JoinHow Arkansas Adopted the NGSS
By Guest Blogger
Posted on 2015-06-22
Last week Arkansas celebrated the adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for K–8 students and work is ongoing for 9–12. We’ve had a strong connection with the NGSS since work began to develop them in 2011. Arkansas was designated as a Lead State along with 25 other states and we were fortunate to have two classroom teachers (Melissa Miller and Kathy Prophet) working as writers. I was fortunate to be selected as a Critical Stakeholder reviewer for the NGSS as they were being developed. In April 2014, the Arkansas State Board of Education voted unanimously to endorse the NGSS as the basis for the development of Arkansas’ new K–12 science standards. Based upon that action, the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) under the leadership of Michele Snyder (ADE Science Specialist) assembled a team of over 40 stakeholders to begin the review and development of the K–8 Arkansas Science Standards. The committee included administrators, K–8 classroom teachers, university professors, science specialists, and other vital stakeholders. It was a diverse, committed, and talented group. ADE staff members in the assessment, curriculum, and technical departments were also present to assist the committee in its task.
The K–8 committee was divided into four teams and met on multiple occasions during the fall of 2014 and the spring of 2015. At the first meeting, the committee studied the basis for the NGSS, A Framework for K–12 Science Education (published by the National Research Council) and reviewed the NGSS, its three dimensions, and the appendices to build common understanding. At the second meeting, the committee began the difficult task of analyzing the student Performance Expectations in grades K–8. The committee chose to retain the existing NGSS K–2 standards untouched, and to add some Arkansas-specific clarification statements and assessment boundaries to the grades 3–5 PEs. Our greatest challenge came in assigning the grades 6–8 PEs to a specific grade level and writing a few Arkansas-specific clarification statements and assessment boundaries. We studied what previous NGSS-adopting states had done in assigning PEs and used that information to guide our work. Then using the committee’s work, the ADE produced three different models for the K–8 standards. The final meeting was laborious as the committee ultimately came to consensus on the Arkansas K–8 Science Standards by choosing the best pieces from all of the models and setting the format and numbering system for the Arkansas PEs based on the NGSS.
The ADA placed the Arkansas K–8 Science Standards online for a 30-day public comment period. Notifications were sent to schools and teachers state-wide so that interested parties could read the proposed standards and offer comments. We were pleased to see that over 80% of the comments received were supportive and favorable of the new standards! A small team of the K–8 committee met in early June to read and respond to all of the comments made during the public comment period and we made needed changes based on public comments. At last, on June 11, 2015, the proposed Arkansas K–8 Science Standards were submitted to the State Board of Education and they were unanimously adopted with almost no discussion but with gratitude from the Board for the committee’s work. Those of us in the audience applauded. It was time to celebrate our work.
We have now started work on the Arkansas 9–12 Science Standards. Our first meeting was in mid-June and I expect the development process to be similar to the work of the K–8 committee. I have enjoyed working with and learning from my colleagues while serving as an advisor for the committee. We hope to have a 9–12 standards proposal ready for public review and comments in early 2016 with submission to the State Board of Education for approval in the spring of 2016.
Arkansas has planned for a coordinated implementation of the new science standards. Professional development is required for teachers to become familiar with the conceptual shifts in science teaching that will need to be made to help students meet the expectations of the new Arkansas K–8 and 9–12 Science Standards. The grades K–4 standards will take effect in 2016–2017, and the grades 6–8 standards will be implemented in 2017–2018. When adopted, the 9–12 standards would take effect in 2018–2019.
To access resources and stay up-to-date on all developments regarding the adoption and implementation of the NGSS, in Arkansas and elsewhere in the United States, please bookmark the NGSS@NSTA hub. There, science teachers have access to general NGSS information, the standards by topic, curriculum planning guidance, vetted classroom resources, professional learning opportunities, and NGSS news.
Steve Long teaches Pre-AP Chemistry, and ChemCom at Rogers High School (RHS) in Rogers, Arkansas, where he has worked for the past 25 years. Long is serving as an advisor to the Arkansas Department of Education assisting with developing the new Arkansas K-8 and 9-12 science standards.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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Va-cation, stay-cation, and edu-cation
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2015-06-21
But teachers get the summers off!! How many times do we see that in op-eds and online conversations? Those who make that comment obviously have never been a teacher, a family member of a teacher, or friend of a teacher. As a teacher, I never had a summer “off.” My classes did not end until the middle of June, I spent time reorganizing materials, revising lessons, and getting the lab in order. And then we started up again in August with inservice and work days to prepare for the first day of school, which started the week before Labor Day.
