Standards for technology literacy
Standards for Technology Literacy (commonly referred to as STL)
The STL identify the technology content necessary for K—12 students interested in learning about the history, nature, and future of various technological processes (ie. medical technologies, achricultural technologies, the engineering process, the design process, etc.). ; they are centered on the knowledge and abilities of various technological processes and domains (ie. medical technologies, the design process, etc.) The standards in STL were built around a cognitive base as well as a doing/activity base. They include assessment checkpoints at specific grade levels (K—2, 3—5, 6—8, and 9—12).
The STL articulate what needs to be taught in K—12 lab-classrooms to enable all students to develop technological literacy, with a focus on helping the students apply the learning to the real world. The goal is to meet all of the standards through the benchmarks which are included in STL. Standards are written statements about what is valued that can be used for making a judgment of quality. Note: STL is NOT a curriculum.
The following link will take you to the ITEA homepage where a pdf of the STL can be downloaded: http://www.iteaconnect.org/TAA/Publications/TAA_Publications.html
Below is a summary list of the 20 STL:
(Note: the summary list includes the standard number and title, in addition to a short description that is currently under constant revision by a group of students who are learning about the standards. For a full and accurate description as ITEA outlined, please visit and download the STL link above.)
Standard 1: The characteristics and scope of technology
Standard 2: The core concepts of technology OK, I'll summarize the lesson I taught and hopefully it will be useful to all of you in life and on the final. Systems: How a whole is expressed through its parts, and how those parts relate to each other. This can be studied through design, troubleshooting and operation. Resources: These are the tools, machines, materials, information, energy, capital, time and people. Requirements and Parameters: Safety, physical laws, available resources and cultural norms that go into making a product. Optimization and tradeoffs: design that gives the best result. Sometimes we have to trade ideas and designs to achieve the best results. Process: Sequence of events used to combine resources. Controls: Info that causes systems to change. Done through feedback from employees and customers. Controls change and evolve to best fit the business and product.
If you'll remember I taught this through the use of bridge building. We used wood and tape to make the bridge, the builders had constraints and parameters of time and design which forced them to trade off ideas for others. They exhibited a process to building.
STANDARD 3: The relationships among technologies and the connections between technology and other fields
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Standard 4: The cultural, social, economic, and political effects of technology
Standard 5: The Effects of technology on the environment Help your students understand the negative and positive effects that technology has on the environment.
K-2: Teach them what pollution is and how to reuse and recycle.
3-5: Learn alternative ways to protect the environment. They need to study the problem locally and globally.
6-8: Understanding the manufacturing process of products helps students understand +/- of technology. Technology is also used to help against natural disasters. Also teach that the pros/cons can sometimes be in competition with each other.
9-12: There are ways of monitoring the environment for decision making. We can devise technology to conserve water, soil, and energy. Understand the ways that we can use technology and natural process together. With new technology, it is important to consider the trade-offs with the +/- on the environment.
Standard 6: The role of society in the development and use of technology
Standard 7: The influence of technology on history
Students will understand the influence of technology on history.
Knowing the history of technology helps people understand the world around them by seeing how inventions and innovations have evolved and how they in turn produced the world as it exists today.
Three Great Transformations in Technology © development of agriculture © steam engine © computers and high speed communication
K-2 © The way people live and work has changed through history because of technology 3-5 © People have made tools to provide food, to make clothing and to protect themselves. 6-8 © Many inventions and innovations have evolved by using slow and methodical processes of tests and refinements. © In the past, an invention or innovation was not usually developed with the knowledge of science. 9-12 © Most technical development has been evolutionary, the result of a series of refinements to a basic invention. © The evolution of civilization has been directly affected by, and has in turn affected, the development and use of tools and materials.
Communication fosters enhanced development by allowing ideas to be shared and to build on each other. IE synergy vs. isolation. People inspire ideas in each other.
Standard 8: The attributes of design
Standard 9: Engineering Design Process
The Engineering Design Process consists of a series of steps that must be considered when designing a prototype. These steps are not mandated to be accomplished in order, however the order is pertinent. The steps are observed in basic terms apon teaching young students and are integrated as the student age increases. Below are the integral steps to the design process according to the age bracket taught:
K-2: 1.Identify the Problem 2.Look for ideas 3.Develop Solutions 4.Share the Solutions
3-5: 1.Define the Problem 2.Generate Ideas/Brainstorm 3.Select a Solution 4.Test the Solution 5.Make the Item 6.Evalutate the Item 7.Present the Results
6-8: Same as grades 3-5, but focusses on the value of group brainstorming or problem solving and model making and testing for practical real-world applications.
9-12: Incorporates all the above steps and also includes the applied ideas of design principles and factors. Principles: Factors: 1.Flexibility 1.Safety 5.Quality 2.Balance 2.Reliability 6.Maintenance 3.Function 3.Economy 7.Manufacturability 4.Proportion 4.Environment
Standard 10: The role of troubleshooting, research and development, invention and innovation, and experimentation in problem solving.
Standard 11: Applying the design process Again I'll summarize briefly for everyones benefit. I won't cover the process because it was part of someone elses STL. Design is the first step in production. To apply this students must have knowledge of the problem and an idea of how to solve it. Then, they must have a broad knowledge of different technologies available to develop the solution. Application of the process involves the actual use of those tools, materials, equipment and resources. The most important thing is that we are able to give students an informative and educated opinion on how they should solve the problem efficiently. Remember Homer Simpson building his car? We can learn from his mistakes. He was given the task to build a car to save his brothers company. He wasn't sure what to build or how to do it, so he threw together some random ideas that he thought would make an excellent car: fuzzy dice, shag carpet, extra large cupholder, separate compartment for the kids. The result, failure and eventual bankruptcy of his brother. This is why STL #11 is so important, we don't need any more Homer Simpson engineers!
STANDARD 12: Use and maintain technological products and systems
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Standard 13: Assess the impact of products and systems
Standard 14: Medical technologies Medical Technologies
Students should understand the impact that technology has had on the medical field. Because of technology we can take care of ourselves better and longer. It creates constant improvement in pharmaceuticals, procedures, equipment and materials, etc.
http://www.et.byu.edu/~backy/276/Standard14.ppt
Standard 15: Agricultural and related biotechnologies
Standard 16: Energy and power technologies
Standard 17: Information and communication technologies
Standard 18 – Students will develop an understanding and be able to select and use transportation technologies.
The transportation system is a complex network of interconnected components on land, water, air and space. Transportation modes are parts that work together to create a common goal – much like the history of technology. There are advantages and disadvantages to intelligent systems and non-intelligent systems, such as preventing accidents and ensuring safety. Transportation has built upon itself through manufacturing/construction, communication, health/safety and agriculture.
Standard 19: Manufacturing Technologies
Standard 20: Construction Technologies