The International Technology and Engineering Educators Association's (ITEEA's) "Standards for Technological and Engineering Literacy" ("STEL") describes design thinking as an approach that allows students and educators to integrate other content areas by considering relevant contextual information to guide design and making…

Both those inside and outside of the education community are becoming increasingly familiar with the STEM acronym and the extensive efforts underway nationally to develop integrated PK-12 STEM programs that promote critical thinking, problem solving, 21st Century skill development and authentic learning experiences (Ingram, 2019). However, for…

For as long as the profession of technology and engineering education (TEE) has existed (the addition of engineering to the professional title marks the official beginning of the profession, and that occurred in 2010), there has been a struggle. Arguably, this struggle's roots go back to the beginning of public education in the U.S. The struggle,…

Race for the Red Planet was designed by Daphne Fauber to teach engineering design principles through the contextualization of popular culture, science fiction, and the current race for Mars. The goal of the lesson was for students to learn how people may be living on Mars in the future through a variety of interdisciplinary sources and various…

In this quickly evolving digital world, the technology and education (T&E) education classroom can provide valuable instruction that creates a well-informed online citizenry through digital understanding and citizenship curriculum. For twenty years, "Standards for Technological Literacy" (STL) (ITEA/ ITEEA, 2000/2002/2007) provided…

"Standards for Technological and Engineering Literacy" ("STEL") promotes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, where technology and engineering play a critical role as subject integrators. Integration of STEM in project-based learning is an ideal approach, with benefits of enhancing student…

The process of writing lesson plans at the beginning of one's teaching career can be very time-consuming (Arnett-Hartwick and Cannon, 2019); however, the development of sequenced lessons that result in effective learning must be organized and articulate, not done haphazardly. Designing a lesson through a written document can help a teacher see the…

In order to maintain the United States' global competitiveness and create new and innovative solutions to solve global challenges, more and diverse numbers of STEM graduates need to be attracted and retained in technical disciplines (Committee on Prospering in the Global Economy of the 21st Century: An Agenda for American Science and Technology,…

As U.S. public schools continue to diversify, it is necessary for educators to find ways to meet all students' needs in the classroom. By beginning small, with some of the teaching ideas presented within this article such as learning about and supporting your students' cultural competencies and integrating students' backgrounds and interests into…

Whether you teach elementary school students, secondary school students, or college students, you can include upcycling activities in your class to promote both design skills and an environmental ethic. This article shares how a teacher at one school is doing just this, providing suggestions for those who have different material processing…

Part One of this article ("Technology and Engineering Teacher," 75(4), December/January, 2016) presented a process that science, math, engineering, and technology teachers could use to collaborate and design integrated STEM courses. A conceptual framework was discussed that could provide a premise that educators interested in delivery of…

"Employers want individuals who are self-motivated, are driven, and can effectively communicate this to their work groups and supervisors" (Pence & Rowe, 2012, p. 50). Projects assigned by teachers or bosses can seem monumental, but by breaking them down into individual parts they can be managed to completion. There are many jobs…

One of the greatest challenges in teaching technology and engineering is pacing. Some students grasp new technological concepts quickly, while others need repetition and may struggle to keep pace. This poses an obstacle for the technology and engineering teacher, and is particularly true when teaching students to build a website. However, there…

The focus on construction in T&E education has drastically changed. This article presents a series of topics and design-based labs that can be taught at various grade levels to integrate STEM concepts while also increasing students' overall awareness of construction and structural technologies.

Biotechnology is an innovative field that is consistently growing in popularity. It is important that students are taught about this technology at an early age, so they are motivated to join the field, or at least motivated to become informed citizens and consumers (Gonzalez, et al, 2013). An increase in biotechnology knowledge can result in an…