II

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2624

To establish and expand programs relating to science, mathematics,

engineering, and technology education, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 24, 2000

Mr. ROBERTS (for himself and Ms. SNOWE) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

A BILL

To establish and expand programs relating to science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education, and for

other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Science Edu5 cation Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 Congress finds the following:

8 (1) As concluded in the report of the Com9 mittee on Science of the House of Representatives,
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1 ‘‘Unlocking Our Future Toward a New National

2 Science Policy,’’ which was adopted by the House of

3 Representatives, the United States must maintain

4 and improve its preeminent position in science and

5 technology in order to advance human under6 standing of the universe and all it contains, and to

7 improve the lives, health, and freedoms of all people.

8 (2) It is estimated that more than half of the

9 economic growth of the United States today results

10 directly from research and development in science

11 and technology. The most fundamental research is

12 responsible for investigating our perceived universe,

13 to extend our observations to the outer limits of

14 what our minds and methods can achieve, and to

15 seek answers to questions that have never been

16 asked before. Applied research continues the process

17 by applying the answers from basic science to the

18 problems faced by individuals, organizations, and

19 governments in the everyday activities that make our

20 lives more livable. The scientific-technological sector

21 of our economy, which has driven our recent eco22 nomic boom and led the United States to the longest

23 period of prosperity in history, is fueled by the work

24 and discoveries of the scientific community.
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1 (3) The effectiveness of the United States in

2 maintaining this economic growth will be largely de3 termined by the intellectual capital of the United

4 States. Education is critical to developing this re5 source.

6 (4) The education program of the United States

7 needs to provide for 3 different kinds of intellectual

8 capital. First, it needs scientists and engineers to

9 continue the research and development that is cen10 tral to the economic growth of the United States.

11 Second, it needs technologically proficient workers

12 who are comfortable and capable dealing with the

13 demands of a science-based, high-technology work14 place. Last, it needs scientifically literate voters and

15 consumers to make intelligent decisions about public

16 policy.

17 (5) Student performance on the recent Third

18 International Math and Science Study highlights the

19 shortcomings of current K–12 science and mathe20 matics education in the United States, particularly

21 when compared to other countries. We must expect

22 more from our Nation’s educators and students if

23 we are to build on the accomplishments of previous

24 generations. New methods of teaching mathematics
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1 and science are required, as well as better curricula

2 and improved training of teachers.

3 (6) Science is more than a collection of facts,

4 theories, and results. It is a process of inquiry built

5 upon observations and data that leads to a way of

6 knowing and explaining in logically derived concepts

7 and theories.

8 (7) Students should learn science primarily by

9 doing science. Science education ought to reflect the

10 scientific process and be object-oriented, experiment11 centered, and concept-based.

12 (8) Children are naturally curious and inquisi13 tive. To successfully tap into these innate qualities,

14 education in science must begin at an early age and

15 continue throughout the entire school experience.

16 (9) Teachers provide the essential connection

17 between students and the content they are learning.

18 High-quality prospective teachers need to be identi19 fied and recruited by presenting to them a career

20 that is respected by their peers, is financially and in21 tellectually rewarding, and contains sufficient oppor22 tunities for advancement.

23 (10) Teachers need to have incentives to remain

24 in the classroom and improve their practice, and

25 training of teachers is essential if the results are to
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1 be good. Teachers need to be knowledgeable of their

2 content area, of their curriculum, of up-to-date re3 search in teaching and learning, and of techniques

4 that can be used to connect that information to their

5 students in their classroom.

6 SEC. 3. ASSURANCE OF CONTINUED LOCAL CONTROL.

7 Nothing in this Act may be construed to authorize

8 any department, agency, officer, or employee of the United

9 States to exercise any direction, supervision, or control

10 over the curriculum, program of instruction, administra11 tion, or personnel of any educational institution or school

12 system.

13 SEC. 4. MASTER TEACHER GRANT PROGRAM.

14 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

15 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is amended—

16 (1) by redesignating section 16 as section 18;

17 and

18 (2) by inserting after section 15 the following

19 new section:

20 ‘‘§ 16. Grants and awards

21 ‘‘(a)(1) The Director of the National Science Foun22 dation shall conduct a grant program to make grants to

23 a State or local educational agency or to a private elemen24 tary or middle school for the purpose of hiring a master

25 teacher described in paragraph (3).
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1 ‘‘(2) In order to be eligible to receive a grant under

2 this subsection, a State or local educational agency or pri3 vate elementary or middle school shall submit to the Direc4 tor a description of the requirements for a master teacher

5 of the State or local educational agency or school, includ6 ing certification requirements and job responsibilities of

7 the master teacher, and a description of how professional

8 development will be integrated with the math or science

9 program of the State educational agency or local edu10 cational agency or school including a master teacher.

