ABSTRACT
Summary: Four basic questions in relation to new technology and schooling are posed. The first asks what changes new technology is bringing about in the spheres of work, the home, family life and in leisure activities. The second asks whether these changes are truly widespread and revolutionary. The assessment of the evidence of change brought about by new technology concludes, firstly, that to date the changes are neither widespread nor revolutionary, and secondly that technological change is always filtered through the mesh of sociopolitical and economic factors and that ultimately these and not technological factors are crucial. The final two questions concern new technology and schooling. The third asks provocatively why schools need to change because of technological developments. The attempts to introduce new technology into schools, particularly in Britain, are charted as examples of ‘technological panic’ on the part of government, and the arguments for change are critically examined. The final question asks what sorts of changes to the organization of schools and the school curriculum ought to be encouraged in the light of developments in new technology. The article concludes by asserting the central place of the humanities and the social sciences in the curriculum.
