Young children’s imaginative play often includes creating family groups with toy animals or dolls, and role-playing with housekeeping and dress-up materials. They recreate the relationships they experience or know of from books and other media. As a “mother dog,” a child will tell the “puppies” to follow her. Children who behave out of character, such as sitting at a table instead of curling up on a blanket on the floor, get called out by other children–“Dogs don’t sit at tables!” Children who wear clothing not designed to go together may be told, “Doctors don’t wear hardhats!” Sometimes children’s lack of experience may be revealed in their play. I don’t hear “Girls can’t be doctors” these days but I have heard “Only boys can drive the truck,” in spite of the role models available today.

Just as we work to expand children’s understanding of when the Moon is visible (not only at night as portrayed in most media but in the daytime too), we can expand children’s understanding of gender roles in careers, friendships, and family. Just as we create a safe environment for children to voice their questions about science content, we maintain that safe environment for all questions.

Daymoon by Phil Davis on NASA site

Some resources for these discussions include:

• Bringing Boys and Girls Together: Supporting Preschoolers’ Positive Peer Relationships by Hillary Manaster and Maureen Jobe. Young Children. November 2012.

http://www.naeyc.org/yc/files/yc/file/201211/Manaster.pdf 

• Every Color on the Canvas: Using Art to Explore Preschoolers’ Understanding of Differences by Meagan K. Shedd and Rebecca L. Coyner. July 2015. Young Children. 70 (3): 84-87

• U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services, Administration for Families and Children. Partnering with LGBT families in Early Head Start and Head Start by Angie Godfrey. June 18, 2013.

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/blog/2013/06/partnering-with-lgbt-families-in-early-head-start-and-head-start

• Welcoming Schools, a resource for educators for tools to address bias-based name-calling and bullying, and to meet the needs of students whose family structures are not well represented or included in school environments.

http://www.welcomingschools.org/pages/who-can-marry-whom-inclusive-conversations-about-marriage/ 

Any conversations that encourage critical thinking and using evidence from observations help children build their understanding of the world. Read about moon misconceptions in children’s literature in “The Moon in Children’s Literature: How to avoid the pitfalls of introducing misconceptions when reading about the Moon,” by Kathy Cabe Trundle and Thomas H. Troland in the October 2005 issue of Science and Children.

When I ask students to write about a topic, most try to submit a collection of copy-and-paste paragraphs. I’m looking for strategies to help students create original writing.  —H., Georgia

Before the Internet, when students were assigned to write on a topic, they went to the library, found the topic in an encyclopedia, and copied enough words to meet the length criteria. Fast-forward to today’s world of online searching, Wikipedia, and electronic copy/paste and you have updated the situation.

In the old days, as students copied by hand, they at least had to look at the words. I recently watched a biology student completing a vocabulary activity on cells. With his laptop he copied and pasted a definition of nucleus—as the center of an atom composed of protons and neutrons!

Synthesizing information from several sources is a useful process. But it might not be an intuitive one for students. When I was teaching middle school, each student created a report on an endangered animal. Even though I told the students I wanted to see their own writing, I still had many copy-and-paste versions. It was clear that students needed some guidance and examples of how to gather and use information from several sources.

Although my colleagues at the high school level swore by index cards and outlines for preparing reports, I knew these would be hard for many seventh graders. My classes included special education students, so I asked the special education teacher if she had any suggestions for helping students organize information and use what they find.

My colleague introduced me to the idea of using a “matrix” to help break down the task and provide a graphic organizer for the information. We worked together to design a template, realizing that what was helpful for special needs students would be helpful for all.

It was a one-page document, with a table. The column headers were blank for students to identify the sources they used (the librarian helped explain how to document the sources). The row labels were for characteristics of the animal. We brainstormed these labels in class. Most classes came up with the same ones, but it gave students some input into the document. If they didn’t think of it, I suggested a row for “interesting facts.” (Here is an example of a Matrix–feel free to download and adapt!)

As students found information, they filled in a column for each source. They had questions: What if a source doesn’t have information for a box? (Put “N/A”—it shows the value of multiple sources.) I can’t fit everything into the box. (The size of the square means just a summary the facts–not a lot of writing.) It was another teachable moment when students realized that some sources had different information.