11 ‘‘(3) A master teacher referred to in paragraph (1)—

12 ‘‘(A) shall provide support for not more than 10

13 teachers at public and private schools in math,

14 science, engineering or technology programs for stu15 dents in grades kindergarten through the eighth

16 grade; and

17 ‘‘(B) shall be responsible for in-classroom as18 sistance and oversight of hands-on inquiry materials,

19 equipment, and supplies, including supplying and re20 pairing such materials.

21 ‘‘(4) Grants shall be made under this section out of

22 funds available for the National Science Foundation for

23 Education and Human Resources Activities.

24 ‘‘(b) In this section, the terms ‘State educational

25 agency’ and ‘local educational agency’ have the meaning
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1 given those terms in section 14101 of the Elementary and

2 Secondary Education Act of 1965.’’.

3 SEC. 5. HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATIONAL SOFTWARE FOR ALL

4 SCHOOLS.

5 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

6 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is further amended in section 16 (as

7 added by section 4) by adding at the end the following

8 new subsection:

9 ‘‘(c)(1) The Director is authorized to award grants,

10 on a competitive basis, to secondary school and college stu11 dents working with university faculty, software developers,

12 and experts in educational technology, or to university fac13 ulty, software developers, and experts in educational tech14 nology working with secondary school or college students,

15 for the development of high-quality educational software

16 and Internet web sites by such students, faculty, devel17 opers, and experts.

18 ‘‘(2)(A) The Director shall recognize outstanding

19 educational software and Internet web sites developed with

20 assistance provided under this subsection.

21 ‘‘(B) The President is requested to, and the Director

22 shall, issue an official certificate signed by the President

23 and Director, to each student and faculty member who

24 develops outstanding educational software or Internet web

25 sites recognized under this subsection.
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1 ‘‘(3) The educational software or Internet web sites

2 that are recognized under this subsection shall focus on

3 core curriculum areas.

4 ‘‘(4) The Director shall give priority to awarding

5 grants for the development of educational software or

6 Internet web sites in the areas of mathematics, science,

7 engineering, and technology.

8 ‘‘(5) The Director shall designate official judges to

9 recognize outstanding educational software or Internet

10 web sites assisted under this section.’’.

11 SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUP ON SCIENCE,

12 MATHEMATICS, ENGINEERING, AND TECH13 NOLOGY EDUCATION.

14 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

15 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is further amended by inserting after

16 section 16 (as added by section 4) the following new sec17 tion:

18 ‘‘§ 17. Establishment of working group on science,

19 mathematics, engineering, and tech20 nology education

21 ‘‘(a) There is established in the National Science

22 Foundation a working group to review and coordinate reg23 ular and supplemental curricula in kindergarten through

24 the twelfth grade for science, mathematics, engineering,

25 and technology, taking into account—
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1 ‘‘(1) the content, scope, and sequence of such

2 curricula;

3 ‘‘(2) the research basis for such curricula; and

4 ‘‘(3) the demonstrated results of such curricula.

5 ‘‘(b) There shall be 15 members of the working group

6 established by subsection (a), who shall have experience

7 in the fields of life science, physical science, earth science,

8 chemistry, technology, math, or engineering, and who shall

9 be appointed by the Director for a three-year term that

10 may be extended once for an additional three years. The

11 members shall be appointed as follows:

12 ‘‘(1) 4 members appointed from among rep13 resentatives from appropriate professional societies

14 representing the scientific disciplines.

15 ‘‘(2) 3 members appointed from among business

16 leaders who are active in education.

17 ‘‘(3) 2 members appointed from among rep18 resentatives of institutions of higher education.

19 ‘‘(4) 2 members appointed from among rep20 resentatives of schools of education within such in21 stitutions.

22 ‘‘(5) 4 members appointed from among rep23 resentatives of professional societies that represent

24 science teaching.
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1 ‘‘(c)(1) The working group established by subsection

2 (a)—

3 ‘‘(A) shall, beginning not later than three years

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, award

5 recognition annually in predetermined categories;

6 ‘‘(B) shall publish all criteria upon which a re7 view by the working group under this section is

8 based; and

9 ‘‘(C) shall disseminate information on award10 winning programs for the purpose of acting as a re11 source for State and local educational agencies—

12 ‘‘(i) for determining the best methods for

13 teachers to present science, mathematics, engi14 neering, and technology subject areas to stu15 dents; and

16 ‘‘(ii) for organizing science, mathematics,

17 engineering, and technology disciplines.

18 ‘‘(2) The information required to be disseminated by

19 paragraph (1)(C) shall include information describing the

20 activities of the award-winning programs and the awards

21 made in each category.’’.

