This descriptive study examined the current status of technology education teacher practices with respect to engineering design. This article is the third article in a three-part series presenting the results of this study. The first article in the series titled "Examination of Engineering Design Curriculum Content" highlighted the research…

This descriptive research study reported on Georgia's secondary level (grades 6-12) technology education programs capability to incorporate engineering concepts and/or engineering design into their curriculum. Participants were middle school and high school teachers in the state of Georgia who currently teach technology education. Participants…

This article presents a descriptive study designed to determine the national status of secondary technology education curriculum content and assessment practices as they relate to engineering design. The results of this study were divided into a three-part article series. Although this study focused on the larger construct of the national status…

Based on the efforts to infuse engineering practices within the technology education curriculum it is appropriate to now investigate how technology education teachers are assessing engineering design activities within their classrooms. This descriptive study drew a full sample of high school technology teachers from the current International…

Suggests that incorporating the technological process and a historical perspective into the technology education curriculum is essential for a good program. Presents a design brief on the historical impact of the printing press. (JOW)

There is a need to develop acceptable methods of inquiry that can be the focal point for connecting the technical components of the curriculum with related mental processes The mental processes integral to the work of a technologist are defining the problem, analyzing, computing, measuring, questioning/hypothesizing, constructing models, testing,…

Technology education practitioners (n=225) identified how often 27 mental processes were used in solving technological problems. Analysis resulted in five factors: researching the problem, searching for solutions, creating innovative solutions, analyzing data, and evaluating results. (SK)

Critical issues for technology education (TE) identified by a 25-member Delphi panel were identification of the knowledge base, curriculum development approaches, interdisciplinary approaches, and teacher education reform. Problems identified included inadequate marketing/public relations, teacher shortage, lack of content consensus, and…

In this article, the author seeks to identify and explain the primary rationale for having the field of technology education direct its focus on engineering design. The basis of this proposal stems from a combination of observations made over a 25-year career as a teacher/teacher educator of industrial arts/technology education and a broad-based…

Of secondary school teachers who completed the Keirsey-Bates Temperament Sorter, 136 were in technology education, 110 in industrial arts. Two types were prevalent among industrial arts teachers: Extrovert Sensing Feeling Judging and Introvert Sensing Feeling Judging. Technology education teachers were more Extrovert Intuitive Thinking Judging,…

To address the need of identifying a comprehensive base for the critical issues and problems, research was conducted to ascertain the perspectives of classroom teachers, university professors, and supervisors of technology education. The goal of the research was to determine the critical issues and problems based on the following two questions:…

A Delphi panel of 25 engineers, scientists, and educators rated the importance of mental methods for technology education curriculum. Defining, analyzing, and communicating were rated very important; 21 others were considered important. Results could form the basis of a mental processes-based curriculum involving solution of technological…

Appropriate Technology (AT) concepts have been discussed throughout this past century by notable leaders and scholars such as Mohandas Gandhi and Julius Nyerere; however, the undisputed founder of the AT movement was E. F. Schumacher, a British economist who worked extensively in India and Burma during the 1950s and 60s. Schumacher encapsulated…

At high school demonstration sites in Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado, and Oklahoma, teams of math, science, and technology education teachers developed and implemented an integrated curriculum. Three primary factors affected success: (1) teacher and administrator commitment; (2) innovation and effort in curriculum redesign; and (3) coordination of…

New technology education teachers who were surveyed (n=145) felt their college programs adequately prepared them in pedagogy and development of thinking skills; weakest areas were counseling needs and classroom management. Results could be interpreted two ways: either teacher education programs have only average performance or they are giving…