This presentation is from a seminar with undergraduate trainee design and technology students at Nottingham Trent University, as part of the module Design and Technology in Education and Society. The seminar explored the four views of conceptualising technology (as artefacts, as knowledge, as processes, and as volition) presented by Marc de Vries in his book 'Teaching about Technology.

1. What is technology?

2. This talk is based on writing and thinking
from Marc de Vries, Assistant Professor of
Philosophy at Delft, University of Technology.
The primary source is:
Teaching about Technology (2005).

3. Ideas about how to value technology
As artefacts As knowledge As processes As volition

4. Technology as artefacts

5. As artefacts:

6. Technology as knowledge

7. As knowledge
• What is knowledge?
• ‘… a person knows that p when:
• The person believes that p;
• The person has found justification for p;
• P is true. ‘
(de Vries 2005, p.30)
[P stands for proposition]

8. What is technology knowledge?

9. Taxonomy of technology knowledge
1. Knowledge of the physical nature of the artefact
2. Knowledge of its functional properties
3. Knowledge of the relationship between the functional nature and
the physical nature
4. Knowledge of the processes that are involved in the functioning or
in the making of the artefact
(de Vries 2005, p.36)

10. Technology as process

11. As processes
Three aspects:
1. Design
2. Making
3. Using and assessing processes

12. As design process (1)
• Flow chart
• One process?
• Undetermined problems:
‘wicked’ problems
• Observation
• Reflection
• Not static but dynamic

13. As design process (2)
Experience
based
technologies
Micro-technologies
Macro based
technologies

14. As making process

15. Using & assessing processes
beliefs reasoning
Possible
worlds
memory
Counter-factuals
modelling
intentions
goals
predicting
What if…?

16. Technology as volition

17. As volition

18. Extension of us or an intermediary?

19. Solution?

20. Solution?

21. Controlling technology or being controlled by
technology?
• Bioengineering
• Ambient technology
• Nanotechnologies

22. Consequences for D&T?