Historical Perspective... Science Education Reform Efforts Leading to Standards-based Science Education

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Historical Perspective...Science Education
Reform EffortsLeading toStandards-based
Science Education
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August 26, 1981

• Secretary of education T. H. Bell creates the
  National Commission on Excellence in Education.
• The commission is directed to examine the quality
  of education in the United States and make a
  report to him and the nation within 18 months of
  its first meeting.

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1983. . .Bells National Commissionon
Excellence in Education PublishesA Nation at Risk

• Our society and its educational institutions
  seem to have lost sight of the basic purposes of
  schooling, and of the high expectations and
  disciplined effort needed to attain them.
• Excellence characterizes a school or college
  that sets high expectations and goals for all
  learners, and then tries in every way possible to
  help students reach them.

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1985. . . Project 2061 Science for All
AmericansAmerican Association for the
Advancement of Science

• Project 2061 is a long term initiative of AAAS to
  reform K-12 education in natural and social
  science, mathematics, and technology.
• A goal of project 2061 is to develop a set of
  tools to help local, state, and national
  educators redesign curriculum.

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1985. . . Project 2061 Continued

• Project 2061 presents a vision of science
  literacy goals for all students to reach by the
  time they finish the 12th grade.
• One fundamental premise of project 2061 is that
  schools do not need to be asked to teach more and
  more content, but rather to focus on what is
  essential to science literacy and to teach it
  more effectively.

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1986. . . A Nation Prepared Teachers for the
21st Century The Report of the Task Force of
Teaching As a Profession

• The task force called for sweeping changes in
  education policy
• The creation of a national board for professional
  teaching standards
• The restructuring of schools to provide a
  professional environment for teaching

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1986. . .The Report of the Task Force of
Teaching As a Profession Continued...

• Americans have not yet fully recognized two
  essential truths
• That success depends on achieving far more
  demanding educational standards than we have ever
  attempted to reach before.
• And
• That the key to success lies in creating a
  profession equal to the task

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1991. . .A New Compact for LearningRegents of
the State of New York

• The legions of dedicated people who work in our
  schools are caught up in a system that is
  obsolete.
• Either we make fundamental changes in that
  system, or we begin the slide into a darker and
  less prosperous time.

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1991. . .A New Compact for LearningContinued. .
.

• The New Compact for Learning rests on certain
  core principles
• All children can learn
• Focus on results
• Aim for mastery
• Provide the means
• Provide authority with accountability
• Reward success and remedy failure

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1993. . .Benchmarks for Science
LiteracyAmerican Association for the Advancement
of Science

• Benchmarks specify how students should progress
  toward science literacy.
• Benchmarks provide statements of what all
  students should know or be able to do in science,
  mathematics, and technology by the end of grades
  2, 5, 8, and 12.

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March, 1994. . .Learning Centered Curriculumand
Assessment for New York StateThe State
Department of EducationUniversity of the State
of New York

• The Learning Centered Curriculum outlines
• the kinds of guidance that the State should
  provide for the development of such curriculum,
  instruction, and assessment in every school
• the kinds of initiatives local districts and
  schools should undertake to make these kinds of
  opportunities real for all students

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April, 1994. . .Draft Curriculum Framework for
Mathematics, Science, and TechnologyThe New
York State Education Department

• The Framework
• was produced to inform local curriculum
  development, assessment development, and staff
  development
• was organized around content and performance
  standards
• defined major areas of study, core concepts and
  competencies that will enable students to attain
  goals
• provided illustrations of teaching practices and
  assessment strategies that would be appropriate
• provided performance indicators that concretely
  describe what students should be able to do to
  meet the standards

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April, 1994. . .Draft Curriculum Framework for
Mathematics, Science, and Technologycontinued.
. .

• A Curriculum Framework
• is a stepping stone between standards and
  curriculum
• provides direction for schools and districts as
  they construct a curriculum that addresses the
  needs of their students
• contains standards that apply to all students,
  regardless of their experiential background,
  capabilities, developmental and learning
  differences, interests, or ambitions

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What are standards?

