School Technology Policies

I am attaching a link to my most recent paper on Social Change, especially in the context of how social change and technology interact. Abstracts are provided if you want to know more, but here is the link to the document itself: Christopher Wells’ KAM 1 on Social Change.

Abstract: Breadth
In the Breadth section, three themes are discussed that reflect the original theorists of sociology, including Durkheim, Compte, Weber, Marx, and Saint-Simon. Originally, sociology emerged as a way to study “different” cultures around the world, to compare and contrast values and ethics, and perhaps to establish some sense of superiority over different cultures. Social change is both a systemic and systematic process, and includes ideas on complete systems as well as the relationships among systems. Globalism is another emerging idea that involves social change, mainly because the technology advancements allow technology-mediated communication among individuals at low costs. The interactions among individuals create a “culture sharing” environment, which often leads to a more global worldview and social change.

Abstract: Depth
The Depth component includes summaries of 16 recent articles organized thematically into three categories: theory applications, approaches to social change, and technology impacts on social change. Theory applications are a review of the evidence where theories were the source for social change activities. Different approaches to social change were discussed in the second theme, which was a natural progression from theories to implementation for the specific field of social change. Third, the influence of technology on social change is thematically explored in the articles, because technology impacts sociology, globalism, and social change in many of the readings. Several articles were compared and contrasted, due to the ways technology is being used that result in social changes.


Abstract: Application
The Application section provides a working instructional model to discuss and lead a short course on sociology and social change. Six different lessons are included that address each of the themes listed in the previous sections. The course is designed to provide a “beginner’s” view of sociology and social change, and includes topics on social theories, social change, globalism, and technology’s impact on social change. Each module includes a pre-reading from the KAM content, activity and discussion prompts, and instructor notes to facilitate deeper discussions in the areas of sociology, social change, and globalism. Each workshop module can be delivered stand-alone or in a series, and requires an instructor who has a solid knowledge and understanding of social change topics.