The effectiveness of this strategy became apparent when they started to write. This time, they looked at each row to summarize and elaborate on the topic. For students who weren’t sure how to start, I suggested opening with an interesting fact, writing one or two paragraphs for each row, and concluding with another interesting fact. It was an “aha” moment for students as they saw their original writing emerge. We did the writing in class, which took a few class periods. My colleague and I decided it was worth it when we saw the results.

One year, two students showed me how they took the matrix idea and used it to organize their own notes on arthropods. The column headings were classes of arthropods and the row labels were characteristics such as number of legs. I asked them to explain why this was more helpful than an outline or text paragraphs. They said that it was really easy to see how the classes of arthropods were similar and how they were different—quite an observation! I also used this strategy with high school students, and the use of matrix organizers morphed into my dissertation topic.

Both parts of the process—notetaking and writing—can be done electronically. The final document could be a written report, presentation slides, a foldable, or infographic.

I ran into a former student at a social event in our community. We reminisced about school, and he said that he still had his endangered animal report and read it to his kids!

Fourteen years after it was first signed into law and seven years after it expired, the U.S. Senate passed legislation on Thursday, July 16 to overhaul the Elementary and Secondary Education Act–commonly known as No Child Left Behind–by a vote of 81 to 17.

The Every Child Achieves Act, the bipartisan agreement by Senate education committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA), contains a significant program for STEM education and retains the requirement that states continue testing in math and science. Overall the bill reduces the role of the federal government and gives states the flexibility not found under No Child Left Behind.

On July 8, the House of Representatives passed the largely partisan Student Success Act (H.R. 5)​ their bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

Next up is work on the final House-Senate conference agreement, as education leaders work to find a compromise between many of the differing issues/ policies (greater accountability, students opting out of testing, Title I portability) in the two bills and produce a final bill acceptable to their respective caucuses and to the White House. Chairman Alexander is quoted as saying he would like to get a bill to the president this fall.

STEM advocates are gearing up now to ensure that the final bill will retain the Senate’s strong STEM focus. Watch for upcoming issues of NSTA Express and special NSTA Legislative Alerts to find out how you can help ensure STEM education remains a priority in the final federal education law.

• Read the Education Week blog on passage of Every Child Achieves Act.
• Read the Senate press release on passage of the bill.
• Read the AP article on the bill.

Jodi Peterson is Assistant Executive Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and Chair of the STEM Education Coalition. e-mail Jodi at jpeterson@nsta.org; follow her on Twitter at @stemedadvocate.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Follow NSTA

“Here we go” was a tweet from a delegate attending the 2015 National Congress on Science Education (NCSE), held last week in Omaha, Nebraska, by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA); excitement was evident from start to finish! Congress was the venue for delegates to tweet “NCSE gave me tools to conquer challenges facing science education in my state.” If you haven’t already figured it out, NCSE became the highlight of social media.

Opening session at #NSTAcongress Let the rich discussion begin. @NSTA pic.twitter.com/BB693uPXNl

— Teshia Birts (@TeshiaBirts) July 15, 2015

Congress started with a special celebration of the 2015 Robert Yager Excellence in Science Education Award recipients. Several tweets appeared while the six recipients made their presentations…“Inspiring to hear examples of truly engaging students as best practice from the Yager Award Winners!” and “Joe Ruhl (Yager Award recipient) sharing with #NSTAcongress about teaching techniques.” His strategies focused on the five “Cs” – Choice, Collaboration, Communication, Critical Thinking, and Creativity. Beverly Kutsunaj, the Robert Yager scholar, shared her success in her first grade class. She “stops talking and brings out a camera.” Creativity was apparent not just in teaching styles but also in how students were encouraged to be “creative in their thinking” as they learn science as a process.

Yager awards on night one of #NSTAcongress in Omaha. @NSTA @caahayes pic.twitter.com/mfImpgNHtJ

— Douglas Hodum (@DougHodum) July 15, 2015

Day two of Congress began with two energizing speakers yielding tweets such as:

• “NSTA membership voice heard – organized advocacy gets STEM into ESEA bill”
• “It’s time to get our teeth”
• “Your teacher voice matters here!”
• “Teacher advocacy is so vital for us to be heard.”

