“Three Drones”, Connected, Level 3 – Shifting Views, November 2019
14 November 2019
This article describes three examples of how drones are used in the world of work.
By demonstrating their use within three different fields, the article builds awareness of how they work, how they are used now, and how they might be used in the future.
You can find the story, as well as teacher support material here:
“Three Drones” Connected, Level 3 – Shifting Views, November 2019
Other useful resources
- Kiwi drone company sets sights on rhino poachers – Listen to an interview with the Raglan drone company Aeronavics.
- Why use mining drones? – This article is about drones used in mining sites such as inventory tracking and traffic management.
- 38 ways drones will impact society: From fighting war to forecasting weather, UAVs change everything – This article describes the many uses of drones.
- The dark side of our drone future – This article describes the negative changes of increased drone use.
- The history of drones in 10 milestones – This article tracks the history and development of drones.
Discussion questions
These could be class discussions with teacher guidance.
- What societal and environmental issues have influenced the drones that people have decided to make?
- How did Aeronavics undertake planning, the selection of resources, and the making and testing of the drones to capture rhino poachers?
- Some of the reasons technology changes over time includes changing needs, fashions, attitudes, ethical and environmental stances or the development of new materials, skills, and knowledge. Why has drone technology changed over time?
- How has drone technology impacted on society and the natural world over time?
- What do you think would be useful knowledge for a company that is developing a drone for a specific purpose?
- What are some of the positive impacts that drones have had on society and/or the environment?
- What are some of the negative impacts drones have had on society and/or the environment?
- What is a technological system? Identify the input, process, output, and the human control role for a particular drone.
Indicators of progression for discussion starters
| Component | Indicator | Level |
| Characteristics of technology |
| 3 |
| Technological area | Progress outcome | |
| Designing and developing digital outcomes | PO 2: Students identify the specific role of components in a simple input-process-output system and how they work together, and they recognise the "control role” that humans have in the system. | |