Tech Literacy Brief

8/14/2019 Tech Literacy Brief

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Introduction

It is hard to deny that the development of modern information and communication

technology (ICT) has had a profound impact on how we communicate, share ideas, solve

problems and get answers. With regard to education, ICT has likely changed the way we

learn - in many ways, putting the learner in control of the learning model; but have

classroom teachers kept pace with this shift in educational practice? Teachers and

students now have the ability to get answers to many of their questions with just a few

clicks of the mouse - or taps on an mobile phone. They can share classroom projects with

students down the hall or across an ocean. They can collaboratively solve problems with

little regard to time and distance - the Internet is open 24 hours a day and travels at

speeds approaching the instantaneous. However, in order to take advantage of the

tremendous potential ICT represents, teachers and students must be literate in this new

medium. Taking its place alongside the traditional "Three R's", technology literacy is a

new basic skill that many leading education advocates and organizations feel students

must master (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008; The Partnership

for 21st Century Skills, State Educational Technology Directors Association; U.S.

Department of Education, 2004). The belief is based on the premise that preparing

today's generation of students for a lifetime of ICT use should be conducted hand-in-hand

with teaching them to read, write and think mathematically. To do this successfully,

school leaders will need to hire technology literate teachers who are comfortable, capable

technology users able to provide students with adequate opportunities to apply a growing

and changing variety of ICT applications. However, it will be difficult to ensure that

faculty and staff members are "tech literate" until school leaders are able to identify,


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define, discuss, model, and evaluate exactly what a "tech literate" teacher is able to do.

In other words, what does technology literacy look like, how will it be acquired, and how

will it be accurately assessed? The purpose of this brief is to present some common

definitions of technology literacy, provide some guidance about how to assess it and start

a discussion about the role of the educational administrator in promoting it.

What is technology literacy?

Technology (ICT) literacy is a common expression frequently used by educators

and the general public. Due to the familiarity of the term, and the ease with which it is

used, it might appear that there is a clear, shared meaning of what it means and what

characteristics form the foundation of the term. The reality is that there is no clearly

agreed upon meaning of technology literacy and the term itself is actually quite

complicated to define. Many educators, even those who are tech savvy, are likely

confused by the competing meanings and often ambiguous definitions surrounding the

phrase. Despite this lack of shared meaning, the Federal Government believed that

developing technology literacy (whatever it is) was important enough to include it in

federal law, stating that all students must be technology-literate by the time they exit 8th

grade (No Child Left Behind Act, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, 2004).

Unfortunately, they fell short in providing a definition of what technology literacy means,

leaving it up to individual states to determine the (potentially conflicting) details and

ultimately, how to assess if students have "achieved it" or not. As the examples below

illustrate, many of these definitions are vague and provide seemingly little guidance in

how school leaders should proceed in developing technology literacy among teachers and

students. They do, however, represent a starting point for the discussion. For example:


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2007). Some states, like Georgia, have essentially merged the SETDA and ISTE

definitions together and describe tech literacy as the ability of students to use the tools of

their society with skill in an ethical, accurate, and insightful manner to meet the demands

of the 21st century workplace and world. This includes the ability to use appropriate

technology responsibly to solve problems and to create knowledge and learning by:

accessing: managing; evaluating and analyzing; integrating and synthesizing; and

communicating information (Georgia Department of Education, n.d.). As of 2007, 29

states were using the ISTE or SETDA definition, the remaining 22 states - including the

District of Columbia - had their own unique definition or were using some other

organization-created definition (SETDA, 2007).

So, what is technology literacy? From the definitions above, perhaps the most

interesting aspect to note that is that the emphasis is not actually on the technology.

Rather, it is more about using technology tools to foster the "soft skills" that students are

hypothesized to need in order to be productive citizens in an increasing global society. In

a way, this seems appropriate since literacy skills include those that everyone should have

for civic participation; skills that are useful for a lifetime and within reach of just about

everyone. This does not mean that the acquisition of technology-specific skills are not

important. Teachers and students must know how to use the technology tools in order to

apply them to a given task, however, the focus should remain on the task... not the use of

a specific tool. In other words, ICTs are just tools; their contribution to improve learning

depends on how they are used (Chen, Healy, Resnick, Lipper, Lazarus, & Dede, 2000).

