the garment.
• As a class the answers are discussed and collaborated onto the board.

Group Activity

• Create several stations, at each station identify a topic for discussion e.g. sustainability, Japanese fashion, recycling, upcycling, etc.
• Students are put into groups and rotate around each of the stations discussing as a group and going through each of the Six Thinking Caps writing down their thoughts.
• The teacher has students read out their findings and combine each groups answers.

The Six Thinking Hats is a great practice to incorporate into assessment. When given an assessment task ask students to use the task topic to question, using the Six Thinking Caps has students thinking about the task constructively. Have students draw the Six Hats and write a couple of sentences next to each one using the different thought processes. Another great idea is using the same process at the completion of the assessment to evaluate their final piece.

Example:
Assessment Task - Design a garment with elements of Japanese fashion for a westernised society.

Yellow Hat, What are the good points/benefits?
Japanese fashion is very different and versatile allowing me to design a garment from loads of possibilities.

Black Hat, Will it work/What are the weaknesses?
Japanese fashion is very different to westernised fashion. I don't know a lot about Japanese Fashion.

Red Hat, How do I feel about this right now?
I am feeling intrigued and a little overwhelmed at how I am going to design the garment with Japanese elements.

White Hat, What information do I know and what information is missing?
Japanese fashion can be traditional or modern.
Harajuku is a modern style of Japanese fashion.

Green Hat, What are some possible ways to work it out?
Research Japanese fashion both traditional and modern.

Blue Hat, What do we do next?
Create a mood board and pick out small details to incorporate into a design.




References:

De Bono Schools, 2015. Retrieved from: http://www.debonoforschools.com/asp/six_hats.asp