ISM: Science, Technology, & Society: Major Description

The main objective of this major is to prepare for a leadership position in elementary education that promotes strategic use of technology in elementary schools. Goals that are important to achieving the primary objective include:

1. To develop an understanding of technology and its educational uses. Technology proficiency will range from computer programming to digital storytelling.
2. To develop a substantive well-rounded content preparation in math, science, English, literacy, and social studies.
3. To integrate the content and technology preparation learned through the program to produce learning environments that are suited well for a diverse classroom of learners and empower children through their own use of technology.
   

Though the university has great courses, I feel that the existing majors at CU do not allow me fully prepare myself for the leadership position I would like to hold. Typical majors are not catered for the elementary education specialist. For example, there are no majors at CU that prepare elementary school teachers appropriately to help build content literacy and technological literacy in elementary children. The Technology, Arts, & the Media program is a good basis for a relevant major, however it is not a major and even if it was, it does not integrate content to the extent that my ISM does. A Science, Technology, & Society major integrates technology, science, and society in a way that other majors at CU do not allow. For example, the psychology major typically fails to integrate content. The physics major fails to adequately integrate social foundations of learning physics. The computer science major (along with the former two) does not integrate technology in a way that can be effective in an elementary classroom environment.

A Science, Technology, & Society major would allow me to reach the three aforementioned goals and to integrate my learning in a classroom environment. My senior thesis project will allow me to gather data based on using technology in the classroom and through analyzing this data I hope to learn more about the opportunities technology creates in every aspect of learning.