@NSTA @AchieveInc Stephen Pruitt-The most trusted voice in ed are teachers and we must use our voice! #NSTACongress pic.twitter.com/OOu5i6KW0a

— Al (@alsbyers) July 16, 2015

Jodi Peterson from NSTA and Stephen Pruitt from Achieve provided excitement as Jodi shared the work on the ESEA bill and Stephen inspired Congress attendees to be “leaders.” His talk had people saying: “Teachers have been saying for too long I am just a teacher – play an active role.” And he defined a LEADER with works: learn, endurance, aspiration, determination, excellence, and respect. The morning session carried over into the issue forums: Leadership and Advocacy, Elementary Education, and Professional Learning. The issue forums yielded six resolutions. Two resolutions focusing on the NSTA Elementary School position paper and collaboration with CAGs were presented to the NSTA leadership and were passed. Three other resolutions were directed to the NCSE focusing on collaboration and pre-service teacher programs.

Peterson: NSTA’s network, including state chapters like GA, was successful getting STEM language into ESEA rewrite #NSTAcongress

— GA Science Teachers (@GSTANews) July 16, 2015

The NCSE planning committee introduced two new events: a share-a-thon event with “deeper dives” and the “unconference.” These events produced tweets “Where networking really WORKS” and “Professional Learning happens here!” The share-a-thon included fourteen opportunities for NCSE participants to learn about topics such as “Google Tech Tips for CAGs,” “Ideas for Joint Conferences,” and “Teaching Advocacy & Communication Strategies.” Because of the excitement found in the workshops and share-a-thon additional sessions were added for deeper dives. These tweets reflect the energy of these sessions:

• “Share-a-thon sessions at NCSE. Great collaboration happening!”
• “Meeting of great minds”
• “When you get this many science teachers in one place, something fun always happens!”

Share-a-thon sessions at NCSE. Great collaboration happening! #nstacongress pic.twitter.com/7RrzSNJQ1X

— Sally Creel (@Sally_Sci) July 17, 2015

 “Unconference” sessions yielded a surprise that no one expected. These sessions were not only facilitated by the participants of NCSE as planned but from a group who was also holding a meeting at the hotel.  The Society of Women Engineers introduced themselves to the planning committee and learned of the “unconference.” This resulted with NCSE participants being introduced to the initiatives the society supports to get more girls into engineering. A great example of “Where networking really WORKS.”

Mary Gromko President-Elect @NSTA shares that the 2016 #nstacongress will be held Denver in July. pic.twitter.com/KWDHhlDIWr

— Al (@alsbyers) July 18, 2015

With next year’s Congress planned for Denver, NCSE participants want to continue the conversation because “Teaching is the one profession that creates all other professions. Stand proud: I am a Teacher.” “Leadership means finding solutions, together.” The 2015 Congress has left its mark on promoting leadership at the state level. “We as teachers, as leaders, will make the world a better place. I am a teacher.” was a message tweeted to all.

We encourage all NSTA members to share your thoughts about what you have learned from Congress using #NSTAcongress. NSTA will work with our chapters and affiliated groups to continue to “Engineer Next Generation Science Leaders.”

Closing Tweet: “NCSE – great minds are offering ideas to improve & support quality science education acro
ss the nation.”

NCSE – Great minds are offering ideas to improve & support quality science Ed across the nation. #nstacongress pic.twitter.com/1UpjAePOyA

— Sally Creel (@Sally_Sci) July 17, 2015

Carolyn Hayes is the NSTA President, 2015-2016; follow her on Twitter at caahayes.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Follow NSTA

This October, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) will feature a special strand “Bundling the NGSS and CCSS” at our 2015 Area Conference on Science Education, in Reno, October 22-24. Teachers ask frequently how to connect the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and Reno will be the place to get answers! Science learning includes the content areas of mathematics, English language arts, and English language development. Bundling instruction allows teachers to incorporate multiple standards at the same time for purposeful learning and real-world applications. This strand increases participants’ understanding and ability to simultaneously teach science, the CCSS, and beyond.

The featured presentation for this strand will be “Connections of NGSS to CCSS for All Students, Including English Language Learners,” on Friday, October 23 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM, in the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, C1. Presenter Okhee Lee (New York University: New York, NY) will address connections of the NGSS to the Common Core State Standards, in English language arts and mathematics for all students…and English language learners in particular. Okhee Lee will highlight relationships and convergences between the NGSS and CCSS from both a content perspective and a language perspective. In addition, the presentation will engage participants to explore how teachers can promote disciplinary practices in the NGSS and CCSS while promoting language development.

