NOVEMBER 2002 VOL. 62 NO. 3 - International Technology and ...

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RESOURCES IN TECHNOLOGYproducing a healthy child. Expandingthe research of cloning could lead tothe discovery of new treatments forgenetic diseases. Banning cloningwould be unconstitutional because itwould deprive people of the right toreproduce, and it would restrict thefreedom of scientists. Proponents ofhuman cloning contend that a clonewould not really be a duplicate becauseenvironmental factors would moldhim or her into a unique individual,and that a clone would have as much asense of individuality as twins do. Themost powerful argument for cloning isthat objections to cloning are similarto objections raised against previousscientific achievements, such as hearttransplants and test-tube babies, thatlater came to be widely accepted.ActivityThe technology education classroomor laboratory is an excellent place todevelop a student’s awareness of thebiotechnology of cloning so that ourstudents will have the knowledge tomake informed and intelligent decisions.As the technology matures, theywill have the knowledge and the skillto steer this newly developing technologyin directions that will be beneficialto all of humanity. Technologicalliteracy will be the foundation; a betterworld will be the future. To enhancestudents’ learning about cloning technologies,their uses and possible socialimplications, several different techniquescan be utilized in the classroom.It should be realized thatcloning is a controversial issue. It canbe an emotionally charged topic withmany social, cultural, and religiousimplications. As we can see from thenational and international news coverage,cloning is in the forefront ofbiotechnology. Caution should beexercised when studying controversialtechnologies such as cloning.24Figure 3. A futures wheel may be thought of as a visual tool to analyzecurrent issues and predict future issues and concerns about cloningtechnology. The futures wheel begins with a central theme or assessmentarea, with the six impact areas, social, cultural, economic, political,environmental, and ethical, radiating in a wheel-like manner.Futures WheelA futures wheel is a diagram consistingof a main idea located in the centerwith consequences, implications,impacts, concerns, developments, etc.,branching off in different directions,that should end up resembling thespokes of a wheel such as shown inFigure 3. The futures wheel is ananalytical tool that can be used torepresent complex relationships in ahighly visual manner (Deal, 2002). See“Making the Connection: TechnologicalLiteracy and TechnologyAssessment” in the April 2002 issue ofThe Technology Teacher for strategiesfor teaching about the assessmentprocess. This project can be limited toan 8-1/2 X 11-inch sheet of paper orcan be constructed on a larger mediumsuch as poster board or foam board.Varying colors can be utilized to representdifferent criteria such as socialimpacts, future developments, andother related issues. Consideration canbe given to the possibility of displayingthe finished projects in a highly visiblearea of the school or community tobring awareness of the subject ofcloning to a broader audience.ActivityIt is sometimes difficult to get studentsthinking about consequences unlessthey become personal. In order tofacilitate the thought process inhelping them to understand variouspossible consequences, benefits, anddrawbacks to the technology ofcloning, various scenarios can beput forth to the students, givingthem the opportunity to analyzeeach situation.Scenario 1: Biotechnology isinevitably leading to a world in whichplants, animals, and humans are goingto be partly man-made. If you had theopportunity, (assuming you had thefinancial ability), to choose geneenhancements for your child, whichones would you choose? If geneenhancements were available toincrease your child’s IQ by 30 percentand you didn’t opt for that particularenhancement, what disadvantageswould your child encounter?THE TECHNOLOGY TEACHER • November 2002
