The nature of design and technology in the school curriculum is shifting with the times, from
a distinct subject associated with notions of craft and vocational preparation to an emerging
technological literacy subject that supports education for democracy. This paradigm shift has
resulted in diverse views about the place of design and technology in the curriculum
internationally and in the context of the present study, Botswana. Here, where the subject
declined in uptake over a period of 10 years by up to 6% per year, despite positive
encouragement by the government, understanding student attitudes towards the subject is
central to providing evidence-based options to policy makers. This study illustrates how
quantitative approaches used in the social sciences and based on multivariate analysis
(categorical Principal Components Analysis, Clustering Analysis and General Linear
Modelling), can complement qualitative analysis to inform educational policy. The
combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis can provide effective, evidence-based
information and support policy development.
The study was conducted with design and technology students in their final year of junior
secondary school (15 – 18 years old). An attitude survey of 233 students, focus group
interviews involving 47 students, and semi- structured interviews involving 22 teachers and
other staff were conducted in five junior secondary schools across Botswana.
Qualitative interviews indicated consistently that age, gender and school performance all
affected attitudes of students towards design and technology and gave an in-depth
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understanding of the issue. Multivariate analysis provided information in ranking how
different attitudes contributed to the overall perception of the subject (PCA-Factor analysis),
in assessing the relative and interacting effects of external determinants like age or gender;
and in classifying students into attitude groups. The findings show that design and technology
enrolment could be improved by targeting children, girls in particular, who deemed the
subject to be too difficult or unimportant, and by reinforcing perceptions of design and
technology as an enjoyable life-skill.