Project ComTech: A Curriculum in Technology and Science

The need for innovative, technology education curricula for students at all school levels is now well documented. While the calls for reform in the science and mathematics communities have resulted in widespread changes in the way these subjects are taught. similar calls in the field of technology education are just beginning to take effect. The Science Education Department (SED) proposes to develop, over a two-year period, a pilot unit on light communication for students in grades seven through ten. The goal of Project ComTech is to improve the quality of education for students taking either a required or elective course in technology. Specific learning objectives include having students: learn and master a limited number of powerful technology and science themes; sense the excitement, challenge. and career potential of technology; and develop critical thinking and reasoning skills. Our alliance--technology educators, community and four-year colleges, public school administrators, private-sector partners, and state and national technology education advocates--represents a continuum of stake-holders in technology education. Our advisory panel and development team will include representatives from all partners. We will draw upon the experiences of our partners and the SED's success in curriculum development to complete a discovery-based curriculum unit built on contemporary learning theory. When completed, the unit will include activities that can be used in classrooms for four to six weeks. A teacher resource guide will be prepared for publication and kits of optical and electronic parts will be readied for commercial distribution. We have three primary objectives for our evaluation plan: to develop a profile of an `ideal` technology activity; to assess changes in students' critical thinking and conceptual growth; and to assess changes in classroom teaching strategies of field-test teachers.