This week in education news, new report says NAEP’s ‘proficiency’ term is misleading; Ed Tech companies should hire teachers; the greatest influencers on the career ambitions of children are television, movies, and YouTube; children make fantastic citizen scientists; the nation’s educational performance earns a grade of C from Quality Counts 2018; National Science Board releases new science & engineering indicators; and Bill Nye will attend this year’s State of the Union address as guest of Rep. Jim Bridenstine.

Report Says NAEP’s ‘Proficiency’ Term Is Misleading

If 4th-graders in other countries took the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test in reading, less than a majority would reach the “proficient” level according to a new report, which suggests that NAEP’s benchmarks are misleading and leaving Americans with a false narrative about U.S. student performance. Read the brief featured in Education DIVE.

Why Ed Tech Companies Should Hire Educators

With the rise of new edtech companies, the competition to succeed in the industry grows each year. In 2016, the industry raised over 1 billion dollars. Staying ahead of the game and focusing on ways to outperform the competition is necessary for startups to stay alive. However, many companies are ignoring a valuable resource which they need for continued success. What is this untapped reservoir? The answer you might not expect is teachers. Read the article featured in The Edvocate.

Teaching STEM And Programming—No Experience Needed

It’s no secret that when it comes to international comparative examinations in math and science, Singapore is a top achiever. But what leads to their success? Alexander Kmicikewycz, Math and Science Teacher at Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep, shares what he learned through the Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching program. Read the article featured in Education Week.

YouTube Is Shaping Your Child’s Career Ambitions More Than You Are

The greatest influence on the career ambitions of today’s children isn’t their teachers, parents, books, or even self-discovered passions. Instead, their ambitions are being primarily shaped by television, movies, and YouTube. Read the article featured in Fast Company.

Kids Make Great Citizen Scientists

Citizen scientists can help trained scientists gather data from all over the world — even from space. They can provide new ideas and new ways of thinking. Kids often make great citizen scientists because they tend to be curious and good at following precise directions. Sometimes they’re even better at these things than adults. And schools are convenient places for scientists to recruit big groups of helpers. As a bonus, citizen science often gets kids more excited about science. Read the article featured in Science News For Students.

Nation’s Schools Stuck In ‘Average’ Range On Annual Report Card

As a new presidential administration nears the close of its first year in office and educators across the country grapple with the challenges and opportunities in implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act, the nation’s educational performance earns a grade of C from Quality Counts 2018, the 22nd annual report card issued by the Education Week Research Center. The nation’s score of 74.5 is about the same as last year, when it posted a 74.2, also a C grade—continuing years of flat performance noted in the annual report, which weighs a host of academic, fiscal, and socioeconomic factors. Read the article featured in Education Week.

A Look At Science & Engineering Indicators

The results of a federally mandated math and science data collection paint a wide-reaching picture of the state of science and science education in America: K-12 performance in science continues to be middling, and other powerful countries graduate a higher proportion of undergraduates with degrees in those subjects. But on the bright side, Americans still hold a high opinion of science and scientists generally. Read the article featured in Education Week.

House Republican To Bring Bill Nye To Trump’s State Of The Union

Celebrated children’s TV show host and outspoken environmentalist Bill Nye “The Science Guy” will attend this year’s State of the Union address in Washington, D.C., as guest of Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.). Bridenstine’s pick of Nye may also be sending a message about his own ambitions. The congressman is Trump’s nominee to head NASA. Bridenstine’s nomination was sent after a narrow committee vote to the full Senate in the fall, but a vote has not yet occurred. Read the article featured in The Hill.

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

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