ITEA

The International Technology Education Association is a professional organization specifically for technology and engineering teachers, with a focus on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Currently, over 35,000 technology teachers around the world belong to the association. ITEA publishes five scholarly journals, such as the Technology Teacher, that gives technology educators the opportunity to network with each other and share instructional ideas.

 

The goal of ITEA is to provide technological literacy for all students through the teaching of technology. To do so, the association has drafted the Standards for Technological Literacy, standards that “articulate a complete set of technological literacy standards and identify a vision* for developing a technologically literate citizenry” (ITEA). This list of 20 standards identifies benchmarks for students age K-12, with a focus on the nature of technology, technology’s impact on society, and principles of design.

 

 ITEA has several professional development programs, as well as an annual conference comprised of educational sessions and exhibits from technology distributors. This year’s conference is being held in Louisville, Kentucky, on March 26-28^, 2009. Lately, the focus of ITEA has shifted away from technical skills such as auto and woodworking, and toward pre-engineering courses. This year’s conference focus, “Delivering the T & E in STEM”, promises to continue that trend.