This week in education news, educators in Indiana have a hard time finding quality resources that focus on climate change; new study finds that the differences in summer learning between poor and wealthy students may not affect long-term achievement gaps; quality teacher recruitment and retention remains among top concerns for school districts; K-12 spending in recent years has eaten up a larger and larger share of states’ tax revenue; in many schools, administrators perceive makerspaces as environments for play rather than opportunities for enriching assessment; and new studt highlights challenges LGBTQ workers in STEM face.

Indiana Teachers Struggle To Find Credible Materials On Climate Change

For many students in Indiana, eighth grade is the first and last time that they’ll focus on climate change in class. It’s the only class required for all students that specifically talks about climate change in the Indiana education standards. Many high school students are encouraged to take courses that prepare them for college like chemistry and biology, instead of environmental science. That puts a lot of pressure on eighth grade science teachers to teach the subject right. But many struggle to find current, reputable materials for their lesson plans. Read (or listen to) the full story featured on WBAA.org.

NYC Teacher Leadership Program Touted as International Model

In a survey, 70% of the principals who responded agreed a joint district-union program helped them attract teachers, and 81% said it helped with retention of the most effective educators. Read the article featured in Education DIVE.

How Does Summer Learning Really Affect Students’ Academic Achievement?

Differences in summer enrichment between poor and wealthy students may not contribute much to long-term achievement gaps, according to a new analysis. Read the article featured in Education Week.

Teacher Attrition Demands New Approaches to Leadership, Preparation

Experts say demanding rigorous preparation, building a career ladder, and facilitating teacher collaboration are some ways to address ongoing shortages and high turnover rates. Read the article featured in Education DIVE.

Students in Tech Say Soft Skills and the Arts Set Them Up for Success

When Dolica Gopisetty was applying for summer internships earlier this year, employers kept telling her that what they valued most in potential hires was strong communication skills and a willingness to learn new things. And when Nathan Wallace was transitioning from college to the workforce a few months ago, he noticed a similar trend. “A lot of employers are looking for a well-rounded individual with multiple skills, including the ability to communicate effectively,” he said, adding that a penchant for experimentation came up a lot, too. Read the article featured in EdSurge.

Public Torn Between Support for School Spending and Actually Paying the Tab

The most remarkable thing about the recent wave of teacher strikes may be the widespread public support for something that’s ultimately going to put a squeeze on the taxpayer’s wallet. In its latest Quality Counts school finance analysis, however, the Education Week Research Center found some big disparities in the proportion of total taxable resources states are willing to spend on education based on the latest federal figures—from highs of 5.4 percent in Vermont and 5.1 percent in Wyoming, to lows of 2.3 percent in North Carolina and 2.4 percent in Arizona. Read the article featured in Education Week.

It’s Time to Remake the Makerspace, But Schools Shouldn’t Got It Alone

Across America, students are learning in new ways many of us could only imagine, tinkering, creating and experimenting in makerspaces to solve real-world challenges. Read the article featured in EdSurge.

‘Now I Know I’m Not Alone.’ Study Highlights Challenges LGBTQ Workers in STEM Face

Sandra is one of 55 STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) workers—including faculty members, students, and staff—who were interviewed for a study about what it’s like to identify as LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) in STEM. Since the study was published last month in the Journal of Homosexuality, the authors have received a slew of responses along the lines of, “Thank you for doing the work, because now I know I’m not alone,” says Allison Mattheis, an associate professor of education at California State University (CSU) in Los Angeles and the lead author of the study. Read the article featured in Science magazine.

Stay tuned for next week’s top education news stories.

The Communication, Legislative & Public Affairs (CLPA) team strives to keep NSTA members, teachers, science education leaders, and the general public informed about NSTA programs, products, and services and key science education issues and legislation. In the association’s role as the national voice for science education, its CLPA team actively promotes NSTA’s positions on science education issues and communicates key NSTA messages to essential audiences.