Technological Literacy of U.S. Population Not Well-Assessed (Blog 2)

http://www8.nationalacademies.org/onpinews/newsitem.aspx?RecordID=11691

This article points out that technological understanding, also known as technological literacy, is an issue that is not well assessed in America or around the world. The author, Michelle Strikowsky, points out how agencies and companies have always conducted tests and surveys regarding people’s opinion and attitude towards technology, but have never conducted a single well-designed test on how well people understand technology.

I personally agree with the idea this article proposes. The level to which we take advantage of recent technological advances can only be proportional to our level of understanding of technology, which brings up our next question: How can we make sure that everyone understands recent technological advances, or at least knows how to address this problem if there is no reliable data in this area? Not only should we do diagnoses and tests on how much the average person understands about technology, but cultural and social backgrounds should also be taken into account. “People from different cultures and social backgrounds experience technology in different ways” says Strikowsky, and if these factors are not taken into account then technology would only benefit a few and selective group of people.

Essentially, Strikowsky argues that the collection of data on technological literacy by government on all levels (as well as by the private sector) could allow provide data with which to reform teachers education, reform the technological education, and give a strong basis upon which to judge the level to which people in general truly understand technology.