So what do teachers do on their “days off”? Even on family vacations (Did you ever forget yourself and call them “field trips”?), we’re always looking for ideas and resources for our classrooms. You can tell who the teachers are at amusements parks (figuring out the physics principles at work), on the beach (identifying shells and other critters), and on the hiking trails at state and national parks (with binoculars and guidebooks). We take our families and friends to museums, planetariums, science centers, zoos, nature centers, botanical gardens, and arboretums. In our beach bags or backpacks, we might pack a mystery or romance novel, but we’re very likely to include science-related nonfiction and professional books and journals. Even at historical sites, we look for applications of science to share with our students (for example, while my husband and I were touring and exploring the history of the Gettysburg Battlefield, I was also photographing the lichens on the monuments and birdwatching on Little Round Top). We stop the car to photograph interesting rock outcrops or fantastic cloud formations. Our souvenirs include rocks, sand samples, fossils, pressed wildflowers, maps and brochures for bulletin boards, books for classroom libraries, photographs for our lessons, and thoughts and reflections about improving what we teach. (SciLinks: Amusement Park Physics and Roller Coasters, U.S. National Parks, Identifying Trees, Identifying Rocks and Minerals, Clouds, Science of Surfing, Water Safety)
For teachers, a stay-cation often involves teaching summer school, working on curriculum updates and new lessons, graduate classes, workshops, webinars, independent study, and using social media to form professional learning communities (see the NSTA discussion forums, e-mail listserves, its Facebook presence, and #NSTA on Twitter). As NSTA members, we can access all of the journals, so summer is a good time to catch up on what’s happening at other grade levels: Science & Children, Science Scope, The Science Teacher, and the Journal of College Science Teaching. See NSTA Recommends for even more print and online suggestions. To brush up on or learn new topics, NSTA’s Science Objects are self-study units related to content, and they’re free to anyone.
On my summer list is to continue to use the NGSS@NSTA hub with just about everything there is to know about the Next Generation Science Standards. The site includes classroom resources, videos of aligned lessons, curriculum planning ideas, professional learning opportunities, and access to the standards themselves. I’m really interested in the new enhanced eBook Discover the NGSS: Primer and Unit Planner with “interactive activities, assessments, demonstrations, videos, beautiful images and concrete examples that explain and will foster a deep learning and understanding of the science standards.”
Too many books and e-resources, too little time!
It would be interesting for us to collectively document the time we spend, the topics we investigate, and expenses we incur during the summer as we update our knowledge, skills, and classroom resources. We could show the public that most of us educators spend a great deal of our summers on edu-cation.
(updated from June 2011)
Photo: MLB
But teachers get the summers off!! How many times do we see that in op-eds and online conversations? Those who make that comment obviously have never been a teacher, a family member of a teacher, or friend of a teacher.
Garden observations and questions
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2015-06-20
Gardening with children may turn up questions voiced by the children or suggested by their behavior. As you observe children in the garden or a natural area, take a few notes about what they look at or touch. Model how you wonder about a phenomenon in the garden by saying it aloud, such as, “Is this sprout taller today than it was yesterday?” Not all questions can be investigated by children. “Why are most leaves green?” is a question that can be researched in books or online, but not investigated by young children. Children can investigate “Are there any leaves that are not green?”
The December 2010 issue of Science and Children addresses questions in many articles. Linda Froschauer, Field Editor of Science and Children, writes in the Editor’s Note “Investigable questions are important elements of lessons that promote inquiry and help students construct meaning. Good questions help students make links between what they know, what they want to find out, what they observe, and how their observations fit within the context of their learning and development.” Asking questions, and planning and carrying out investigations, are two of the Science and Engineering Practices identified in A Framework for K-12 Science Education, one of the foundational documents for the Next Generation Science Standards.
Here are some other questions that children can investigate in a garden:
Do all vines go around a pole in the same direction?
Do day lily flowers close up at a certain time in the evening or do they stay open longer if they are in bright light indoors?
Why are there holes in this leaf? Is something eating it?
What happens to a leaf when rain falls on it?
“Where are seeds made?” is a question to investigate over time by making observations of more than one plant. 
