Blade
Year 10
Blade understands the importance of ‘play’ for learning. For Blade, Design Futures 100 allows him time to explore, play and make mistakes without concern for timelines and assessments. Amongst a variety of projects Blade is working on, he has created a locking mechanism for his school locker that enables him to tap on and tap off to access his locker rather than using the standard issue ‘combination lock’ regularly used in schools. Blade can use his school ID card to open and close his locker; can scramble his card if it is stolen or lost, and has an app he can use to open and close his lock, using his phone.
Blade’s steward in Design Futures has very little understanding of the technology behind this invention, but has been able to challenge Blade with questions, ‘what ifs?’, requirements for OH&S, risk assessments, ideas around upscaling, alternative power sources and various communications. Blade’s story, like many others, highlights the interconnected nature of learning that happens organically when we take away the silos that often stifle entrepreneurial learning and encourage learning beyond curriculum boundaries.