Therefore, education leaders should focus on how ICT can be applied to learning

outcomes and not on the acquisitions of specific technology skills (like how to cut &


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paste) or frequency of use. The important concept here is that the acquisition of specific

technology skills will come from using the tools within a larger, pedagogical context.

Why is technology literacy important?

For many groups and individuals, creating a tech literate population is one of the

key components to the growth and economic survival of the United States. The US

government figures that the mastery and application of technologies by individuals is

critical for America to successfully compete in the global economy (U.S. Department of

Education, 2004). This sentiment has been echoed by many within the scientific and

corporate worlds who state that the need for young people to receive better preparation in

STEM subjects - science, technology, engineering and math, justifies the need for

creating a technology literate educational realm (Partnership for 21st Century Skills,

2008). Given the tremendous impact ICT has already had on the global market place

(Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, 2005) it's easy to

understand why students will need to exit formalized schooling with a solid foundation

that includes the skills surrounding technology literacy.

Whether or not the creation of a tech literate population is key to the survival of

the American economy, it is clear that technology has become a central force that fuels

the daily life for American youth. In 2005, a report noted that 87% of American

adolescents use the Internet, 81% play online games, 76% read online news, and 51%

claim to go online on a daily basis (Lenhart, Madden, & Hitlin, 2005). It is highly

probably that these numbers have increased over the past 4 years. Given that youth must

become ICT literate in order to successfully consume and produce in online spaces

(Black & Steinkuehler, 2009) the consequences of not facilitating tech literacy


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acquisition during the school day are potentially substantial. While these two rationales

form the foundation of the arguments for promoting technology literacy, there are other

reasons including research that shows positive benefits to student achievement through

the thoughtful use of technology (Lei & Zhao, 2007), the importance of raising awareness

to the dangers of the Internet (online bullying, identity theft, copyright issues, fraud, etc.),

and the need to understand the processes and conventions of the online community

(Black & Steinkuehler, 2009).

Of course, it is hypothesized that the many potential educational benefits and

student achievement gains facilitated through the thoughtful application of an ICT is not

going to happen until teachers and students are technology literate. School administrators

can certainly play a role in getting teachers to improve their own understanding of how

the use education technology can support, enhance, and transform their teaching

practices.

Role of school administrators in promoting technology literacy

The adoption of computers and other technology initiatives by classroom teachers

has been a slow and often unsuccessful process. A number of studies have concluded

that many computer-based technologies are infrequently used or unused in most schools

(Becker, 2001; NCES 2000; Zhao, Pugh, Sheldon, & Byers, 2002). What use there is

often remains peripheral and minimal with low pedagogic meaning, frequently limited to

traditional drill and practice exercises, basic word processing applications, and research

or information gathering activities (Lim & Khine, 2006; Sanchez & Salinas, 2008;

Technology Counts, 2004; Vannatta & Fordham, 2004). To change this trend, school

administrators need to be at the forefront of promoting initiatives designed to give


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teachers the power to effectively integrate technology into their teaching; not a simple

task.

The biggest challenge for promoting teaching effectiveness in the 21st century is

the ability of teachers to acquire informational literacy competencies and to apply

instructional technology in their teaching (Wen & Shih, 2008). First, leaders need to

ensure that teachers have the proper conditions to use technology with students. The

conditions most cited are: enough access to technology, adequate teacher training,

effective curriculum, relevant and pertinent evaluations, a stimulating school system, and

an encouraging family and community atmosphere (Norris, Soloway, & Sullivan, 2002;

Roschelle, Pea, Hoadley, Gordin, & Means, 2000). Fortunately, many of these barriers

can be directly influenced by the school administrator assuming the administrator is also

technology literate.

Therefore, perhaps the initial step administrators need to take in promoting

technology literacy is to become tech literate themselves. School administrators need to

understand and believe how positive educational change can be facilitated through the

application of technology tools and applications. ISTE believes that the role of the

school administrator is so pivotal in determining how well technology is used in schools

that they have developed additional National Education Technology Standards (NETS-A)

and Performance Indicators specifically for administrators (ISTE, 2009). Among the

stated indicators of the NETS-A is the mandate that administrators need to "inspire and

facilitate among all stakeholders a shared vision of purposeful change that maximizes use

of digital-age resources to meet and exceed learning goals, support effective instructional

practice, and maximize performance of district and school leaders" (ISTE, 2009).


