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##  Technological Literacy. ERIC Digest.                                         

It's a commonplace today that technology--for good or ill--will play            an ever larger role in our lives at home, at work, and in the                   community. There is also some consensus, in an era of educational               reform and standards, on the need for technological literacy and the            definition of it. Recently developed standards for technological                literacy identify knowledge, skills, and attitudes all students need            to use and judge technology intelligently and responsibly. This                 Digest provides information to K-12 educators about the need and                standards for technological literacy and the steps necessary to                 implement those standards. DEFINITIONS AND RATIONALEWhat is               technology? A definition of technology literacy might well begin                with a definition of technology. Technology consists of all the                 modifications humans have made in the natural environment for their             own purposes (Dugger 2001)--inventions, innovations, and changes                intended to meet our wants and needs, to live longer, more                      productive lives. Such a broad definition of technology includes a              broad spectrum of artifacts, ranging from the age-old (flint tools,             wheels, levers) to the high-tech (computers, multimedia,                        biotechnologies). In short, if humans thought of it and made it,                it's technology. 
Two important points need to made about such a               broad definition of technology. First, although some writers address            only computer and communications technology (e.g., Selfe 1999),                 technology is usually defined to include far more than instructional            or communications technology (Custer 1999). Computers, e-mail, and              Web TV are only one part of the array of devices and procedures we              encounter in day-to-day life--everything from digitized kitchen                 appliances to transportation systems and integrated manufacturing.              Second, science and technology, although closely related, are                   different (Sanders 1999). Science generates knowledge for its own               sake, proposing and testing explanations. Technology, on the other              hand, develops human-made solutions to real-world problems. Of                  course, science uses technology to generate knowledge and technology            uses scientific knowledge to generate solutions, so the two are                 integrally connected; but they are different fields driven by                   different concepts and processes (Bybee 2000). 
What is                        technological literacy? Just as technology involves more than                   computers and the Internet, technological literacy involves more                than hands-on skill in using technology (Bugliarello 2000).                     Certainly, knowing how to use information technology is increasingly            important in our knowledge society, whether we are looking for a                job, marketing a service, or shopping for a product. We must also be            able to use other devices, like microwaves, copying machines, and               self-service gas pumps, that have become part of everyday life at               home, at work, or in the community. However, the ability to use                 technology is only one part of technological literacy. What are the             other parts? 
Interpreting a large body of work on technological               literacy from a variety of fields, Gagel (1997) suggested common                elements of an enduring, inherent technological literacy that can               last through the fast, continuous changes in technology. This type              of technological literacy would include knowledge about the details             of individual technologies and about the process of technology                  development. It would also include a holistic understanding of the              historical and cultural context of technology and adaptability based            on initiative and resourceful thinking. Finally, enduring, inherent             technological literacy would include four generalized                           competencies: "(a) accommodate and cope with rapid and continuous               technological change, (b) generate creative and innovative solutions            for technological problems, (c) act through technological knowledge             both effectively and efficiently, and (d) assess technology and its             involvement with the human lifeworld judiciously" (p. 25). 
These              elements are mirrored in other descriptions of technological                    literacy. Prime (1998) characterizes technological literacy as                  consisting of knowledge and skills. Broad knowledge areas include               problems that might be solved with technology, important                        technologies, social and cultural effects of technology,                        prerequisite knowledge from other disciplines (e.g., math), and the             form or structure of technological knowledge. Skills include both               manipulative and cognitive skills (e.g., evaluation, analytical                 thinking, creativity, problem solving, research, analysis, design).             Affective skills include the capacity to act for the right reason               and exhibit concern for moral and ethical implications of                       technological choice, as well as attitudes such as independence and             interdependence, caring, environmental concern, social                          responsibility, and positive work habits. 
Why is technological                literacy so broad? There is wide agreement that technological                   literacy should be defined very broadly, for two                                reasons (International Technology Education Association [ITEA]                  2000). The range of technology available today is very broad, as is             the range of human problems that technology might solve; creation of            new technologies and extension of old technologies will only                    increase the ranges of both. As a result, individuals need more than            just knowledge of current technology and skills in using it; they               also need an additional set of knowledge and skills to accommodate              and use the new and changed technologies of tomorrow. This                      additional set of knowledge and skills includes learning-to-learn               skills--information, inquiry, independent learning, media, and group            skills (Potter et al. 2000). 
