Developing an instrument for assessing students’ concepts of the nature of technology

Abstract

Background:

The nature of technology has been rarely discussed despite the fact that technology plays an essential role in modern society. It is important to discuss students’ concepts of the nature of technology, and further to advance their technological literacy and adaptation to modern society. There is a need to assess high school students’ concepts of the nature of technology.

Purpose:

This study aims to engage in discourse on students’ concepts of the nature of technology based on a proposed theoretical framework. Moreover, another goal is to develop an instrument for measuring students’ concepts of the nature of technology.

Sample:

Four hundred and fifty-five high school students’ perceptions of technology were qualitatively analyzed. Furthermore, 530 students’ responses to a newly developed questionnaire were quantitatively analyzed in the final test.

Design and method:

First, content analysis was utilized to discuss and categorize students’ statements regarding technology and its related issues. The Student Concepts of the Nature of Technology Questionnaire was developed based on the proposed theoretical framework and was supported by the students’ qualitative data. Finally, exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis were applied to determine the structure of the items and the internal consistency of each scale.

Results:

Through a process of instrument development, the Student Concepts of the Nature of Technology Questionnaire was shown to be a valid and reliable tool for measuring students’ concepts of the nature of technology. This newly developed questionnaire is composed of 29 items in six scales, namely ‘technology as artifacts,’ ‘technology as an innovation change,’ ‘the current role of technology in society,’ ‘technology as a double-edged sword,’ ‘technology as a science-based form,’ and ‘history of technology.’

Conclusions:

The Student Concepts of the Nature of Technology Questionnaire has been confirmed as a reasonably valid and reliable instrument. This study provides a useful questionnaire for educational researchers and practitioners for measuring students’ concepts of the nature of technology.

Keywords:

• content analysis
• high school students
• instrument development
• nature of technology

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank the assistance of Pei-Jung Kuo and Shao-Huan Chen. She would also like to thank the administration, the teachers, and the students of the Affiliated Jhongli Senior High School of National Central University, National Wu-Ling Senior High School, Taoyuan County Yung-Feng High School who participated in this study. Furthermore, the author would like to thank the helpful comments of the editor and two anonymous reviewers to improve the quality of this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan under grant numbers [MOST 100-2514-S-008-001-], [MOST 101-2514-S-008-001-], and [MOST 102-2514-S-008-001-].