The emancipation of technology as a subject: teachers’ views of technology content in secondary education

Abstract The roles of technology and engineering within STEM education have evolved from a focus on technology as a product to a broader vision encompassing the processes involved in its creation, closely linked to engineering. As the newest disciplines in STEM education, technology and engineering lack a well-defined identity, leading to uncertainty among educators about what and how to teach these subjects in K–12 education. This study proposes a comprehensive framework integrating multiple perspectives on essential knowledge in technology and engineering education, ranging from hands-on skills to theoretical, epistemological understanding, in order to characterize pre-service and in-service teachers’ perception about technology as a content for secondary education. Our findings reveal that teachers’ views represent a mosaic of complementary perspectives rather than a unified vision, reflecting ongoing identity challenges in these fields. Notably, both novice and experienced teachers display diverse conceptions, highlighting gaps potentially rooted in limited training and the shift from traditional technical to design-oriented learning outcomes. Additionally, teachers tend to emphasize practical knowledge over theoretical aspects and often perceive engineering design as a linear, procedural process rather than an epistemic activity. These limitations restrict the depth of student learning and hinder integration of core disciplinary knowledge. Importantly, some teachers incorporate perspectives on the nature of technology, enhancing the subject’s legitimacy. We argue for developing initial and continuous teacher training that fosters a rich, epistemologically informed vision of technology and engineering education consolidating these subjects as essential components of STEM education.