Just as important, however, are the              knowledge and skills all will need for informed, responsible                    decision making as workers, consumers, and  citizens (Bugliarello               2000; Gilberti 1999). Responsible decision making requires an                   understanding of the relationship between technology, humans, and               the environment and of the limits of science and technology; the                ability to distinguish between fact and conjecture, to examine the              values associated with technology, and to develop one's own values;             and some experience in applying technology to solve problems. For               example, chlorofluorocarbons are great as refrigerants and                      foam-blowing agents but they also damage the ozone (ITEA 2000). And             we know the Internet can affect how people interact and communicate,            do business, and entertain themselves, but we don't know what its               long-term effect will be. 
Some educators are particularly                     concerned about the articulated belief system that links literacy               and technology, the "grand narrative...[that] science + technology +            democracy (+ capitalism) + education = progress + literate                      citizenry" (Selfe 1999, pp. 122-123). Will the powerful,                        common-sense appeal of such a belief system lead us to accept                   without question both its assumptions and its conclusions? Has the              equation of technology with progress blinded us to the fact that                technology may simply reproduce social problems? Great concern is               expressed about unequal access--at home, in the workplace, and in               school--to online telecommunications and technology for women,                  minorities, and the poor. Equally, concern is expressed about                   affluent, highly educated nontechnologists who are estranged from               technology and prefer to leave it to the technologists, abdicating              their own responsibilities as informed citizens, consumers, and                 workers (ibid.). STANDARDS FOR TECHNOLOGICAL LITERACYThese                concerns are reflected in STANDARDS FOR TECHNOLOGICAL LITERACY:                 CONTENT FOR THE STUDY OF TECHNOLOGY (ITEA 2000). The product of                 lengthy and careful collaboration among educators, engineers, and               scientists conducted by ITEA's Technology for All Americans                     Project (TfAAP), 20 cognitive and process standards are grouped in 5            categories: 
* The Nature of Technology--characteristics and scope             of technology; core concepts of technology; the relationships among             technologies and connections between technology and other fields 
*            Technology and Society--cultural, social, economic, and political               effects of technology; effects of technology on the environment;                role of society in the development and use of technology; influence             of technology on history 
* Design--attributes of design;                      engineering design; role of troubleshooting, research and                       development, invention and innovation, experimentation in problem               solving 
* Abilities for a Technological World--apply the design               process; use and maintain technological products and systems; assess            the impact of products and systems 
* The Designed World--medical              technologies; agricultural and related biotechnologies; energy and              power technologies; information and communication technologies;                 transportation technologies; manufacturing technologies;                        construction technologies 
Specific, developmentally appropriate               benchmarks define precise student outcomes for four clustered grade             levels (K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12). Extensive additional narrative                provides fuller explanations of the intent of standards and examples            and details of grade-level benchmarks; vignettes illustrate                     instructional activities and experiences to implement benchmarked               standards. 
ITEA calls for technology education for all students,              from kindergarten through high school, with attention to gender,                minority, and equity issues. The association recommends that                    standards be included in curricula for both technology education and            other subject areas and applied in conjunction with other national,             state, or local standards for technological literacy and other                  subject areas. IMPLEMENTING THE STANDARDSTfAAP has begun                  development of three sets of related standards critical to                      implementation (Dugger 2000-2001): assessment standards (good                   practice in measuring student learning for formative and summative              purposes); professional development standards (for inservice and                preservice teacher preparation); and program standards (framework               for a consistent, articulated, coordinated K-12 technology                      program). 
Another essential step toward implementing the standards            is curriculum development. One statewide effort has developed a                 model K-12 standards-based technology education curriculum based on             state K-12 technology education standards and correlated with ITEA              standards (Mino et al. 2001). TfAAP's ongoing summer implementation             workshop provided valuable clarification in developing teacher                  tasks, student activities, and student work examples based on the               standards. Future plans include Internet dissemination and                      district-level professional development; a website will contain a               relational database of classroom activities, searchable by standard             or grade level, with examples of student work correlated to level of            competency, as well as model curriculum and implementation plans for            all state standard content areas. 
With or without a model                     curriculum, individual teachers will play a major role in                       incorporating ITEA standards into existing programs (Sumner 2001).              Teachers must compare ITEA standards to state, district, program,               and course standards, outcomes, objectives, or goals to determine               whether current materials and activities fit ITEA standards. If                 existing components fit ITEA standards, they can be used without                modification; a partial fit can be rectified by modifying existing              components. New components need to be developed for ITEA standards              that are not currently addressed. 
