October 2004 - Vol 64, No.2 - International Technology and ...

FEATURE ARTICLENorth Carolina, Virginia, Utah, andWisconsin. The final CATTS state,Maryland, is in the process of presentingstandards based on STL to thestate board of education for approval.The companion standards to STL,which were published by ITEA in 2003in a document entitled AdvancingExcellence in Technological Literacy:Student Assessment, ProfessionalDevelopment, and Program Standards(AETL), show less usage than STL. InResponse to Question 5, AETL usagewas reported by 22 states (42.3%).Twenty-three states (44.2%) are notusing AETL yet. The differencebetween STL and AETL usage is notunexpected, considering AETL hadbeen published one year prior to thetime the survey was conducted. Fourstates—Florida, Georgia, Indiana, andNorth Carolina—commented on theneed for implementation proceduresfor AETL. Comments also revealedthat, at the state level, the professionaldevelopment standards in AETLwere of particular use.Conclusions/DiscussionThe increase in the number of statesthat include technology education inthe state framework may indicate that,as a nation, we are placing increasingimportance on technology educationas part of the overall learning experience.This trend is likely instigated byresearch on the increasing need for atechnologically literate populace.(ITEA, 1996; ITEA 2000/2002; ITEA2003; NAE & NRC, 2002; Rose &Dugger, 2002; Rose, Gallup, Dugger, &Starkweather, 2004.)YesNoUnknownNo ResponseNo AnswerSTLUsed?2004417211Requiring technology education isanother issue, however. While nearlya quarter of the nation requires technologyeducation in some way, and theother three-quarters of the nation offerit as an elective or leave the decisionto localities or districts, the methodused to deliver technology educationvaries considerably. While conclusivedata is not available, comments indicatethat some states offer technologyeducation as a separate subject, onedesigned to deliver technological literacy.Other states embed technologicalliteracy concepts into the curriculumof other core subject areas, such asscience. And still other states providetechnology education as part of acareer and technical context.While NCLB does not identify technologyeducation as a subject area, itdoes require technology literacy—sometimes referred to interchangeablyin U.S. Department of Educationdocuments as technological literacy—forall students by 2006.However, NCLB does not define preciselywhat technology/technologicalliteracy means. The Partnership for21 st Century Skills, which broughttogether educators, administrators,parents, businesses, and communityleaders to define twenty-first centuryskills, has been building a consensualdefinition of what technology/technologicalliteracy means. Information onthe Partnership can be found online atwww.21stcenturyskills.org. The U.S.Department of Education is identifiedas a key partner of this group, anddiscussions with the Office ofEducational Technology reveal thatthe U.S. Department of Education isvery much interested in a definitionthat extends beyond informational/STLUsed?2003*437000AETLUsed?20042223511Table 1: Summary of 2004 ITEA-TfAAP Study and 2003 Ndahi & Ritz Report on theusage of national technological literacy standards in the United States.educational technology alone andincludes relevance to such things asagriculture, medicine, manufacturing,and construction, much like the definitionin STL. For example, a math andscience initiative is underway toexamine how a broader definition oftechnological literacy can be deliveredin the classroom.Hence, it appears that the intent ofNCLB mandates for technology/technologicalliteracy are very much in linewith the vision for technological literacydefined in STL. It remains to beseen, however, whether implementationof NCLB mandates will focus,through a lack of awareness, on informationand communication technologyalone. And while aspects of technologicalliteracy can and should bedelivered through mathematics, science,and other core subject classrooms,full implementation of thestandards in STL is unlikely throughembedded curricula at the secondarylevel. Technology education is the onlysubject area specifically designed todeliver technological literacy.Identifying technology education as acore subject area—and therefore arequirement for graduation—is oneway to ensure that all students willbecome technologically literate asintended by NCLB and STL. Such adistinction would also ensure that32 October 2004 • THE TECHNOLOGY TEACHER