While drawing a plant in the garden children may notice more than when walking through the space. A simple “journal” of a sheet of paper folded in quarters and a marker are all the materials needed to give children time to observe and think about what’s happening in a garden.
Gardening with children may turn up questions voiced by the children or suggested by their behavior. As you observe children in the garden or a natural area, take a few notes about what they look at or touch.
Engineering the Next Generation Science Leaders in Omaha
By Guest Blogger
Posted on 2015-06-13
Omaha, Nebraska, is the destination of the upcoming 2015 National Congress on Science Education (July 15-18, 2015). Leaders and members of Chapters and Associated Groups along with the NSTA leadership will gather to discuss science education issues that are relevant to promoting excellent science teaching and leadership. The theme of this year’s Congress is “Engineering the Next Generation of Science Leaders 2015.”
The NCSE planning committee developed the program utilizing the new NSTA Strategic Goals. Using the strategic goals, state leaders will be empowered to develop more effective organizations and networks. An important component of Congress includes the issue forum sessions where attendees will collaborate on ideas addressing the issues. The three issue forums are: Chapter/Associated Group Leadership and Advocacy, Professional Learning, and Elementary Science Education. Resolutions may be written from each of the issue forums to help direct both NSTA and Chapter/Associated Groups in their work. In addition to collaborating within the issue forums attendees will have the opportunity to network through workshops led by other NSTA members focusing on social media and technology integration, instructional strategies, organization management, fiscal responsibilities, the NSTA Learning Center, NGSS and NSTA resources. A new feature this year is the “unconference.” This is an opportunity for those attending Congress to determine the break-out sessions and step-up as a facilitator for the session. In addition to networking opportunities, the attendees will hear from speakers that include Stephen Pruitt, Jodi Peterson, and the five awardees of the Yager Foundation Excellence in Teaching Award.
Congress is a wonderful setting to build relationships and network with other NSTA groups and members. When attending an event like Congress I always came away with new ideas that I could take back to my state organization. There is not enough time in the day to try and create new ideas when I could learn from the successes of other NSTA chapters and associated groups. Congress was my professional learning for growing my state organization.
So don’t delay! There is still time to register for the 2015 NCSE. Go to the NCSE webpage for more information about Congress and how to register. Note: June 15 is the last day to declare a delegate from a chapter or associate group.
So come – network, collaborate, celebrate and be creative – as we “… promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.”
See you in Omaha!
Carolyn Hayes is NSTA President, 2015-2016; follow Carolyn @caahayes or use #NSTACongress for updates.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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NSTA at NAESP: Hands-On Science + Literacy Solutions
By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Posted on 2015-06-11
The 2015 annual conference for the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) takes place June 30–July 2. Designed for educators on the front lines — teachers, superintendents, counselors, district and state administrators, and especially principals — the conference aims to have a huge impact on student success. And the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) will be there to join them as principals experience the future of education.
NSTA’s position on Elementary School Science states “we support the notion that inquiry science must be a basic in the daily curriculum of every elementary school student at every grade level.” And we believe that science is a key component of a complete and rigorous curriculum for all students. Supported by our community of expert educators with a solid science education background and a passion for literacy, we’ve assembled a powerful resource collection that helps integrate science and literacy at the elementary level. Join us in Long Beach, California, June 30–July 2 to learn more, and stop by our booth to share your ideas with us about the direction in which you see education going.
When you do visit us, whether onsite or online, we hope you will sample some of our resources:
- Professional journals, packed with science teaching techniques, lessons, and activities
- Classroom-tested tools for integrating science and literacy in elementary classrooms
- Formative assessment strategies that thousands of educators are using now
- Quick reference guides to NGSS implementation
- NSTAKids books… fun for kids, accurate science for teachers
Visit booth #1123 onsite or use promo code NAESP online at the NSTA Science Store to receive the same 20% discount on all NSTA Press publications* that our members get—plus $5 off NSTA membership for yourself or a science teacher on your team!
*Offer good only on NSTA Press publications, from June 29–July 10, 2015, and cannot be combined with any other offer or discount.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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Go Big with Vernier's Go Wireless pH Sensor
By Martin Horejsi
Posted on 2015-06-10
The Vernier Go Wireless (Bluetooth) pH sensor
Go Big with Vernier’s Go Wireless pH Sensor
The wirelessness of the sensor allows quality measurements to be made locked behind a protective blast shield and inside a vent hood.
