Technology involves putting scientific discoveries and inventions into practical use. Although technology began in ancient times, it did not have a major impact until the 18th and 19th centuries. Then a host of new technologies sprang up, spawning the Industrial Revolution.

Today it is information technology that is bringing about another major revolution. Information technology is a term that encompasses all forms of technology used to create, store, exchange, and use information in its various forms. Because of the proliferation of new information technologies and the dramatic increase in the exchange of information that has resulted, our era has been referred to as the "Information Age." 

Although almost every aspect of our modern day lives has been impacted by technology, not all have embraced the lure of technological progress. American writer and philosopher Henry David Thoreau once said "Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end." 

Thoreau's objections aside, there is no doubt that technology, applied in appropriate and meaningful ways, can be a tremendous tool for the modern educator and student.

Places To Go

Telegraph Lore
This site is dedicated to the to the study of all aspects of Morse telegraphy.

The Computer Museum History Center
This is the website for The Computer Museum History Center, a non-profit entity dedicated to the preservation and celebration of computing history. The site offers a forty-five year timeline of computer history and online exhibits on subjects like the "History of the Internet" and "Evolution of the Microprocessor."

UCS: The Ultimate Computer Source
"The Ultimate Computer Source" is designed to help people learn about computers. Users can read articles and take advantage of online tutorials ranging from the history of computers to programming to computers in refrigerators. Additionally, viewers can take part in simulations such as climbing inside a computer, communicate with others in chat or message forums, use educational tools built to aid the learning process, or play games to exercise knowledge that they have picked up. (For Educators: there are downloadable, printable resources for classroom use.)

Through the Wires: A Century of Telecommunications
This site on the science and technology of communicating covers more than 100 years of telecommunications, from Samuel Morse and Graham Bell, to Yahoo! And the explosion of the Internet.

AT & T Labs: Technology
AT & T Labs traces its roots back to Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone in 1876. From the first transatlantic phone call-New York to London in 1927-to the invention of UNIX that paved the way for the Internet in 1969, AT & T's technology has revolutionized communications. AT&T scientists created the first transistor, the solar cell, and the C++ programming language. Read about these inventions and more at this website.

Sony Wonder Technology Lab
Let b.b. wonderbot guide you through the online exhibits at the SonyWonder Technology Lab. Learn more about the latest in audio, imaging, robotics, and networks.

Time Warp Project
The time-warp project is an attempt to archive the rapid advance in technology from 1900 to the present. The project's goal is to help preserve information about technology and make it accessible for future generations. The time-warp archive initial categories are: calculating machines, radio, audio equipment, recorded media, TV, toys, photography, bibliotech (paper), computers, gadgets and gizmos, telephones, and clocks.

Teaching.Com
Teaching.com facilitates communication and learning between teachers, parents, and students from 85 different countries. The site blends technology and an enthusiastic user community with quality commercial, non-profit and individual content experts.

eSchool News Online
This site is an online portion of a print publication that covers news, resources, and important information in the K-12 technology education field.  

Utah Coalition for Educational Technology (UCET)
The mission of the UCET is to promote the effective use of technology in Utah education and to provide leadership, support, and a forum for dialogue for its members. 

Triumph of the Nerds
This is the companion website to the PBS television special "Triumph of the Nerds: The Rise of Accidental Empires." Learn about the youthful amateurs, hippies, and self-proclaimed "nerds" who accidentally changed the world. The site also includes a brief timeline outlining the history of the personal computer and the people that shaped it.

Time's Web Pioneers
This site focuses on six Internet pioneers.

Women of NASA
This site showcases outstanding women who are enjoying successful careers in math, science, and technology.

Inventor of the Week
Meet Samuel Morse. He invented a way to communicate with pulses of electrical current.

Alexander Graham Bell
Spend some time with Alexander Graham Bell browse through the personal papers he left behind. You can see his design sketch of the first telephone and read his love letters to his wife, Mabel. These artifacts at the Library of Congress are a great introduction to using primary resources in research.

Recording Technology History
Learn about the history of recording technology from Thomas Edison to the Digital Revolution.

Technology Timeline
From Benjamin Franklin's lightning rod to the Hubble Space Telescope, this timeline helps you learn more about the history of some of America's technological innovations and inventions. 

WayBack: Technology in 1900
Learn what telephones, racecars, music videos were like in 1900. Also, read the predictions for the next century that were made in 1900. 

BrainPop Technology: Discoveries, Inventions, and Innovations
At this site you can view animated cartoons about the amazing ways things work. Learn about a variety of technological inventions and innovations in areas like appliances, communications, computers and digital technologies, engines, computers, x-rays, music, cameras, kitchen appliances, health, transportation and more.

TekMom: Technology Buzzwords for Students
Check out this illustrated encyclopedia of computer terms for elementary school students and beginners of all ages.

Whatis.com
This site contains thousands of the most current terms in information technology (IT). 

Hobbes' Internet Timeline 
Explore the history and evolution of the Internet with this interactive timeline.

