3. Redesign schools and districts to deliver high-quality, equitable math and science learning.
The report also details examples of promising practices, resources, and opportunities for action.
Tom Luce, CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI), said there are already some best-practice programs in place that states should look to for inspiration.
For example, the Advanced Placement Training and Incentive Program (APTIP) is an approach that reportedly increases teacher effectiveness and student achievement in rigorous math and science courses through training, teacher and student support, vertical teaming, open enrollment, and incentives. The program has been shown to increase the number of students taking and passing AP math, science, and English exams, and it expands access to traditionally underrepresented students, said Luce.
In 2007, nonprofit organizations from 28 states applied to replicate APTIP. NMSI selected nonprofit partners in six states for five-year funding and program management support. NMSI is now replicating APTIP in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Virginia.
Implementation began during the 2008-09 school year and will expand to include a new group of public high schools each year over the five-year grant period. In 2008-09, NMSI affiliates implemented APTIP in 67 public high schools. This fall, they will be implementing the program in 142 public high schools.
NMSI trained 478 AP teachers in curriculum development, pedagogy, and content in the following subjects: biology, calculus, chemistry, computer science, English language, English literature, environmental science, physics, and statistics. The program resulted in a 51-percent increase in AP exams passed in math, science, and English, and there was a 134-percent increase in the number of AP math, science, and English exams taken for African-American and Hispanic students. There was a 71-percent increase in AP exams passed by African-American and Hispanic students in math, science, and English, and a 55-percent increase in AP exams passed by female students in these subjects.
Luce also promoted the UTeach program, which started at the University of Texas at Austin in 1997 as a new way to prepare high school science, math, and computer science teachers. According to its organizers, the program’s strength lies in its collaboration between the Colleges of Natural Sciences and Education.
“UTeach has proven to be so effective that it is now being replicated at universities across the U.S.,” said Luce. “Fourteen universities now have UTeach, and 40 more are on the waiting list to replicate this program. It really works.”
He continued, “What it really comes down to, especially with UTeach, is that you can’t teach what you don’t know, and this is a large problem, especially with teachers in lower grade levels.” (Read the PDF report: “Knowing Mathematics for Teaching: Who Knows Mathematics Well Enough to Teach Third Grade, and How Can We Decide.”)
Luce also says the STEM crisis needs to be made more public and more people, especially parents, need to realize that an ignorance of math and science concepts is not practical in a 21st-century society.
“Even car mechanics need to have some STEM skills these days,” he explained. “I hear all the time people bragging about not being able to balance their checkbooks. You would never hear people bragging about not being able to read. We need a culture shift–we need to let people know it’s not OK anymore to lack skills in STEM. Our country, our economy, depends on that.”
Luce said students need to be made more aware of what is required to do certain tasks, saying, for instance, that “if kids want to design video games, they need to know that they will have to be proficient in STEM to do that.”
All the presenters agreed that beyond more capable teachers, common national standards, and a major cultural shift, STEM concepts also should be integrated into all school subjects, and not just taught separately. This will help students become more aware that math is not just for statisticians, for example, but is used in many different fields.
The presenters also acknowledged that top-performing STEM countries, according to the latest PISA results, have best practices the United States can learn from, although it will take major systemic change on a massive scale to accomplish this–something the presenters said will happen only if there is a sense of urgency at all levels: federal, state, and local.
Links:
National Math and Science Initiative
Note to readers:
Don’t forget to visit the Igniting and Sustaining STEM Education resource center. As the workplace changes and becomes increasingly global, today’s students must be educated with a 21st-century mindset. Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) skills are no longer just “good skills” to have; they are increasingly vital to a 21st-century education—and students should begin cultivating these skills as early as possible. Go to: Igniting and Sustaining STEM Education
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