A1 Journal article (refereed)
Promoting Technological Thinking: The Objective and the Means (2021)

Pirhonen, A. (2021). Promoting Technological Thinking: The Objective and the Means. Techne Series, 28(2), 48-53. https://journals.oslomet.no/index.php/techneA/article/view/4326

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Pirhonen, Antti

Journal or series: Techne Series

eISSN: 1893-1774

Publication year: 2021

Volume: 28

Issue number: 2

Pages range: 48-53

Publisher: Universitetsbiblioteket OsloMet

Publication country: Norway

Publication language: English

Persistent website address: https://journals.oslomet.no/index.php/techneA/article/view/4326

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Open Access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/78047

Additional information: PATT38 Rauma, Finland 2021 -Section IIThe Value of Technology Education.

Abstract

Technological thinking is not a discrete form of thinking. Whether we talk about the use or the development of technology, technological thinking intersects with logic, creativity and many other human qualities. The bare definition of technological thinking is an ambiguous task, not to speak of the wide variety of attempts to promote it in education. In this paper, we do not aim at saying the final word about the appropriate means of promoting technological thinking. In the contrary, our aim is to analyse some ideas which are commonly proposed as such means but which can be argued to conflict with contemporary understanding of human thought. Our approach draws on the phenomenology of the body. The focal claim is that human action is thinking rather than reflection of it. This claim underlines the importance of physical activity as the fundamental characteristics of human existence. In the promotion of technological thinking, this implies that there is no technological thinking without physical experiences on which concepts, problem solving and design could be based. In the educational context, providing an environment for rich interaction with physical objects would be essential. In the era of digitalisation, schools appear to be eager in substituting real learning environments and technology with their virtual counterparts. From the point-of-view of embodied cognition, this trend can be seen as a severe threat to the development of many abilities which are central in technological thinking.

Keywords: thinking; cognition; technology; learning environment; learning; creativity; problem solving; technology education

Free keywords: embodied cognition; technological thinking; education; extended mind; cognitivism; identity

Contributing organizations

Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2021

JUFO rating: 1