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JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH

educational standard. The core educational standard consisted of
11 topical units:

1.

A man and technology.

Technical materials. Raw materials, production, energy.
Communication in technology.

Electric power, simple electric circuits. Electrical
appliances.

Simple machines, force and motion transmission.

Operations and tools for technical materials processing.

Means of mechanization.

Elements of housing installation.

Electro-assembly operations. Electronic automation and
control elements.

Housekeeping chores.

10.

Technical electronics.

11.

Technical, economical, ecological and aesthetical rateability
of household investments.

In the content part of the particular topical units of the standard
there were stated content components falling into the core
subject matter of the respective topical units. These were parts of
the subject matter, with which all pupils were to be acquainted.
The performance part of the standard was entitled Requirements
on pupils´ knowledge and skills. This part included the part of
the subject matter which was to be learnt by all pupils but on
different qualitative levels. Expected level of mastering the given
topical unit was expressed through a percentage proportion of
fruitfulness at each of them. A disadvantage of the performance
standard was that it was not prepared for the particular grades
but it was done to the topical units.

The last standard of technical education from this period, which
conceptually elaborated the educational standard from the year
2000, came into force on September 1

, 2002. In this standard

the previous one was eked with exemplificative tasks, which
elaborated range and level of the requirements put on the pupils`
knowledge and skills. The educational standard from the year
2002 was structured, alike the previous one, according to the
topical units. It included the performance standard (already
without the expected percentage fruitfulness of the respective
topical units) complemented by exemplificative tasks and
suggestions for practical activities. It also contained a brief
recommendation how to use the standard. The role of the content
standard was fulfilled by the subject curriculum.

The State educational program approved in 2008 was a result of
the transformation process of the Slovak system of education.
Content of education in basic schools was divided into eight
educational areas according to the key competences. Technical
education at the 2

stage of the basic school was incorporated

into the educational area A man and the world of the work. This
area was characterized as follows:



The area A man and the world of the work contains a broad
range of working activities and technologies, leads pupils
to acquire basic user skills in different areas of human
activities, and helps to the develop pupils' personal life and
professional orientation.



Conception of the educational area A man and the world of
the work follows specific life situations in which pupils
come into a direct contact with human activity and
technology in its diverse forms and wider contexts.



The area A man and the world of the work is focused on
adopting working practices and it ekes the whole basic
education with an important component necessary for
employing a man in future life and society. In this aspect
the area differs from the other ones and in some way it
represents a particular counterbalance to them. It is based
on creative cooperation of pupils.

Objectives of the educational area were to be achieved by means
of three school subjects - manual training taught at the 1

stage

of the basic school and world of the work and technology taught
at the 2

stage of the basic school. Technical education of pupils

started in 3

grade of the basic school, one lesson of manual

training per week, continued in 4

grade, as well one lesson per

week, and then a pause from two to three years followed.
Consequently, technical education was scheduled in 7

and 8

grade of the basic school, through the only school subject
technology taught with the lesson allocation of 0.5 lesson per
week devoted to topical units:



Man and technology,



Graphical communication,



Materials and technologies,



Electric power,



Technology – household – safety.

In practice the subject was taught one lesson per week either in
7

or 8

grade. The cut of technical education at 2

stage of the

basic school led to underestimation of the technology subject
importance by school managements, what led in practice to
liquidation of classrooms (workrooms) specialized for teaching
technology (technology education) and delegating technology
teaching to teachers without qualification for this subject
teaching (school leaders did not employ teachers with this
specialization).

On the other hand, the reform brought also some positive facts.
One of them were so-called disposable lessons. These were
lessons number of which was different for each grade and the
school could decide about the subject teaching of which would
be supported by these lessons. In this way schools were given a
possibility to profile themselves according their own decision.
The intention was to enable to schools to respond to pupils`
interests, particularities of their region (district), material-
technological facilities and teaching staff qualification
composition. Some of the schools used the disposable lessons
just to reinforce the technology subject teaching. Mostly they
added in frame of the School education program one more lesson
for teaching technology, but the content of the taught topics
varied considerably.

The subject committee for the educational are A man and the
world of the work of the National Institute for Education,
academics, scientists, researchers, professionals and experts did
not accept this state and called for continuity of technology
education from 1

up to 9

grade of the basic school. The need

or necessity to do something with technology education carried
out at basic schools was proved at the secondary vocational
school reform and dual system of vocational training
introduction. Secondary schools pointed out to pupils` disinterest
in technical study fields as well as to their low knowledge level
and mainly insufficient level of skills with which the pupils
came from the basic to secondary vocational schools (i.e. from
lower level of secondary schools to upper level of secondary
schools).

As the State educational program evoked a great criticism not
only in relation to teaching technology, but also in relation to the
other school subject teaching an innovated State educational
program was prepared, which came into force on September 1,
2015.

Design of the innovated State educational program for the
educational area A man and the world of the work followed
preferentially requirements of practice, put on knowledge and
practical skills of the basic school graduates. But at the same
time it made provision for pupils` attitudes and their professional
interests.

From the point of view of technical education carried out at basic
schools the innovation of the State educational program from
2008 meant a return, coming back to the lesson allocation of one
lesson per week continually from 3

to 9

grade of the basic

school. What is very important is the fact that one started to talk
about the problems connected with technical education at
schools, mainly about the problem of the material and technical
equipment necessary to ensure its realization. Criticism of the
lack of the relevant material and technical equipment at schools
resulted in two national projects aimed at improvement of this

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