摘要：It is good practice in design and technology periodically to step outside the preoccupying activity of trying to get something to work out, and to review what is happening. This encourages reflective practice and enables us to take stock, assess how things are progressing and to modify our actions accordingly . This year has seen a considerable amount of reflective activity as practitioners have been rev i ewing the current state of technology education whilst trying to make National Curriculum theory work out in practice. This article highlights some of the underlying difficulties for National Curriculum design and technology and its assessment as they have typically been experienced by teachers over the last three years . I also wish to explore some of the reasons why the difficulties have arisen, since this helps us to see how practice might be improved. In so doing I will be drawing on the experience and insights gained through working within the Technology Education Research Unit (fERU), Goldsmiths' College, which has brought me into contact with hundreds of teachers and pupils across England and Wales.