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Technology literate leaders must also take a role in allaying the concerns and fears that

often accompany new technologies, possibly based on a lack of understanding or flat out

ignorance. There is a perception that educational decision makers are quick to shackle

tool functionality or filter content away from students altogether out of a fear that the

technology will be misappropriated. Evidence of this can be seen in school policies

regarding student use of mobile phones, iPods, student owned laptops, access to social

networking sites (ex. facebook, twitter, etc.) and video sharing sites (YouTube).

Technology literate leaders will understand the positive applications these types of

emerging technology tools can bring to the academic and social growth of students and

they will be savvy enough to anticipate and mitigate the negative aspects of the tools.

How do you assess technology literacy?

If a student is literate in reading, that literacy can be measured; the evidence of it

is obvious and quantifiable. It's a bit harder to measure technology literacy, especially

the way it has been defined by the majority of state educational authorities. For example,

how will the state of Virginia measure if students possess the technology skills that will

help them support learning, personal productivity, decision making, and daily life? It is

much easier to assess specific technology skills (like inserting a picture into a MS Word

document) but that sort of assessment has limited value since the definition of technology

literacy goes well beyond simply knowing how to operate a computer or a computer

related device. Technology literacy goes into the knowledge of how to appropriately

apply the plethora of technology tools to solve problems and improve overall quality of

life. Essentially, this means that school leaders will need to identify technology

assessment devices that will measure how well students can utilize their critical thinking


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and problem solving skills in a digital environment. There are some commercial products

available that are designed to help schools assess student technology literacy. The iSkills

assessment from Educational Testing Services (ETS) was one such measurement tool but

it was removed from the market in September 2009. Learning.com also sells a tech

literacy assessment - specifically designed for K-8 students - but it appears to only

measure student proficiency with the technology tools, not the "soft skills" represented in

the definitions of technology literacy presented above. School administrators should

consider using other methods to assess technology literacy acquisition among teachers

and students. These alternatives might be electronic portfolios, interviews, narrative

reflections regarding tech integration, performance assessments, and direct observation of

evidence of integrated technology usage. In an atmosphere that mandates so much

quantitative data gathering, administrators should be open to these more qualitative

assessments with regard to measuring technology literacy levels at the schools they lead.

This will hopefully encourage teachers to experiment with and utilize the technology

solutions that match the dynamic problems they are having in their classrooms rather than

only using the prescribed tools and skills that are easily measured.

Conclusion

Technology literacy is a complex concept that is difficult to define and assess but

it's critical that school leaders spend the time coming up with a working knowledge of the

concepts that surround the term and how to "spot it" when they see it. But it is also

important that administrators realize that technology integration is more about teaching

and learning than it is about the technology tools. ICT can support and enhance teaching

- which, in turn, will support and enhance student learning outcomes. Technology can be


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used to develop critical thinking skills, content expertise, and lead to authentic learning

activities. ICT allows teachers to have more control over their teaching and provides

students with more opportunities to have increased control over their own learning

(within and outside of school). However, no amount of technology will make an impact

on learning unless teachers are involved in finding new and creative ways to exploit the

tremendous potential it represents; after all technology by itself rarely has an impact on

learning (Montgomery, 1996). Teachers need to put forth a conscious effort to make a

variety of technology tools an integral part of their teaching. Teachers must make the

pedagogical changes necessary to fully take advantage of the digital resources that will

shape the futures of so many young children. The stakes are high and ultimately, it is the

responsibility of the school administrator to create the atmosphere required for this

teaching metamorphosis to occur. An atmosphere that will likely require transformation

in the administrator as well.


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References

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R. Bomer, & P. Smagorinsky (Eds.),Handbook of Adolescent Literacy Research

(pp. 271-286). New York: Guilford Press.

Chen, M., Healy, J., Resnick, M., Lipper, L., Lazarus, W., & Dede, C. (2000). Five

commentaries: Looking to the future. The Future of Children: Children and

Computer Technology, 10, 168-180.

Georgia Department of Education (n.d.). Georgia technology literacy defined. Retrieved

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International Society for Technology in Education (2007). The ISTE National

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Lei, J., & Zhao, Y. (2007) Technology uses and student achievement: A longitudinal

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Tech Literacy Brief

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