Picture students huddled around a 3D printer in a middle school classroom. They gaze at the object being printed, and exclamations of, "Where is that flag from?" "What does that symbol mean?" and "Oh; I didn't think of that!" can be heard. These examples of observation, curiosity, and critical thinking are the elusive…

The basic concepts inherent to statics, including unbalanced and balanced forces and instability and stability of physical systems, have traditionally been covered in middle and high school physical science courses (Physical Science as indicated in "Next Generation Science Standards"). Yet, these concepts are covered using a physical…

Computational thinking has been popularized in the last decade, particularly with the emphasis on coding education in K-12 schools. The core idea of computational thinking has a close relationship with technology and engineering education (TEE). TEE has emphasized the use of computing skills to solve problems, and integrative STEM education…

Computational thinking is a problem-solving technique traditionally employed by computer scientists to develop computer applications. However, computational thinking practices are now believed to be applicable to other fields (Google for Education, 2018), specifically those related to engineering and technology. Accordingly, the Advancing…

Humans have become the most dominant animal on the planet. They have adaptations providing advantages over other animals. They have even out competed other species in their own genus. Humans have opposable forefingers and thumbs for superior dexterity, very large brains for intelligence, walk upright with bipedal locomotion to cover distances more…

The International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA) defines STEM as a new transdisciplinary subject in schools that integrates the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics into a single course of study. There are three major problems with this definition: There is no consensus in support of the ITEEA…

Engineering design is a core component of technology and engineering education, and although not every student will become an engineer following high school, all students can profit from having engineering design experiences in high school (Apedoe, Reynolds, Ellefson, & Schunn, 2008; Denson & Lammi, 2014; Grubbs & Strimel, 2015;…

In 1984, James Buffer and Michael Scott produced the book "Special Needs Guide for Technology Education" (Buffer and Scott, 1984). This was a pivotal offering insofar as it set the stage for technology education educators, at the time, to think about and be provided with information regarding students with special needs in their…