• Science education standards provide criteria to
  judge progress toward a national vision of
  learning and teaching science in a system that
  promotes excellence....
• (National Science Education Standards, page 12)

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What are standards? continued. . .

• Science education standards are criteria to judge
  quality
• the quality of what students know and are able to
  do
• the quality of the science programs that provide
  the opportunity for students to learn science
• the quality of science teaching
• the quality of assessment practices and policies
• the quality of the system that supports science
  teachers and programs
• (National Science Education Standards, page 12)

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What are standards?continued. . .

• The Curriculum Frameworks for Mathematics,
  Science, and Technology defined
• Standard as a statement of student learning that
  is composed of two parts a content standard, and
  a performance standard.
• Content Standard as knowledge, skills, and
  understandings that individuals can habitually
  demonstrate over time as a consequence of
  instruction and experience.
• Performance Standard as levels of student
  achievement in domains of study.

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1996. . .National Science Education Standards
The National Research Council

• The National Science Education Standards
• are designed to guide our nation toward a
  scientifically literate society
• are founded in exemplary practice and research
• describe a vision of the scientifically literate
  person
• present criteria for science education that will
  allow that vision to become reality
• emphasize a new way of teaching and learning
  about science that reflects how science itself is
  done

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1996. . .National Science Education Standards
continued...

• The National Science Education Standards
• emphasize a new way of teaching and learning
  about science that reflects how science itself is
  done
• emphasize inquiry as a way of achieving knowledge
  and understanding about the world

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1996. . .National Science Education Standards
continued...

• Science standards are for all students
• Different students will achieve understanding in
  different ways, and different students will
  achieve different degrees of depth and breadth of
  understanding depending on interest, ability, and
  context.
• ...but all students can develop the knowledge
  and skills described in the Standards, even as
  some students go well beyond these levels.

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1996. . .National Science Education Standards
continued...

• There are six NSES Standards
• 1. The science teaching standards describe what
  teachers of science at all grade levels should
  know and be able to do.
• 2. The professional development standards present
  a vision for the development of professional
  knowledge and skill among teachers.
• 3. The assessment standards provide criteria
  against which to judge the quality of assessment
  practices.

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1996. . .National Science Education Standards
continued...

• There are six NSES Standards
• 4. The science content standards outline what
  students should know, understand, and be able to
  do in the natural sciences over the course of
  K-12 education.
• 5. The science education program standards
  describe the conditions necessary for quality
  school science programs.
• 6. The science education system standards consist
  of criteria for judging the performance of the
  overall science education system.

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1996. . .NY State Learning Standards
forMathematics, Science, and Technology

• The publication Learning Standards for
  Mathematics, Science, and Technology, identifies
  standards by way of key ideas and performance
  indicators
• Key ideas are broad, unifying, general statements
  of what students need to know.
• The performance indicators for each key idea are
  statements of what students should be able to do
  to provide evidence that they understand the key
  ideas.

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1996. . .NY State Learning Standards
forMathematics, Science, and Technology
continued...

• Learning Standards for Math, Science, and
  Technology
• consist of the content standards and performance
  indicators
• include samples of student work, along with
  teachers comments on the work
• have examples intended to provide some ideas of
  tasks that support attainment of the performance
  standards

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1999 -- 2001Publication of theCore Curricula
for Science

• The Core Curriculum guides
• are based on the Learning Standards for Math,
  Science, and Technology
• were developed by teams of teachers from each
  subject area, working with State Education
  Department personnel
• added major understandings to provide more
  specific detail to the concepts underlying the
  performance indicators
• are the basis for assessments produced by the NY
  State Education Department

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Timetable for implementation of the New York
State Science Assessments

• 2000-2001
• Grade 8 Intermediate Level science
• Regents Science Living Environment
• Regents Science Physical Setting/Earth
  Science
• 2001-2002
• Regents Science Physical Setting/Chemistry
• Regents Science Physical Setting/ Physics
• 2004
• Grade 4 Elementary Science - Objective and
• Performance Components