Science, Engineering, Technology and Education

The distinction between science, engineering and technology is not always clear. Science is the reasoned investigation or study of phenomena, aimed at discovering enduring principles among elements of the phenomenal world by employing formal techniques such as the scientific method. Technologies are not usually exclusively products of science, because they have to satisfy requirements such as utility, usability and safety.

Engineering is the goal-oriented process of designing and making tools and systems to exploit natural phenomena for practical human means, often (but not always) using results and techniques from science. The development of technology may draw upon many fields of knowledge, including scientific, engineering, mathematical, linguistic, and historical knowledge, to achieve some practical result.

Technology is often a consequence of science and engineering — although technology as a human activity precedes the two fields. For example, science might study the flow of electronsin electrical conductors, by using already-existing tools and knowledge. This new-found knowledge may then be used by engineers to create new tools and machines, such assemiconductors, computers, and other forms of advanced technology. In this sense, scientists and engineers may both be considered technologists; the three fields are often considered as one for the purposes of research and reference.

The exact relations between science and technology in particular have been debated by scientists, historians, and policymakers in the late 20th century, in part because the debate can inform the funding of basic and applied science. In immediate wake of World War II, for example, in the United States it was widely considered that technology was simply "applied science" and that to fund basic science was to reap technological results in due time. An articulation of this philosophy could be found explicitly in Vannevar Bush's treatise on postwar science policy, Science—The Endless Frontier: "New products, new industries, and more jobs require continuous additions to knowledge of the laws of nature... This essential new knowledge can be obtained only through basic scientific research." In the late-1960s, however, this view came under direct attack, leading towards initiatives to fund science for specific tasks (initiatives resisted by the scientific community). The issue remains contentious—though most analysts resist the model that technology simply is a result of scientific research.

Technology in Education

• Technology: A Catalyst for Teaching and Learning in the Classroom
• Technology Leadership: Enhancing Positive Educational Change
• Enhancing System Change and Academic Success
  Through Assistive Technologies for K–12 Students With Special Needs
• Using Technology to Support Limited English Proficient (LEP) Students' Learning Experiences
• Providing Professional Development for Effective Technology Use
• Using Technology to Improve Student Achievement
• Developing a School or District Technology Plan
• Ensuring Equitable Use of Education Technology
• Promoting Technology Use in Schools

---

Supporting Materials

• Quick Key 5 - Understanding the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: English Proficiency helps educators in schools and districts understand the basics of what NCLB means for their English proficiency programs.
• A Bibliography of Research and Resources on Technology and Engaged Learning
  compiled by NCREL's Resource Center.
• Sustaining Educational Technology: Funding Challenges and Opportunities for Policymakers
• To the Point provides short essays and resources for overcoming common obstacles to technology integration.
• Taking Stock: What Does the Research Say About Technology's Impact on Education? provides interviews that address educational technology issues, views from supportors and critics, and resources for learning more about the research.
• Universal Service Funding (E-Rate) information is available on the Schools and Libraries Web Site with details about how schools can take advantage of the Telecommunications Act.
• The Learning With Technology Profile Tool is a computer program intended to help educators think carefully about their practice in the areas of engaged learning and technology. The program presents indicators of engaged learning and indicators of technology. For each indicator there are three choices that educators can compare to their own practice. When finished, educators can view the results in a graphical format to help identify their strengths and weaknesses. The Learning With Technology Profile Tool is available as a downloadable computer program or on the World Wide Web.
• Learning With Technology Course Resources, from the Learning With Technology Participant's Manual and Facilitator's Guide, are integral parts of the LWT course. A number of these may be useful when incorporated strategically in the design of professional development programs that focus on student learning.
• Plugging In: Choosing and Using Educational Technology. This EdTalk publication describes how to make the best use of technology. The only real measure of the effectiveness of technologies and technology-enhanced educational programs is the extent to which they promote and support students' engaged learning and collaboration.
• Learning Through Technology: A Planning and Implementation Guide helps educators and community members work through the stages needed to develop a comprehensive learning and technology plan. Learning Through Technology was created through a partnership between the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), the North Central Educational Laboratory (NCREL) and the Midwest Mathematics and Science Consortium (MSC) located at NCREL. The efforts of 15 ISBE Technology Demonstration sites are highlighted.
• Building the 21st Century School helps schools develop a comprehensive technology plan and provides detailed information on design, wiring, equipment, and physical infrastructure modifications necessary for implementing technology within a school.
• The Captured Wisdom CD-ROM Library presents teachers who are making meaningful and creative uses of technology in their instruction.

Additional Resources

• Internet Links
  Although NCREL takes care in selecting other Internet sites to which it links or points, such selection does not imply endorsement by NCREL, its partners, or funding agents.
  • Using Technology to Support Education Reform
    Full text of 1993 report published by the U.S. Department of Education discusses types of educational technologies, support for student learning activities and teacher functions, the effect of technology on student achievement, and implementation strategies.
  • Apple Education
    Apple products, events, a description of Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow, and results of research on the effect of technology on teaching and learning.
  • Global SchoolNet Foundation Home Page
    Home page of nonprofit organization concerned with instructional aspects of telecommunications.
  • Cisco Educational Archive and Resources Catalog
    Cisco Systems, Inc.'s products; Viritual Schoolhouse of links to schools with Internet sites; On the Horizon, the environmental scanning newsletter; and description of the Global Schoolhouse Project.
  • "The Electronic School" magazine on technology
    Full-text articles from a sample issue of this National School Boards Association journal.
  • Engines for Education
    An online "book" devoted to creating exciting learning environments where children learn by doing, especially through the use of technology.
  • Resources for Creating Web Sites
    Help with HTML, Java, and Web page design.
  • National Center for Technology Planning
    Full-text of state, district, and school technology plans and full-text articles on developing plans and fostering use of technology.
  • The Technology Coordinator's Web Site
    Professional development resource for technology coordinators.
  • Technology Coordinator Resources
    Links to educational technology resources.
  • OAK Software Repository
    Repository of MS-DOS and Windows applications and utilities.
  • Plugged In Home Page
    A non-profit group dedicated to bringing the educational opportunities created by new technologies to children and families from low-income communities.
  • National Computational Science Alliance
    Offers high-performance computing and communications resources, serving over 6000 users at more than 380 universities and corporations.
  • Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center
    The Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center Web site provides information about their projects, including educational efforts.
  • Cornell Theory Center Home Page
    Supercomputing center offers a variety of information, including educational programs appropriate for elementary and secondary level science education.

References

1. ^ ^a b "Definition of technology". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2007-02-16.
2. ^ Franklin, Ursula. "Real World of Technology". House of Anansi Press. Retrieved 2007-02-13.
3. ^ "Technology news". BBC News. Retrieved 2006-02-17.
4. ^ Stiegler, Bernard (1998). Technics and Time, 1: The Fault of Epimetheus. Stanford University Press. pp. 17, 82. ISBN 0-8047-3041-3.
5. ^ "Industry, Technology and the Global Marketplace: International Patenting Trends in Two New Technology Areas". Science and Engineering Indicators 2002. National Science Foundation. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
6. ^ Borgmann, Albert (2006). "Technology as a Cultural Force: For Alena and Griffin" (fee required). The Canadian Journal of Sociology 31 (3): 351–360. doi:10.1353/cjs.2006.0050. Retrieved 2007-02-16.
7. ^ Macek, Jakub. "Defining Cyberculture". Retrieved 2007-05-25.
8. ^ "Science". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
9. ^ "Intute: Science, Engineering and Technology". Intute. Retrieved 2007-02-17.