Subject description

Digital Technologies is a 10‑credit subject or a 20‑credit subject at Stage 1, and a 20‑credit subject at Stage 2.

Digital technologies have changed the ways that people think, work, and live. The application of digital technologies can lead to discoveries, new learning, and innovative approaches to understanding and solving problems.

The study of Digital Technologies provides a platform for deep interdisciplinary learning. Students make connections with innovation in other fields and across other learning areas.

In Digital Technologies students create practical, innovative solutions to problems of interest. By extracting, interpreting, and modelling real-world data sets, students identify trends and examine sustainable solutions to problems in, for example, business, industry, the environment, and the community. They investigate how potential solutions are influenced by current and projected social, economic, environmental, scientific, and ethical considerations, including relevance, originality, appropriateness, and sustainability.

Innovation in Digital Technologies involves students creating new ways of doing things, generating their own ideas and creating digital solutions to problems of interest. Solutions may take the form of a product, prototype, and/or proof of concept. Students are encouraged to experiment and learn from what does not work as planned, as well as from what does work. Innovation may also include students designing solutions that improve existing processes or products.

Students use computational thinking skills and strategies to identify, deconstruct, and solve problems that are of interest to them. They analyse and evaluate data, test hypotheses, make decisions based on evidence, and create solutions. Through the study of Digital Technologies, students are encouraged to take ownership of problems and design, code, validate, and evaluate their solutions. In doing so, they develop and extend their understanding of designing and programming, including the basic constructs involved in coding, array processing, and modularisation.

At Stage 1, students develop and apply their skills in computational thinking and in program design. They follow agile practices and/or iterative engineering design processes. Learning environments in Digital Technologies may include physical, online, and/or simulated spaces.

Digital Technologies promotes learning through initiative, collaboration, creativity, and communication using project‑ and inquiry‑based approaches.