Designing Devices

Challenge your students to design with impact in this purposeful Years 7 & 8 HPE and Design & Technology unit focused on empathy, engineering and human-centred solutions. Designing Devices invites students to step into the role of designers and problem-solvers as they investigate how assistive devices support people in everyday life and how thoughtful design can remove barriers to participation and independence.

Students begin by building empathy, meeting real end users and exploring how assistive devices respond to genuine needs. They then analyse existing designs, develop and apply success criteria, and generate their own device concepts through structured ideation. As the unit progresses, students create and document prototypes, before testing, refining and evaluating their designs against clearly defined criteria.

By combining technical design skills with social awareness, this unit helps students develop confidence in the design process while deepening their understanding of inclusion, accessibility and wellbeing. Through designing, testing and reflecting, students experience how innovation grounded in empathy can lead to meaningful, real-world change.