Measurements are made safely behind glass with no cords to challenge the integrity the venting system.
Dethethering is a fancy word for eliminating the cord. By going wireless the probe opens some interesting doors to creative and safe exploration and experimentation. One of the big advantages of a wireless probe is the same advantage we experienced with telephones and microscopes went cordless. No longer did we trip over cords, knock over containers when moving the cords, or dredging off the top of counter tops desks with the cord acting like a giant chain stripping the surface down to bare ground.
The BNC connector and probe. Using a ubiquitous connector allows the Bluetooth transmitter to be attached to other sensors.
A potential classroom set of potential.
The sensor is floating 4m away with the iPad recording changes in pH as distance from the shore increases.
The float with both the pH sensor and Go Wireless temp sensor.
An island of pH sensor. Floating about 4m from it’s iPad homebase, the platform can transmit one data point per second for 72 hours.
10 meters down to the water.
The river’s pH as recorded from the iPad screen running the Vernier App named Graphical.
The Vernier Go Wireless (Bluetooth) pH sensor
Goal-setting
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2015-06-09
Our new principal wants us to come up with goals to accomplish in the next year. He hasn’t provided much guidance yet, so I don’t know what to do. How can I do this meaningfully? —J., Delaware
The end of the school year is a good time to reflect. This often leads to developing professional goals to improve your teaching and student learning. You probably have some in mind.
Working toward these goals can be an effective part of an individualized professional development plan. Unfortunately, goal setting is often an empty formality in my experience. I would definitely talk with your principal about his expectations.
I had a principal who required us to submit several goals each year. I suspect it was something he felt he had to do (or was told to do), but he did not provide any suggestions or examples on the number, format, or purpose. And he did not follow up on them during the year. Our professional development was not based on the goals, and they were not mentioned during any post-observation conferences. Because of this, I didn’t take the goal setting process seriously, treating it as a yearly task to check off the list. I certainly worked at becoming a better teacher, but those efforts were not formally related to the goals I submitted.
The process was different at another agency I worked for. Everyone, including the executive director, used the agency’s mission statement to formulate two to three SMART goals (the format is described below). We fine-tuned them with our supervisors and created an action plan to address them. At the mid-term and end of the year we discussed our progress and how the process was adding to our professional growth. It was a powerful form of professional development and a positive experience in reflection and self-evaluation.
Looking back, I realized my school district goals, as they were written, were not useful because they were extremely broad and lacked much purpose. The SMART acronym describes a more focused format:
- Specific: The goal is clearly stated with what you want to do, why it is important, and how it will be accomplished.
- Measurable: The goal describes the evidence you’ll use to determine your progress.
- Achievable: The goal is doable and realistic, given the resources that are available to you.
- Relevant: The goal relates to student learning and performance.
- Timely: The goal has target dates for achievement.
For example, “I want students to participate in class discussions” is a worthy but broad goal. It can be tweaked into a SMART goal:
- Specific: I will improve student learning by promoting active participation, using three strategies: calling on students randomly, using wait time, and incorporating turn-and-talk discussions.
- Measurable: I will use class observations (tally sheet of participants) as well as formative and summative assessment results.
- Achievable: The strategies require no additional resources or materials. I will read more on these strategies in professional publications.
- Relevant: The goal addresses student learning through equitable participation.
- Timely: The trial is one semester.
Here are some generic goal areas that could evolve into SMART goals:
Instructional Goals
- Incorporate inquiry into more lessons.
- Use strategies and assessments that focus on higher-level learning.
- Incorporate science notebooks.
- Implement new technology for ____.
- Prepare better substitute plans.
- Use a variety of formative assessments.
- Design lessons/units aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
Interpersonal Goals
- Improve teacher-parent relationships, focusing on positive communications.
- Build better relationships with colleagues and other staff.
- Get to know students better.
Organizational Goals
- Establish routines for accessing and returning lab materials.
- Establish and maintain a classroom management plan, including expectations, routines, and rules.
- Improve documentation for various classroom situations.
- Keep up with inventories and other paperwork.
- Keep a record of lessons and units and put together notebooks or electronic files for each unit.
NSTA has a wealth of professional resources to help you meet your goals: online discussion forums and email lists, journals, books, conferences, the NGSS@NSTA Hub, free web seminars, and content-based courses.
Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/eclectic-echoes/6681499071/
Our new principal wants us to come up with goals to accomplish in the next year. He hasn’t provided much guidance yet, so I don’t know what to do. How can I do this meaningfully? —J., Delaware
Ecosystem experiences away from home
By Peggy Ashbrook
Posted on 2015-06-08
For children who visit the ocean beach or shore this summer, the experience of visiting a very different ecosystem can inspire interest in animals that inhabit it, and wonder about “how did it get this way?” Children who experience the beach and shore ecosystems frequently may have a similar reaction when visiting other ecosystems. How do we incorporate their questions and experiences into the classrooms in their home place?
Some of us live in areas where we never see a sandy area in nature, much less a whole beach of it, so sand is a sensory experience rather than an exploration of the environment. Sand is a standard in early childhood programs because it feels so soothing as it pours through our fingers and we can build such interesting structures with wet sand. Sensory play provides a foundation for learning vocabulary, engaging socially with others, and learning about the properties of matter.
I’m thinking of some materials that can also be soothing and interesting yet be local, for my program:
Leaves, dry or fresh, paired with scissors, or in water.- Dish soap bubbles in water (local as in every home).
- Rocks from a stream valley or landscape company (washed to remove pollutants that wash into streams.)
- Grass clippings if from a known pesticide- and fertilizer-free source.
Some of these materials may be appropriate for children of certain ages—you know your children. Some materials may only last for a day or two.
To support children as they talk about their beach experiences on a trip away from home we can have a shell collection in the classroom to use for sorting, making impressions in playdough and incorporating into imaginative play. Edible seaweed is a wonderful sensory experience. It is sold in a dried form and becomes nicely slippery and wet when soaked in water. Not every child will want to do more than look at the wet seaweed but with teachers modeling how to touch it with first just one finger, more children may want to experience this interesting plant material. A fish bowl with a single goldfish or betta fish is not the same as the complex community of organisms found in the near shore ocean but it does give children a chance for up-close observation of an animal that lives in water. Children can mix salt into water, taste a few drops, and compare salt water to fresh water.
In a July 11, 2012 post, “Going to the Beach?,” I shared this resource and other early childhood educators commented and contributed more ideas: Writer and scientist Ann McElhatten, shares her knowledge of Atlantic seacoasts in a free e-book, 10 Beachcombing Activities: A guide for investigating the Atlantic coast shoreline.
Talking with children and helping them reflect on, and perhaps draw or paint, what they observed. This extends children’s thinking about experiences in any ecosystem. What did you do there? What animals did you see? How did the ground feel? Was there water? What plants did you see? What smells did you sniff? What kind of weather did you experience? Was it warm or cold, or both?
For those educators who do live near a marine ecosystem, the National Marine Educators Association’s (NMEA) annual conference is happening June 29 through July 2 at the Newport Marriott, in downtown Newport, Rhode Island. Formal and informal marine educators from across the U.S. and around the world will come together to help promote the mission of “making known the world of water, both fresh and salt.”
For children who visit the ocean beach or shore this summer, the experience of visiting a very different ecosystem can inspire interest in animals that inhabit it, and wonder about “how did it get this way?” Children who experience the beach and shore ecosystems frequently may have a similar reaction when visiting other ecosystems. How do we incorporate their questions and experiences into the classrooms in their home place?
ExploraVision Awards Weekend 2015
By Lindsey Reichert
Posted on 2015-06-08
Someone in your family loses their hearing aid…again! But it’ no problem, you just print a new one on your 3D printer and life goes on seamlessly. Sound too good to be true? Not for long, in the world envisioned by young scientists who were honored last weekend during the 23rd annual Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision awards weekend.
The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), along with Toshiba celebrated the national student winners for their hard work and creative ideas in science and technology. The Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision program challenged participants to imagine what technology might be like in 20 years. Students worked in teams to propose ideas for innovative future technology based on a challenge of what already exists, simulated real scientific research to outline how they planned to test their idea, and built websites to further illustrate and communicate their concepts.
This year, more than 5,000 team projects were entered into the competition representing 15,473 students from across the United States and Canada. First place winning projects included the S.T.A.R. Sea Turtle Assistance Rod (Grade K-3), The Green Tablet (Grade 4-6), Survival of the Freshest: Preservation of Organic Food (Grade 7-9), and Programmable Bio-Scaffolding: The Suture of Future (Grade 10-12). This year’s second place winners were SportaVision (Grade k-3), Clarite- A Better Cochlear Implant (Grade 4-6), Heat Utilizing Hearing Aids (Grade 7-9) and External Microbial Cleansing Device – EMCD (Grade 10-12).
