[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-601111-105":3,"doc-detail-601111-en":80,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":98},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":73,"head_meta":75,"extra_data":77,"updated_unix":79},105,"en","working-in-groups-on-practical-engineering-activities-with-young-children-abstract","Working in Groups on Practical Engineering Activities with Young Children - abstract","","Australia’s innovation agenda is increasingly embedded in the Australian Curriculum Technologies, yet educators face a gap in tools for diagnosing developmental indicators, especially for applied spatial problem-solving. This study investigates how children’s applied spatial inferential reasoning varies by developmental age using a two-stage process. Stage One refines research instruments via a mixed-method pilot with 15 students (Years 3–12). Early observations explore group variables affecting organisation, communication, and solutions.",{"@graph":14,"@context":72},[15,34,55],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/working-in-groups-on-practical-engineering-activities-with-young-children-abstract/601111/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/working-in-groups-on-practical-engineering-activities-with-young-children-abstract/601111.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"LangkahRina","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-27","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":26},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",{"@type":56,"mainEntity":57},"FAQPage",[58,64,68],{"name":59,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":61},"What is the main problem this paper addresses in the Technologies curriculum?","Question",{"text":62,"@type":63},"Educators lack methods to diagnose developmental indicators related to applied spatial problem-solving in classroom settings, which can hinder targeted lesson design.","Answer",{"name":65,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":66},"How does the research investigate children’s applied spatial inferential reasoning?",{"text":67,"@type":63},"The study uses a two-stage process: a pilot phase to test and refine instruments, followed by a larger main study with more participants.",{"name":69,"@type":60,"acceptedAnswer":70},"What did the Stage One pilot study involve?",{"text":71,"@type":63},"The pilot used mixed methods with 15 students (9 boys, 6 girls) from Years 3–12, working in small groups of three on hands-on problem-based engineering activities of varying complexity.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":74,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":76,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":78,"site_id":7},601111,1793095122,{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":82},"success",{"doc_id":78,"user_id":83,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":84,"doc_module":4,"category_id":85,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":86,"file_id":87,"file_url":88,"file_type":89,"file_size":90,"view_count":26,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":91,"language":92,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":93,"faqs":94,"seo_title":95,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":96,"read_time":97},962090893776,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d",8,"Working in Groups on Practical Engineering Activities with Young Children  \nMilorad Cerovac, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia Kurt Seemann, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia Therese Keane, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia  \nAbstract  \nAustralia has a long-standing interest in fostering innovation capabilities to drive its future prosperity. However, it has only been in recent years that an emphasis on developing these capabilities has been formally extended into the classroom through the introduction of the Australian Curriculum Technologies. In 2017, the State Government of Victoria implemented its version of this national curriculum for the Technologies domain. For educators, this recent implementation could be considered problematic, for unlike the traditions of literacy and numeracy, methods to assist classroom teachers in diagnosing developmental indicators, for applied spatial problem-solving among children appears to be lacking in the Technologies area. Without such methods of diagnosis, it can be argued that teachers may struggle to develop appropriately targeted lessons, that demand of the student, the ability to comprehend applied spatial problem-solving, such as with hands-on engineering activities. Our research aims to investigate how a child’s applied spatial inferential reasoning capabilities, vary by developmental age. To answer this question, we have adopted a two-stage process. Stage One involves a pilot study testing and refining the key research instruments. Stage Two incorporates the main study involving a larger number of participants. This paper summarises early insights from a mixed-method pilot study involving 15 students (9 boys, 6 girls) from Years 3-12. Students enrolled in this study undertook one of three hands-on problem-based engineering activities categorised as simple, complicated or complex; working in small groups of three. We noted that gender makeup of the group, and age levels of participating students appeared to be variables that impacted on organisation, communication and the solution produced. These preliminary observations assisted to refine the key indicators for observing students in preparation for the main study. Key interests in this study include the student’s capacity for inference-making and abstraction with respect to spatial problem-solving. A review of the relevant literature and the need for further research in spatial reasoning is discussed.  \nKeywords  \nSpatial reasoning, inferential reasoning, child development, STEM, gender education, Technacy, Technologies curriculum, innovation capabilities.  \nIntroduction  \nAs far back as 1996, the need to build innovation capabilities in our students was acknowledged when the Australian Science, Technology and Engineering Council’s Foresight Report recommended clearly that Australia had to pursue and incorporate innovation into both the primary and secondary school curricula, with Technacy as its suggested framework (ASTEC, 1996) . Technacy is defined by the Australian Standard Macquarie Dictionary as the technological equivalent to literacy and numeracy, with an emphasis on the holistic understanding and application of technology, whereby environmental and social contexts are  \nconsidered (Seemann, 2009; Technacy, 2017) . The introduction of the compulsory Technologies curriculum in Victoria, Australia from Foundation to Year 10, in 2017 (State Government of Victoria, 2016), had as an objective the development of a skillset whereby students would“learn how to use technologies to create innovative solutions” that would meet both current and future needs (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority [VCAA], n.d. ) . The Technologies curriculum demands applied spatial inferential reasoning beyond common engaging hands-on engineering activities (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA], 2012) . Of key concern to the authors of this paper, is the dearth of research literat","cbCaiieBqwBLOlwf","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiieBqwBLOlwf","pdf",417999,15,"English","# Abstract\n# Keywords\n# Introduction","[{\"question\":\"What is the main problem this paper addresses in the Technologies curriculum?\",\"answer\":\"Educators lack methods to diagnose developmental indicators related to applied spatial problem-solving in classroom settings, which can hinder targeted lesson design.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the research investigate children’s applied spatial inferential reasoning?\",\"answer\":\"The study uses a two-stage process: a pilot phase to test and refine instruments, followed by a larger main study with more participants.\"},{\"question\":\"What did the Stage One pilot study involve?\",\"answer\":\"The pilot used mixed methods with 15 students (9 boys, 6 girls) from Years 3–12, working in small groups of three on hands-on problem-based engineering activities of varying complexity.\"}]","Working in Groups on Practical Engineering Activities with Young Children - abstract | PDF",1792092004,38,{"code":4,"msg":81,"data":99},[100,104,108,112,117,122,127,130,135,138,142],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":101,"show_sort_weight":102,"slug":103},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":105,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":107},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":109,"show_sort_weight":110,"slug":111},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":113,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":114,"show_sort_weight":115,"slug":116},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":118,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":119,"show_sort_weight":120,"slug":121},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":125,"slug":126},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":85,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":128,"slug":129},30,"research-report",{"id":131,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":132,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":134},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":133,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":136,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":137},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":139,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":140,"show_sort_weight":139,"slug":141},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":143,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":144,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":145},19,"General","general"]