RESOURCES IN TECHNOLOGYWhat genetic enhancements wouldyou choose?Scenario 2: With the technology ofcloning and human enhancementthrough gene therapy progressing atsuch a rapid pace, do we need toredefine the essence of what constitutesa human being? Your task is tocreate a definition for what it means tobe human.Scenario 3: There is a definite possibilitythat the science of cloning,along with gene enhancement, willcreate two distinct classes of humans….the gene rich and the naturals…..What type of laws might be needed inorder to maintain “equal opportunityfor all”?SummaryAs technology education teachers, wehave a responsibility to our studentsand to our profession to stay currentin all aspects of technology so that ourstudents will have the skills andknowledge to help shape our technologicalfuture. Advancements in thefield of biotechnology will present oursociety with situations that we havenever before encountered. Only a technologicallyliterate population will beable to make the tough decisions thatundoubtedly will be faced in the notso-distantfuture.Addressing Standards forTechnological LiteracyIt should be noted that throughoutthe publication Standards forTechnological Literacy, emphasis isplaced on students developing theability not only to understand howparticular technologies are developedand used, but to develop the ability toevaluate a technology’s effect “on othertechnologies, on the environment, andon society itself” (ITEA, 2000). Manyof the technology content standardscan be addressed while having studentsresearch and evaluate the biotechnologyof human cloning. Whileaddressing this technology in theclassroom, particular attention shouldbe paid to the standards addressed inChapter 4, Technology and Society.Standards four through six address the“cultural, social, economic and politicaleffects of technology on societyalong with the effects of technology onthe environment and the role ofsociety in the development and use oftechnology” (ITEA, 2000). Throughactivities and research, technologicalliteracy can be obtained, enablingstudents to understand what humancloning is, how it will be developed,and its effects on society. They will beable to form their own opinions on thesubject, weighing the pros and cons ofthe issues, thereby making intelligentchoices that will be beneficial not onlyto themselves, but to the world.Web sites for FurtherResearchNew ScientistA listing of articles on cloning andstem cells from March 1997 topresent.www.newscientist.com/hottopics/cloningUS Department of Energy HumanGenome ProjectA cloning fact sheet.www.ornl.gov/hgmis/elsi/cloning.htmlPPL Therapeutics, Inc.The company involved in cloningDolly and genetically modified pigs.www.phrma.org/genomics/cloning/index.htmlThe Roslin InstituteThe official site of the researchcenter at which Dolly was cloned.www.roslin.ac.ukThe Clonaid ProjectThe official Web site of anorganization with plans to clonehuman beings.www.clonaid.comAdvanced Cell Technology, Inc.The official site of a companyattempting to clone endangeredspecies.www.advancedcell.com/ReferencesAssociation of Reproductive HealthProfessionals. (2002). ARHP Presents:Human Cloning and Genetic Modification—The Basic Science You Need to Know.[On-Line]. Available: www.arhp.org/cloning/[2002, July 22].Deal, Walter F., “Making the Connection:Technological Literacy and TechnologyAssessment. The Technology Teacher, April2002, Volume 61, Number 7.Fatahalian, K., Reavis, B., Schneider, B.,(1998). Conceiving A Clone. [12 pages]Thinkquest. [On-Line]. Available: http://library.thinkquest.org/24355/data/about.html [2002, July 24].Human Genome Program, U.S. Department ofEnergy, (2001). Genomics and Its Impact onMedicine and Society: A 2001 Primer, 2001.[On-Line]. Available: www.ornl.gov/TechResources/Human_Genome/publicat/primer2001/index.html [2002, August 17].International Technology Education Association.(2000). Standards for Technological Literacy:Content for the study of Technology. Reston,VA: Author.Microsoft. (2002). Encarta’01. Redmond, WA.Spears, V., (2002). First Human Cloning MightStart Next Month. [2 pages]. LexingtonHerald-Leader. [On-Line]. Available:www.kentucky.com [2002, August 20].Westphal, S., (2002). ‘Handmade’ Cloning Cheapand Easy. [2 pages]. NewScientist.com.[On-Line]. Available: www.newscientist.com/news/ [2002, August 10].Worldbook. (2002). Worldbook’02. Chicago, IL.Stephen L. Baird is a technology educationteacher at Bayside Middle School, VirginiaBeach, Virginia and adjunct faculty memberat Old Dominion University. He can bereached via email at slbaird@vbcps.k12.va.us.November 2002 • THE TECHNOLOGY TEACHER 25
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