Below is a small sampling of other sessions on this topic:

• Keep Calm and Teach Science…and Math…and ELA: An Integrated Approach
• Science Has Many Stories to Tell: NASA Literacy Resources for Your Students
• Inquiring Minds Want to Know…How to Create a PBL Unit
• Identifying the Hidden Opportunities: Embedding CCSS ELA in Your Current Science Lessons
• Talking Points: The Role of Talk in the Science Classroom

Want more? Check out more sessions and other events with the Reno Session Browser/Personal Scheduler. Follow all our conference tweets using #NSTA15, and if you tweet, please feel free to tag us @NSTA so we see it!

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Future NSTA Conferences

2015 Area Conferences

• Reno, October 22–24
• Philadelphia, November 12–14
• Kansas City, December 3–5

2016 National Conference

• Nashville, March 31–April 3

2016 STEM Forum & Expo

• Denver, July 27–30

Follow NSTA

“Inquiry” and “practices” are recognized actions in science teaching that are used in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).  “Inquiry” was a term which was central to many science education reform efforts–certainly those indicated in the “old” 1996 National Science Education Standards (NSES).  In 1991 the NSTA President asked the National Research Council (NRC) to form a committee to do a background analysis concerning the word “inquiry” for use in identifying how science should be taught in schools.  This resulted in little controversy!  A definition of “Inquiry” has been described as simply asking questions, proposing possible answers, and establishing the validity of proposed answers.  This sequence constitutes the “doing” of science. 

Science is not something we “practice” to achieve known results as in engineering.  Scientists do things differently, and we should specify these differences when referring to science in the NGSS!  The word “practices” should not be used to identify the meaning of “inquiry” when defining science.  Science is not something that is done over and over until the desired outcome has been accomplished as it is with engineering.  Science focuses on identifying the unknown!  It seeks explanations of objects and events encountered by humans and includes evidence to support the explanations proposed.   

The term “inquiry” is often associated with actions by police, lawyers, FBI and CIA, political leaders, business executives, and others who formulate questions and try to find answers to them.  “Inquiry” provides a focus for student actions as well as actions of teachers.  All variations of the word “inquiry” used by teachers suggest ways teachers can achieve and encourage “inquiry” for students.   “Inquiry” is not accomplished by teachers setting parameters to determine what and how something is taught.  Teachers often provide guidance (while not being too directive).    

The word “practices” is also associated with numerous professions, for example, medical doctors who “practice” medicine, lawyers who “practice“ law, actors “practicing” words for a play, dancers “practicing” routine dance steps, artists who “practice” to perfect their painting/drawing skills, as well as engineers working to provide designs for stronger bridges, safer building structures, and even designs of major highways.  “Inquiry” is not a primary focus for engineering. Engineers start with an idea that indicates what they are trying to achieve; they know in advance what they want.  Conversely, scientists are always searching for the unknown as they explore the world around them. 

Robert E. Yager
Professor of science Education
University of Iowa

I teach sixth grade science, and my students come from five district elementary schools and several private schools. Some schools emphasize science more than others, so it’s hard to know what knowledge and experience each student has. My principal suggested giving a pretest at the beginning of the year or for each unit, but that sounds time consuming, and I question how effective it would be. Do you have any suggestions to help me figure out what students know? —A., California

I worked on a project that required students to complete a multiple-choice pre– and posttest to assess the effectiveness of an instructional program. The students were upset during the pretest because they didn’t know many of the answers. Even though we explained that they weren’t expected to know everything and the pretest wouldn’t count as a grade, it was still a frustrating experience.

A pretest in your case at the beginning of the year would attempt to assess what students already know. Students would be asked to recall what they learned a year or more ago without a context or prompt or time to think. This isolated, once-and-done assessment could be stressful for students as well as time-consuming for you.

On the other hand, what students already know about a topic is just as important as the activities you plan or the materials you use. You could look at your school district’s curriculum guide for the elementary grades, but as you noted, some topics may have been emphasized more than others depending on the teacher and available resources.

Preliminary activities can help you and the students determine the knowledge, skills, and experiences they bring to the learning unit. I’d suggest using activities that stimulate student thinking about the concepts, provide a context for their thinking, and relate to the learning goals. For example,

• KWL charts are three-column graphic organizers on which students note what they already (K)now about a topic, what they (W)ant to know, and finally what they (L)earn about a topic. The K and W columns can provide information prior to instruction on students’ knowledge and interests. The L column is a self-assessment during and at the end of the unit. This strategy has been around for a while and there are many variations. (see “KLEWS to Explanation Building” in the February 2015 Science and Children ). ).