Technology at Home
Explore the development of common household technologies as they developed over the past century at this PBS site. The online activity lets you go back through the century to find out when everyday items such as televisions, microwave ovens, CD's, and computers first appeared in homes. (Requires Shockwave plugin.)

Utah Education Network's Virtual Fieldtrip
Take a virtual fieldtrip courtesy of the Utah Education Network (UEN). Viewers can take a fieldtrip designed by Utah educators or register with the UEN and learn how to create their own virtual tour.

ThinkQuest
ThinkQuest is an annual competition that challenges students to use the Internet as a teaching and learning tool. The ThinkQuest Library of Entries features numerous educational websites designed by participants in the ThinkQuest Contests on a multitude of topics. These sites have been organized to help you find what you need with an easy to use index that can be searched by keyword.

The WebQuest Page
This site is designed to serve as a resource to those who are using the WebQuest
model to teach with the web. A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which most or all of the information used by learners is drawn from the Web. WebQuests are designed to use learners' time well, to focus on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners' thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis and evaluation. 

Web Monkey for Kids
Check out this tutorial for kids who want to build a web page. Lessons, projects, templates, and tools make this site both educational and fun. 

The Satellite Site
Read about out how satellites work and about their role in communications. Find out what EchoStar 3 is and what role it plays in you being able to watch the nightly news, The Simsons, and your favorite sporting events.

Sputnik
Go back in time and learn about Sputnik. Find someone who remembers Sputnik’s first launch in October of 1957 and find out how it spurred America on to be the leader in telecommunications and technology and space exploration.

How Stuff Works : Telephones
Find out how telephones work. “Surprisingly, a telephone is one of the simplest devices you have in your house. It is so simple because the telephone connection to your house has not changed in nearly a century. If you have an antique phone from the 1920s, you could connect it to the wall jack in your house and it would work fine!”

Utah Education Network (UEN)
The UEN assists in achieving improved student learning; more effective communications among learners, teachers, faculty, and parents; and greater efficiency in achieving statewide educational objectives. It offers a variety of technology-rich services for Utah educators and their students. 

Radio Days: A WebQuest
In this webquest students use the Web to research the "Golden Age of Radio" as a playwright, Foley artist (sound effects specialist), or advertising executive. After researching, students regroup and create their own radio drama on an audiocassette tape.

Invention: Computer Technology
Students will learn more about technological innovation and the way it impacts out lives.

GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment)
Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) is a worldwide network of students, teachers, and scientists working together to study and understand the global environment. Students and teachers from over 10,000 schools in more than 95 countries make environmental observations at or near their schools and report their data through the Internet. Scientists use GLOBE data in their research and provide feedback to the students to enrich their science education. 

LETSNet
The Learning Exchange for Teachers and Students through the InterNet (LETSNet) project is dedicated to helping teachers experience the potential value of the World Wide Web in the classroom by providing actual examples of real teachers who are using the Internet today. This project is an attempt to distill basic learning concepts and practical Internet classroom activities in a single source. 

Discovery School's Technology Lesson Plans
An assortment of technology-based lesson plans with curriculum tie-ins.

Technology Tutorials found on the Web
This site indexes numerous online technology tutorials of interest to students and educators. 

• Burniske, R.W. et al. Breaking Down the Digital Walls: Learning to Teach in a Post-Modern World. State Univ. of New York Press, 2001.
• Heinich, Robert et al. Instructional Media and Technologies for Learning. Prentice Hall, 1998.
• Hixson, Susan and Kathleen Schrock. Developing Web Pages for School and Classroom. Teacher Created Materials, 1998.
• Joseph, Linda. C. Net Curriculum: An Educator's Guide to Using the Internet. Information Today, Inc., 1999.
• Kallick, Bena and James W. Wilson, III. Information Technology in Schools: Creating Practical Knowledge to Improve Student Performance. Jossey-Bass, 2000.
• Krupnick, Karen and Kelly Kennedy. Kids School on the Net: Fun-Filled Internet Activities Across the Curriculum. Learning Works, 1997.
• Norton, Priscilla and Debra Sprague. Technology for Teaching. Allyn & Bacon, 2000.
• Morton, Jessica G. and Amy L. Cohn. Kids on the ‘Net: Conducting Internet Research in K-5 Classrooms. Heinemann, 1998.
• Postman, Neil. Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology. Vintage Books, 1993.
• Roblyer, M.D. Integrating Educational Technology into Teaching. Prentice Hall, 1999.
• Roszak, Theodore. The Cult of Information: A Neo-Luddite Treatise on High Tech, Artificial Intelligence, and the True Art of Thinking. Univ. of California Press, 1994.
• Saltveit, Elin Kordahl. Hit Enter: 50+ Computer Projects for K-5 Classrooms. Heinemann, 1999.
• Sandholtz, Judith Haymore, et al. Teaching with Technology: Creating Student-Centered Classrooms. Teachers College Press, 1997.
• Shelly, Gary B. et al. Teachers Discovering Computers: Integrating Technology in the Classroom. Course Technology, 1999.