Technology Literacy

As someone who taught technology education, I have a different perspective on the integration of technology in the classroom. To me technology is more of a process then an artifact. Technology is not only the use of tools, but also the creation of tools to solve problems. If this is the case, as I believe it is, what impact does this perspective have in how we utilize technology to support learning? I believe that there needs to be a fundamental shift in the way educators view technology. Too often technology is seen as a value added commodity in the classroom, we must instead being to look at technology as an intergraded, I would argue even interdisciplinary partner for our lessons (Grasha & Yangarber-Hicks, 2000).

When justifying to my fifth graders why we would be spending substantial time in my class away from the computer I would pose this question, “What is a more important piece of technology a hammer or a computer?” With a little coaxing I could usually spark a fairly robust conversation. In the same vane technology is supporting learning in ways we don’t ever think about. Before pencils and paper became inexpensive enough to use in the classroom, children would carry slate and chalk to complete their lessons. Take a moment to consider the “integration” of the pencil. New psycho-motor skills had to be mastered so students could grasp and manipulate the slender long pencil. Also, new classroom procedures had to be implemented to manage resources such as paper and sharpeners. However, also consider how the pencil must have changed the way learning took place. Exercises could be longer and summative assessment achieved more easily.

As the pencil became commonplace it almost certainly altered the way students and teachers thought and learned. Computers, and other forms of “high-technology” are already doing that in our society. However, these changes are reflected at a much slower pace in our classrooms. This has its advantages, for example it helps avoid fads, however educators need a way to deal with this rapid change. Google will soon be turning ten. What company is being started today that will have changed the world by the year 2018? How can educators ever keep up?

I propose that the study of technology be incorporated into every classroom. Not the rote acquisition of skills such as mastering the menus of MS Word, but exercises, which promote technology literacy. As proposed by the ITEA a technology literate person can “understand –with increasing sophistication – what technology is, how it is created, how it shapes society, and in turn is shaped by society. A technologically literate person is comfortable with and objective about the use of technology – neither scared of it nor infatuated with it. (2003) ” As technology literacy becomes more universal, in both teachers and students, the scaffolding will already exist for the judicial use of technology to promote learning. Only then will we be able to look upon technology as we do the pencil, a universally flexible tool for learning.

(Ed.). (2003). Advancing excellence in technological literacy : student assessment, professional development, and program standards. Reston, Va: International Technology Education Association.
Grasha, A. & Yangarber-Hicks, N. (2000). Intergrating Teaching Styles and Learning Styles with Instructional Technology. Colllege Teaching, 48(1), 2-10.