In this article, the author describes the technology education program at Southern Lehigh High School, Center Valley, Pennsylvania. The school district is presently providing an educational program known for its excellence and forward-looking perspective, which is sensitive to the changing needs of its students. Within the technology education…

Teacher and student roles continue to change as computers continue to influence the design curriculum (Kaplan, 1997). Educators and administrators continue to grapple with the best ways to teach, implement, and maintain current technology. Few technology teachers would argue that computers, software, and hardware found in technology laboratories…

This article discusses how students in a college-entry-level CAD course researched four generations of their family histories and documented cultural and symbolic influences within their family backgrounds. AutoCAD software was then used to manipulate those cultural and symbolic images to create the design for a multicultural area rug. AutoCAD was…

M.A.S.H. mnemonic is a useful framework for generating, tracking, and objectively evaluating innovative ideas. M.A.S.H. expresses the fundamental components of successful design; Mechanics, Aesthetics, Sustainability, and Human Factors. These essential elements are often underdeveloped in student design concepts and subsequently require bolstering…

Motivating students to master the basics in any field is a demanding task. In technical education, while the direct benefit--almost certain, well-paying employment--is obvious, the challenge is to keep students' interest high. Absent that, the technical workforce lacks skilled replenishment, and the possibility of being overtaken by competition…