Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Education: Assessing Technological Literacy in the United States

国家工程院和国家教育研究理事会中心提出了一个为期两年的项目，其目标是确定评估技术素养的最可行方法。 提案中所界定的技术素养包括对技术性质、设计过程和技术历史的理解;提出问题并就技术作出知情决定的能力;以及与技术使用有关的某种程度的动手能力。 该项目将重点关注美国的三个不同人群：K-16学生，K-16教师和校外成人。 它将由国家研究理事会与国家工程院协商后任命的一个委员会监督，该委员会将由认知科学、评估、课程编制、技术教育和师范教育等领域的专家组成。 该委员会将收集和分析相关文献，并通过研讨会和委托论文获得信息，然后提出评估技术素养的建议。 主要产品将是一份报告，介绍委员会的工作、调查结果和结论，然后提出建议。 其成果将是一份广为传播、引人注目、得到充分支持的文件，该文件将：（a）提高教育研究人员和决策者批判性评价评估技术扫盲的现有方法和新方法的能力;（B）鼓励在现有评估中纳入与技术有关的项目（例如，NAEP）;（c）帮助开发新的方法，以确定美国人口的各种子集对技术的了解。

The National Academy of Engineering and the National Research Council Center for Education propose a two-year project, the goal of which is to determine the most viable approach or approaches for assessing technological literacy. Technological literacy, as defined in the proposal, includes an understanding of the nature of technology, the design process and the history of technology; a capacity to ask questions and make informed decisions about technology; and some level of hands-on capability related to the use of technology. The project will focus on three distinct populations in the United States: K-16 students, K-16 teachers and out-of-school adults. It is to be overseen by a committee appointed by the National Research Council in consultation with the National Academy of Engineering which is to be comprised of experts in such fields as cognitive science, assessment, curriculum development, technology education and teacher education. The committee will collect and analyze relevant literature and get information through workshops and commissioned papers prior making a recommendation for assessing technological literacy. The primary product will be a report that describes the committee's work, findings and conclusions, and then presents its recommendations. The outcome will be a widely disseminated, visible, well-supported document that will: (a) increase the ability of educational researchers and policy makers to critically evaluate established and new methods for assessing technological literacy; (b) encourage the inclusion of technology-related items in established assessments (e.g., NAEP); and (c) help develop new approaches for determining what various subsets of the U.S. population know about technology.