Learning food technology outside the classroom: A study of a secondary class visit to a live historical village

Abstract

This thesis explores food technology learning experiences outside the classroom. The participants in this study were year 11 students who had selected food technology as one of their NCEA subjects. A living historical village, near to the students’ school, was chosen as the site for an interactive learning experience. The era and artefacts represented by this village are associated with 19th century New Zealand. The purposes of this study were to determine to what extent an interactive learning experience through a live historical village helped students learn about food and the technologies used to produce food; and whether this experience helped students better understand the complex relationship between food technologies and society. The study was informed by research literature on technology education in general and food technology in particular, as well as literature examining student engagement with history and learning outside the classroom. The study adopted a qualitative, interpretative methodology and data was gathered from surveys, tests, classroom activities, document analysis and a focus group interview. The study’s findings clearly indicated that the trip to The Historical Village helped the students learn about the constituents of food products and the technologies used to produce food. The historical context of the village engaged the students and enabled them to associate developments in food technologies with changes in society.