Page 118 - Standards for K-12 Engineering Education

Standards for K-12 Engineering Education?

APPENDIX B 103

These perspectives are also reflected in the specific standards:

2. Construction Technologies
Central Concepts: The construction process is a series of actions taken to build a structure, including
preparing a site, setting a foundation, erecting a structure, installing utilities, and finishing a site. Various
materials, processes, and systems are used to build structures. Students should demonstrate and apply the
concepts of construction technology through building and constructing either full-size models or scale
models using various materials commonly used in construction. Students should demonstrate the ability
to use the engineering design process to solve a problem or meet a challenge in construction technology.
2.1 Identify and explain the engineering properties of materials used in structures (e.g., elasticity,
plasticity, R value, density, strength).
2.2 Distinguish among tension, compression, shear, and torsion, and explain how they relate to the
selection of materials in structures.
2.3 Explain Bernoulli’s principle and its effect on structures such as buildings and bridges.
2.4 Calculate the resultant force(s) for a combination of live loads and dead loads.
2.5 Identify and demonstrate the safe and proper use of common hand tools, power tools, and
measurement devices used in construction.
2.6 Recognize the purposes of zoning laws and building codes in the design and use of structures.

3. Energy and Power Technologies—Fluid Systems
Central Concepts: Fluid systems are made up of liquids or gases and allow force to be transferred from
one location to another. They can also provide water, gas, and/or oil, and/or remove waste. They can be
moving or stationary and have associated pressures and velocities. Students should demonstrate the
ability to use the engineering design process to solve a problem or meet a challenge in a fluid system.
3.1 Explain the basic differences between open fluid systems (e.g., irrigation, forced hot air system, air
compressors) and closed fluid systems (e.g., forced hot water system, hydraulic brakes).
3.2 Explain the differences and similarities between hydraulic and pneumatic systems, and explain how
each relates to manufacturing and transportation systems.
3.3 Calculate and describe the ability of a hydraulic system to multiply distance, multiply force, and
effect directional change.
3.4 Recognize that the velocity of a liquid moving in a pipe varies inversely with changes in the cross-
sectional area of the pipe.
3.5 Identify and explain sources of resistance (e.g., 45º elbow, 90º elbow, changes in diameter) for water
moving through a pipe.

Figure 4 Sample 2001 central concepts and standards for two technology/engineering topics.

Emergence of Academic Technology/Engineering in Massachusetts
The incorporation of technology/engineering standards into the core academic framework,
initially led by the state technology education organization, was a first step toward incorporating
these concepts into the educational system. In the early to mid 1990s, industrial arts made a shift
to technology education. The technology education programs at the time (many of which still
exist) are generally characterized as elective, supplementary programs that focus primarily on the
development of student skills and products, but not on trade skills or tool use as industrial arts
had emphasized. The new discussion about becoming a core academic discipline pushed
technology education to consider the implications of yet another shift: moving away from a

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