Technologies · Year 8

Active learning ideas

Robotics and Automation in Industry

Active learning works for this topic because students need to confront real-world tensions between progress and human impact. Debate, role play, and collaborative analysis help them move beyond abstract ideas to concrete, evidence-based reasoning about automation’s role in work.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9TDI8K05

• 40–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Formal Debate
• 50 min · Whole Class

Formal Debate: The Universal Basic Income

Students debate whether the government should provide a guaranteed income to all citizens if automation leads to widespread job loss, focusing on the economic and social arguments for and against such a policy.

Analyze the economic benefits and challenges of increased automation in manufacturing.

Facilitation Tip

During the Structured Debate, assign roles explicitly (e.g., economist, factory worker, AI ethicist) to ensure balanced perspectives.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine you are a factory manager in Australia considering automating your production line. What are the top two economic benefits you would highlight to your board, and what is the biggest challenge you anticipate regarding your workforce?'

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making

Activity 02

• Inquiry Circle
• 45 min · Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: The Automation Audit

Groups choose a common local job (e.g., barista, truck driver, teacher) and break it down into specific tasks. They use a 'probability of automation' scale to rank each task and then present which parts of the job are most likely to be done by a machine in 20 years.

Explain how robotics can improve safety and efficiency in hazardous environments.

Facilitation Tip

For the Automation Audit, provide a template with columns for task type, automation risk, and human skill required to guide students’ research.

What to look for

Provide students with short case studies of different industries (e.g., agriculture, healthcare, manufacturing, retail). Ask them to identify one specific application of robotics or automation in each case and explain one potential social impact, positive or negative.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Role Play
• 40 min · Pairs

Role Play: The Job Interview of 2040

Students act as 'hiring managers' and 'candidates' for a job that doesn't exist yet (e.g., Space Traffic Controller or AI Ethicist). They must identify and pitch the 'human-only' skills that make them better than an automated system.

Predict which industries are most susceptible to significant automation in the next decade.

Facilitation Tip

In the Job Interview of 2040, give students 10 minutes to prepare responses using their earlier research on job trends and automation.

What to look for

On an index card, have students write down: 1) One industry they believe will see significant automation growth in the next 10 years, and why. 2) One job that might be created or changed due to this automation.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should ground discussions in local examples, like Australia’s mining automation or healthcare robotics, so students see relevance. Avoid framing automation only as a threat—balance it with stories of new careers in robotics maintenance, ethics oversight, and system design. Research shows students grasp complex systems better when they role-play stakeholders, so design activities that require them to embody different viewpoints.

Successful learning looks like students discussing automation’s effects with both nuance and empathy, using data to support arguments, and imagining future scenarios with curiosity rather than fear. They should leave able to separate myth from reality in discussions about job markets.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Structured Debate, watch for students claiming 'Automation will eventually take all the jobs.'

  Redirect the claim by asking students to reference historical examples from the Industrial Revolution, then use the debate’s research materials to identify emerging jobs like robotics technicians or AI trainers.

• During the Automation Audit, watch for students assuming only 'blue-collar' jobs are at risk.

  Have students review their audit findings and highlight examples of white-collar tasks like auditing or legal document review that AI now handles, using case studies provided in the activity pack.

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Methods used in this brief

• Formal Debate
• Inquiry Circle
• Role Play