All students from the eight first and second place teams received savings bonds and an exciting expenses-paid trip with their families, mentor and coach to Washington, D.C. Activities included a visit to Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress and a Science Showcase where students displayed and demonstrated their winning ideas. The highlight of the Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision weekend was the gala awards banquet and ceremony where students were formally recognized for their creativity and accomplishments.
At the STEM Education Science Fair that took place on Thursday in the Rayburn House office Building, finalists showcased their projects to members of Congress and their staff. This informal event provided members of Congress and their staff with the opportunity to see first-hand the benefits and importance of STEM education. The kids loved engaging with these important men and women and were excited to share their ideas and projects. The atmosphere was upbeat and lively; students were even taking selfies with their Congressmen!
The students then attended the Senates STEM Panel and were able to meet with Senators from their home state.
The fun continued on Friday with the National Press Club Science Showcase. You can probably hear the theme song now… because everyone’s favorite man in science, Bill Nye the Science Guy was there! The kids loved meeting him and explaining their projects during the satellite media interviews that were broadcasted in their hometowns. After this, the eight winning teams presented their projects to NSTA leadership and high-level Toshiba executives. In their interaction, many of the Toshiba executives explained their hope that one day these young scientists might join their company!
The Gala Awards Banquet, which took place Friday night, was the pinnacle event. The night started with students being congratulated with a “live broadcast” from Times Square. They also had the incredible opportunity to listen to a past winner from 1998 –Dr. Kim Ly – speak about her experience with the competition; and Bill Nye encouraged them to “change the world.” The students were then welcomed to the stage to individually receive their awards and the night ended with confetti, cannons and music as we celebrated science and innovation.
View our Facebook album to see more, and if you were there and see yourself, please tag yourself.
That’s wrap! We’re ending #ExploraVision weekend with confetti! pic.twitter.com/3MmKIJXEsw
— Toshiba Innovation (@ToshibaInnovate) June 6, 2015
Author Lindsey Reichert works with the National Science Teacher’s Association with the Communications, Legislative, and Public Affairs Team. e-mail her at lreichert@nsta.org.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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Legislative Update
America COMPETES Act Reauthorization
By Jodi Peterson
Posted on 2015-06-07
Earlier this spring the U.S. House of Representatives passed the America COMPETES Act Reauthorization Act of 2015 (HR 1806) by a vote of 217-205, with 23 Republicans joining every Democrat present in voting against the bill.
The bill was strongly opposed by a number of groups—including the Association of American Universities, Computing Research Association, American Geophysical Union and the Consortium of Social Science Associations—who claim the legislation sets false priorities for the science agencies and would limit research.
Read more about the opposition to the America COMPETES Act.
The Administration also strongly opposes the legislation, saying it “would undermine critical investments in science, technology, and research” and “would be damaging to the Administration’s actions to move American competitiveness, innovation, and job growth forward through a world-leading science, technology, and innovation enterprise.”
Read the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015 (H.R. 1806): Impact on the National Science Foundation.
In regards to STEM education, the bill would seek to coordinate and improve the extensive portfolio of STEM education programs at the different federal agencies by creating a new function at the National Science Foundation. It would also work to coordinate STEM education activities conducted across the government with a new federal STEM Education Advisory Panel.
Read the STEM Education Coalition statement on the bill.
In the Senate, a bipartisan group of seven senators introduced legislation which would reauthorize the energy title of the America COMPETES Act. In contrast to the House bill, according to Politico, the proposed Senate COMPETES legislation “seeks to lay out funding through fiscal 2020 and provide steady increases each year. Meanwhile, the House bill, which also covers broader funding needs at the National Science Foundation and other non-Energy Department programs, would keep funding levels flat across the board and stops at fiscal 2017.”
Update on Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Still no definitive word on when the respective House and Senate bills to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (No Child Left Behind) will move forward in both chambers for final amendments, consideration, and passage. Many believe (hope) the bills will be taken up by both bodies by the end of June.
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.
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Earlier this spring the U.S. House of Representatives passed the America COMPETES Act Reauthorization Act of 2015 (HR 1806) by a vote of 217-205, with 23 Republicans joining every Democrat present in voting against the bill.