Welcome to Technology and Society

Letter T he Department of Technology and Society in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences has four important missions: 1) help all students develop an understanding of modern technology, including the socio-technological interplay that demands a consideration of scientific, social, political, economic, behavioral, legal and ethical aspects of problems, 2) develop professionals who can take a leadership role in the effective use, management and assessment of technology for the purpose of improving education, business and industrial processes and systems, and the environment, 3) conduct applied research that will inform technology planning, technology management and technology assessment, and 4) conduct research and develop programs to improve the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, with serious attention to the use of educational technologies and the engagement of underrpresented groups.

The Department is a national leader in technological literacy. In a recent review of the Department, an external committee commented on the unique role that the Department plays at the University. "The Technology and Society Department has created a new paradigm for education in the academy. Its essence is the unification of traditionally separate disciplines into an integrated unified whole to address problems in society. Technology studies begin with the problem, rather than the structure of a discipline. The department is expert in developing a meaningful whole from seemingly disparate pieces, by making multidirectional intellectual connections among disciplines, ideas, and among diverse groups of individuals and organizations. Inventing and testing models for collaboration is a hallmark of this department, a highly prized activity in the academy today....The Department of Technology and Society has developed a community of learners that extends vertically (e.g., faculty, undergraduates and high school students work together as a community conducting research) and horizontally in the education arena."