Abstract
This chapter addresses the socio-political context of technology education from my background as a technology education professional followed by over three decades of experience as an executive with an international technology education association, the ITEEA. In order to be valued as a key area of learning, technology needs to be distinctive in the school curriculum and create a positive perception in the minds of parents and decision makers. This is an issue of branding. Technology education associations have a key role to play in positioning the subject, informing the politics and policy advancing the subject. Teachers who become active benefit from being involved in strategy discussions and resource development, networking advantages, and political support as a result of being known and interacting with others in the technology education and wider education communities. While much has been achieved by technology education associations, they will need to continue to evolve if they are to reflect contemporary values, beliefs and assumptions of the profession, and have robust mechanisms for supporting members to work together in a digital and globalised world.
“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.”
Albert Einstein
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Coerver, H., & Byers, M. (2011). Race for relevance: 5 radical changes for associations. Washington, DC: American Society for Association Executives.
Nour, D. (2011). Return on impact: Leadership strategies for the age of connected relationships. Washington, DC: American Society for Association Executives.
Sladek, S. (2011). The end of membership as we know it. Washington, DC: American Society for Association Executives.
Starkweather, K. N. (2011). Branding: Putting a little dent in the universe. Technology and Engineering Teacher, 70(6), 36–40.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Starkweather, K.N. (2015). Politics and Policy. In: Williams, P., Jones, A., Buntting, C. (eds) The Future of Technology Education. Contemporary Issues in Technology Education. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-170-1_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-170-1_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-287-169-5
Online ISBN: 978-981-287-170-1
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawEducation (R0)