Teacher education must also play            a role in implementing ITEA standards for technological                         literacy (Reeve 2001). Courses in technology education should at                least identify which standards for technological literacy they                  cover. Eventually, upper-level curriculum and teaching methods                  courses must provide detailed knowledge about standards and give                students the opportunity to develop curriculum materials and                    activities to implement the standards. 
In the end, implementing               the standards for technological literacy will depend on leadership              and partnership. Teachers, curriculum specialists, and                          administrators can and must provide leadership to the educational               community; developing a cadre of leaders is one of the first steps              in nationwide implementation (Dugger 2000-2001). Ultimately, meeting            the challenge of providing the study of technology to all students              at all levels will require a partnership of all parties interested              in improving levels of technological literacy--teachers, principals,            superintendents, state supervisors, teacher educators, students,                parents, educational equipment providers and publishers, engineers,             scientists, mathematicians, technologists, and the community at                 large (ITEA 2000). And meeting that challenge will require careful              attention to issues of equity and access so that all segments of                society can enjoy the benefits of technological                                 literacy. REFERENCESBugliarello, G. "Reflections on                       Technological Literacy." BULLETIN OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY & SOCIETY              2 (April 2000): 83-89. 
Bybee, R. W. "Achieving Technological                  Literacy: A National Imperative." TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 60, no.                    1 (September 2000): 23-28. 
Custer, R. L. "Design and Problem                  Solving in Technology Education." NASSP BULLETIN 83, no.                        608 (September 1999): 24-33. 
Dugger, W. E., Jr. "Phase III                    Technology for All Americans Project." TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 60, no.               4 (December 2000-January 2001): 27-31. 
Dugger, W. E.,                         Jr. "Standards for Technological Literacy." PHI DELTA KAPPAN 82, no.            7 (March 2001): 513-517. 
Gagel, C. W. "Literacy and Technology:               Reflections and Insights for Technological Literacy." JOURNAL OF                INDUSTRIAL TEACHER EDUCATION 34, no. 3 (Spring 1997):                           6-34. 
Gilberti, A. F. "Why Technology Should be Integrated into               the Curriculum as a Core Subject." NASSP BULLETIN 83, no.                       608 (September 1999): 56-63. 
International Technology Education               Association. STANDARDS FOR TECHNOLOGICAL LITERACY: CONTENT FOR THE              STUDY OF TECHNOLOGY. Reston, VA: ITEA, 2000.                                    http://www.iteawww.org/TAA/STLstds.htm 
Mino, M.; Kane, G.; and                Novak, D. "Implementing the Standards: A State Solution to a                    National Imperative." TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 60, no. 7 (April 2001):                30-32. 
Potter, C. J.; Lohr, N. J.; Klein, J.; and Sorensen, R. J.             INFORMATION & TECHNOLOGY LITERACY STANDARDS MATRIX. Madison:                    Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, 2000. (ED 445                       663) 
Prime, G. "Tailoring Assessment of Technological Literacy                Learning." JOURNAL OF TECHNOLOGY STUDIES 24, no. 1 (Winter-Spring               1998): 18-23. 
Reeve, E. M. "Implementing the Standards: Viewpoints            from a Teacher Educator." TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 60, no. 6 (March 2001):            35-37. 
Sanders, M. E. "Technology Education in the Middle Level               School: Its Role and Purpose." NASSP BULLETIN 83, no. 608 (September            1999): 34-44. 
Selfe, C. L. TECHNOLOGY AND LITERACY IN THE                     TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY: THE IMPORTANCE OF PAYING ATTENTION.                       Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1999. 
Sumner,                 A. "Implementing the Standards: A Classroom Teacher's Viewpoint."               TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 60, no. 5 (February 2001): 38-40. 
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This             project has been funded at least in part with Federal funds from the            U.S. Department of Education under Contract No. ED-99-CO-0013. The              content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views              or policies of the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of             trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement            by the U.S. Government. Digests may be freely reproduced and are                available at http://ericacve.org/digests.asp.                                **Title:** Technological Literacy. ERIC Digest.                                         **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** For full text: http://www.ericacve.org/pubs.asp.                             **Descriptors:**  Academic Standards, Cooperative Planning,  Curriculum Development,             Definitions, Education Work Relationship, Educational Needs,                    Educational Objectives, Educational Principles, Elementary Secondary            Education, Guidelines, International Organizations,  National                   Standards, Partnerships in Education, Professional Associations,                Professional Development, Program Development, School Business                  Relationship, Student Evaluation, Teacher Education,  Technological             Literacy,  Technology Education                                              **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests, International Technology Education Association,                   Technology for All Americans Project                                         
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