At a glance
Solo · five working periods across the end of one unit and the start of the next · drafts traded and checked in class twice · presented to the room over two classes · one page, sourced and credited
What you are making
A one-page brief on a single current or emerging innovation — the kind of page a busy person could read in three minutes and come away genuinely informed. Choose from the menu:
- an AI system you have used or heard about, in the spirit of Automation and Artificial Intelligence
- a category of Connected Devices — doorbells, watches, tractors
- an accessibility technology, connecting to Bias and Accessibility in Technology
- an automation changing a skilled trade — welding, carpentry, auto repair, agriculture
- an emerging innovation you spotted through Tech Headlines
Whatever you choose, the brief answers seven things: what it does in plain language, who built it — the people, communities, or countries behind it, named — who benefits, who bears the costs, its benefits and limits, one job or trade that does this work differently now, and one open question nobody has settled yet. The who-built-it line matters: innovation gets credited to a handful of famous names, and Whose Innovations Count is about everybody else. Every borrowed claim is credited, following Finding Answers Online.
How to work
- Pick from the menu — the best choice is the one you already have an opinion about, because the research can then surprise you.
- Research with at least two independent sources, and note where they disagree; disagreement is where the interesting sentences come from.
- Draft the seven parts. “Who bears the costs” needs a real someone — a job, a community, a user group — not “society”.
- Trade drafts with a classmate in class and apply the grade-six test: could a sixth grader follow your “what it does” paragraph? If not, the paragraph is not done.
- Finalise, with sources credited. Most of the research and the drafting happen in the working periods — How Marks Work explains why a brief written where I can see it being written is better evidence than one that arrives finished.
- Present it to the room in three minutes: what it does, who built it, who pays, and the question still open. No slides needed; the page in your hand is enough.
Success criteria
| Quality | What it looks like in your brief |
|---|---|
| Plain-language clarity | The “what it does” section passes grade six |
| Builders named | The people, communities, or countries behind it are named, and the naming is sourced |
| Named beneficiaries | Who benefits is someone specific, not “everyone” |
| Named costs | Who bears the costs is someone specific, not “society” |
| Balanced assessment | Benefits and limits both appear, both concrete, and one of them says what changes if this becomes normal |
| Work that changed | One job or trade is named, with what it used to involve and what it involves now |
| Heard as well as read | The room could follow who built it, who pays, and what is still open, without the page in front of them |
| A genuine open question | The question is one your sources could not answer |
| Credit given | A reader can find every source you leaned on |
Reflect
Write a Dev Journal entry: what did you believe about this innovation before researching, and what does the evidence actually support? A brief that changed its own author’s mind is the strongest kind — and “same impression, better reasons” counts as change too.
If everything on the menu feels distant (click to expand)
Start from your own pocket, wrist, or kitchen. The phone that autocorrects you, the app that recommends your next video, the thermostat that learns the schedule — you live inside this menu already. Pick the innovation you touched most recently today.
Curriculum connection
A2.1
investigate current social, cultural, economic, environmental, and ethical issues related to digital technology that have personal, local, and global impacts, taking various perspectives into account
Link to original
A2.3
investigate contributions to innovations in digital technology and computing by people from diverse local, Canadian, and global communities, including Indigenous communities in Canada and around the world
Link to original
A3.1
investigate how digital technology and programming skills can be used within a variety of disciplines in real-world applications
Link to original
A3.2
investigate ways in which various industries, including those that involve skilled trades, are changing as a result of digital technology and programming innovations
Link to original
B2.2
identify and use effective research practices and supports when learning to use new hardware or software
Link to original
B4.1
investigate current innovations, including automation and artificial intelligence systems, and assess the impacts of these technologies on everyday life
Link to original
B4.3
investigate emerging innovations related to hardware and software and their possible benefits and limitations with reference to everyday life in the future
Link to original