• Using a visual as a prompt, ask students to list in their notebooks what they know about a topic or to generate a list of related words. As with a KWL chart, students can include what they’ve learned about a topic from a variety of sources, including what they may have learned outside of school.

• On a list of key vocabulary or concepts ask students to put a plus sign next to those they’re comfortable with, a check mark next to those they’ve heard of but are not sure about, and a question mark next to those with which they are completely unfamiliar. At the end of the unit, students can revisit the list.

• Using letters in a term from the unit, ask students to think of a related word or idea that starts with each letter. Students enjoy working together or sharing their lists. It’s interesting to do this again at the end of the unit to see if students respond differently or in greater detail.

Assessing students’ prior knowledge can also identify misconceptions or incomplete understandings. Page Keeley has written a series of books on Uncovering Student Ideas in Science.  The “probes” in these books are brief activities that help teachers of all grade levels identify students’ preconceptions or misconceptions about a topic. If you would like to preview what these probes look like, NSTA’s Science & Children publishes one in each issue.

To assess more than content knowledge, at the beginning of the year have students complete an activity or investigation with minimal directions from you. As you observe them, you’ll have a chance to note their thinking and problem-solving skills, as well as their measuring, data-organizing, graphing, and writing abilities. In terms of interpersonal skills, you also can start to identify who are the leaders, bosses, followers, thinkers, creative minds, disrupters, class clowns, and bystanders.

Students may claim to be unfamiliar with a topic until they think about it. I found that some students had had teachers who used different terminology, which often confused those students. And I also learned that students knew more than they (and I) thought.

The free webinars by National Science Teachers Association experts, Carla Zembal-Saul, Mary Starr, and Kathy Renfrew, will guide us to a deeper understanding of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Read more about them and register to attend here. 

July 22
Teaching NGSS in K–5: Constructing Explanations from Evidence

July 29
Teaching NGSS in K–5: Teaching NGSS in K–5: Making Meaning through Discourse

August 5
Teaching NGSS in K–5: Planning a Coherent Storyline

Taking a close look at these standards promises to be a benefit even if your state has not yet adopted the NGSS.

If you haven’t been tracking weather events with the children in your summer and year-round programs, they are missing an opportunity to make observations and learn about collecting data. Some regions have more of the same every day, some experience severe weather. Variations in temperature, cloud cover, wind and precipitation can be observed between morning arrival and afternoon outdoor play or dismissal.

What kind of media do your children use to document their observations? Fingerpainting with shaving cream to sculpt clouds? Circling the symbol that represents the current weather? Taking photos to view and discuss later? Measuring and charting temperature or rainfall? How can children document hail? After the lightning and thunder are completely over, run outside and gather a few of any hailstones that haven’t melted and quickly measure them? 

And where does all that water go? What do we use water for? Four-year-olds in one preschool talked about how water was present in their lives and drew small pictures and wrote a few words about this.

Some kindergarten classes keep track of air temperature within ten degree (*F) blocks over a year. Especially in summer, the change in air temperature can be measured over the hours in the school day, or simply noted as “cool,” “warm,” or “hot.” This prepares children to consider how sunlight warms the Earth’s surface, a Disciplinary Core Idea in the Next Generation Science Standards and part of Kindergarten Performance Expectation, K-PS3-1, Make observations to determine the effect of sunlight on Earth’s surface. One class compared the speed of ice cube melting, in the shade or in the sun.

When addressing severe weather events or patterns, we try to inform children without scaring them. Even older children can be scared by difficulties such as drought. California nanny and parent, Stef Tousignant, wrote about “How to Talk to Your Kids About the California Drought.”

Jaqueline Stansbury wrote about her memories of the two-year drought in 1976-1977. She says, “What I remember from my childhood in the 70s is that we were all in it together”, and offers tips for using less water.

The Reading Chair column in the March 2009 issue of Young Children reviewed Lila and the Secret of Rain by David Conway, illustrated by Jude Daly (Frances Lincoln 2007), the story of a girl in Kenya. I wonder if children who are experiencing an extended drought might become anxious when hearing Lila’s mother’s statement: “Without rain there can be no life.” Will they think it is their responsibility to end the drought as Lila did? Will they feel empowered by the actions they can take, such as turning off the tap while brushing their teeth or helping to plant drought tolerant plants in a garden?

My area has experienced rain almost every day for a month so I don’t have answers to these questions. Please share your practices in teaching about drought and in water-conserving methods.

