I am a student at the College of Saint Rose and I choose to read this book as part of a requirement for a class. According to the authors, "In the broadest sense, technology is the process treatment plants, birth-control pills, and microwave ovens, to name a few" (p. 13). However, technology is more than these it is also the process and knowledge on how to make something.

This book makes valid points and arguments for Americans to become literate in technology. One main reason is because technology is all around us. "At the heart of our modern technological society lies an unacknowledged paradox. Although the United States is increasingly defined considered decisions or to think critically about technology" (pg. 1). Technology is always changing and being technologically literate is becoming more and more important. Being technologically literate allows one to be able to participate and be confident in the world around them.

Every day whether one realizes it or not they interact with technology. According to the authors as a nation we do not values technological literacy and because of that it has not been achieved. However, there has been effort put in place to help increase the technological literacy, with the most amount of effort going towards the K-12 classes. Knowing how technology works and how it affects us is important when making decisions.

This book is actually the culmination of over 2 years of research by the National Research Council on technological literacy in the United States.

The sad truth is that although we are utterly dependent on sophisticated technological systems to maintain our way of life, as a nation we are ignorant of the functioning of those systems to an astonishing degree.

This report makes the case that everyone involved in education needs to do a better job of educating students about how the technical world around them works. The book provides firepower to those who have been advocating for additional technical education and a wake up call for those who have not.

I highly recommend reading this if you are involved in education at any capacity.

This book should be standard reading within all vocational and Career/Technical Education coursework. In addition, the integration of Technological Standards with Academic standards is a must for all educators (academic and CTE)concerned with providing rigorous and relevant instruction to secondary and post-secondary level students.
This book lays out the arguements for Technological Literacy (TL) in America in a straight forward, yet comprehensive manner. The book really has two sections. The first 100 pages or so explain the rationale for TL in education, with the remainder of the book providing references for additional supporting evidence.
Save yourself time by buying multiple copies up front. One for you to keep and the others to give to those individuals you know need to hear this message!