This past week the full Senate began work to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act with the Every Child Achieves Act, legislation that would replace No Child Left Behind, first signed into law 14 years ago and scheduled for reauthorization 7 years ago.

Also last week, the House of Representatives narrowly voted (218 to 213) to approve the Student Success Act, their version of legislation to replace No Child Left Behind. This conservative bill would significantly reduce the federal government’s role in K-12 education. Twenty seven Republicans joined all House Democrats in voting against the bill.

ESEA in the House: Student Success Act (H.R. 5)

The Student Success Act dramatically reduces the federal role in education by returning authority for measuring student performance and turning around low-performing schools to states and local officials.

It requires states to establish academic standards in reading, math, and science and maintains current law requirements that states develop and implement a set of assessments for all students in reading and math in each of grades three through eight and once in high school, and in science once in each of the grade spans for grades three through five, six through nine, and 10 through 12.

It eliminates federal “Adequate Yearly Progress” (AYP) and allows states to develop their own accountability systems and allows states to develop turnaround strategies for low performing schools.

The Student Success Act also allows states to develop and implement teacher evaluation systems without conditions from the federal government.

It contains a Title I Portability provision, giving states the option of allowing Title I money to follow low-income students to a public or charter school of the parent’s choice.

The bill also severely limits the authority of the Secretary of Education over decisions in the classroom by prohibiting the Secretary from imposing conditions on states and school districts, including the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, in exchange for a waiver of federal elementary and secondary education law or federal grant funds. The bill prevents the Secretary from creating additional burdens on states and districts through the regulatory process, particularly in the areas of standards, assessments, and state accountability plans and prohibits the Secretary from demanding changes to state standards and influencing and coercing states to enter into partnerships with other states.

During floor debate an amendment to allow states to use federal funds without federal restrictions was rejected. However, an amendment that would allow parents to opt their children out of testing required under the bill was adopted with the support of a few Democrats.

This bill has been roundly opposed by House Democrats, teachers’ unions and civil rights groups, who say it doesn’t invest enough in high poverty districts and will not hold schools accountable for the student achievement of minority students and students with disabilities. The Administration has said it would veto this bill.

Read a summary of House bill Student Success Act here.

ESEA in the Senate: Every Child Achieves Act (S. 1177)

The full Senate is expected to continue debate on their NCLB rewrite the week of July 13. The debate surrounding this legislation is quite different than what occurred in the House, since this bill was crafted with bipartisan support in a process lead by the two education champions, Senators Alexander and Murray. The bill also received a unanimous vote in the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) committee.

Key outstanding issues with the bill include accountability, equity/resources, and Title I portability (vouchers).

With an open amendment process, there have been a number of amendments offered to the bill. An amendment that would allow Title I dollars to follow students was defeated, but more voucher amendments by Republicans are expected.

Also expected this week is an amendment/debate on a five-year, federal-state partnership to expand and improve early-learning opportunities for children from birth to age 5.

The Senate Every Child Achieves Act maintains the current NCLB testing requirements, but allows the states to decide their accountability structure. It also maintains the requirement that states report disaggregated data to highlight achievements of subgroups of students. Many groups have been vocal about strengthening accountability requirements, and the Administration would like to see language included that would require states have a plan in place to address the lowest-performing 5-percent of schools in each state.

It also restricts the power of the Secretary of Education with language that says the federal government may not mandate or provide incentives for states to adopt any particular set of standards, including the Common Core State Standards.

Section 2005 of the Every Child Achieves Act, which was added in a bipartisan Franken-Kirk Amendment during HELP Committee consideration, establishes a program to provide each state with formula-based funding that would be used to support partnerships between local schools, businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations to improve student learning in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects. Each state would choose how to spend and prioritize these funds, which can support a wide range of STEM activities from in-depth teacher training, to engineering design competitions, to improving the diversity of the STEM workforce. NSTA and the STEM Education Coalition have been very vocal in their support of a strong STEM education component in this legislation.

Check back soon for an update on this legislation and the Senate action this week.

Read more about Day one of ESEA

Read more about Day two of ESEA debate in the Senate and Passage of House Student Success Act.

Stay tuned and look for upcoming issues of NSTA Express for the latest information on developments in Washington, D.C.

Jodi Peterson is Assistant Executive Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and Chair of the STEM Education Coalition. e-mail Jodi at jpeterson@nsta.org; follow her on Twitter at @stemedadvocate.

The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.

Follow NSTA