22 SEC. 7. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

23 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—
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1 (A) GRANT PROGRAM.—The Director shall,

2 subject to appropriations, carry out a dem3 onstration project under which the Director

4 awards grants in accordance with this section to

5 eligible local educational agencies.

6 (B) USES OF FUNDS.—A local educational

7 agency that receives a grant under this section

8 may use such grant funds to develop an infor9 mation technology program that builds or ex10 pands mathematics, science, and information

11 technology curricula, to purchase equipment

12 necessary to establish such program, and to

13 provide professional development in such fields.

14 (2) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—The program

15 described in paragraph (1) shall—

16 (A) provide professional development spe17 cifically in information technology, mathe18 matics, and science; and

19 (B) provide students with specialized train20 ing in mathematics, science, and information

21 technology.

22 (b) ELIGIBLE LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—For

23 purposes of this section, a local educational agency is eligi24 ble to receive a grant under this section if the agency—
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1 (1) provides assurances that it has executed

2 conditional agreements with representatives of the

3 private sector to provide services and funds de4 scribed in subsection (c); and

5 (2) agrees to enter into an agreement with the

6 Director to comply with the requirements of this sec7 tion.

8 (c) PRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATION.—The condi9 tional agreement referred to in subsection (b)(1) shall de10 scribe participation by the private sector, including—

11 (1) the donation of computer hardware and

12 software;

13 (2) the establishment of internship and men14 toring opportunities for students who participate in

15 the information technology program; and

16 (3) the donation of higher education scholarship

17 funds for eligible students who have participated in

18 the information technology program.

19 (d) APPLICATION.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible local edu21 cational agency desiring a grant under this section

22 shall submit an application to the Director in ac23 cordance with guidelines established by the Director

24 pursuant to paragraph (2).

25 (2) GUIDELINES.—
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1 (A) REQUIREMENTS.—The guidelines re2 ferred to in paragraph (1) shall require, at a

3 minimum, that the application include—

4 (i) a description of proposed activities

5 consistent with the uses of funds and pro6 gram requirements under subsection

7 (a)(1)(B) and (a)(2);

8 (ii) a description of the higher edu9 cation scholarship program, including cri10 teria for selection, duration of scholarship,

11 number of scholarships to be awarded each

12 year, and funding levels for scholarships;

13 and

14 (iii) evidence of private sector partici15 pation and financial support to establish

16 an internship, mentoring, and scholarship

17 program.

18 (B) GUIDELINE PUBLICATION.—The Di19 rector shall issue and publish such guidelines

20 not later than 6 months after the date of the

21 enactment of this Act.

22 (3) SELECTION.—The Director shall select a

23 local educational agency to receive an award under

24 this section in accordance with subsection (e) and on
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1 the basis of merit to be determined after conducting

2 a comprehensive review.

3 (e) PRIORITY.—The Director shall give special pri4 ority in awarding grants under this section to eligible local

5 educational agencies that—

6 (1) demonstrate the greatest ability to obtain

7 commitments from representatives of the private sec8 tor to provide services and funds described under

9 subsection (c);

10 (2) demonstrate the greatest economic need;

11 and

12 (3) use a curriculum recognized by the working

13 group established by section 17 of the National

14 Science Foundation Act of 1950 (as added by sec15 tion 6).

16 (f) ASSESSMENT.—The Director shall assess the ef17 fectiveness of activities carried out under this section.

18 (g) STUDY AND REPORT.—The Director—

19 (1) shall initiate an evaluative study of eligible

20 students selected for scholarships pursuant to this

21 section in order to measure the effectiveness of the

22 demonstration program; and

23 (2) shall report the findings of the study to

24 Congress not later than 4 years after the award of

25 the first scholarship. Such report shall include the
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1 number of students graduating from an institution

2 of higher education with a major in mathematics,

3 science, or information technology and the number

4 of students who find employment in such fields.

5 (h) DEFINITIONS.—Except as otherwise provided, for

6 purposes of this section—

7 (1) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of

8 the National Science Foundation;

9 (2) the term ‘‘eligible student’’ means a student

10 enrolled in the 12th grade who—

11 (A) has participated in an information

12 technology program established pursuant to this

13 section;

14 (B) has demonstrated a commitment to

15 pursue a career in information technology,

16 mathematics, science, or engineering; and

17 (C) has attained high academic standing

18 and maintains a grade point average of not less

19 than 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for the last 2 years of

20 secondary school (11th and 12th grades); and

21 (3) the term ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the

22 same meaning given such term in section 14101 of

23 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of

24 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
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1 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the National Science

3 Foundation to carry out this section, $3,000,000.

4 (j) MAXIMUM GRANT AWARD.—An award made to an

5 eligible local educational agency under this section may

6 not exceed $300,000.

7 SEC. 8. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION ON REQUIRED

8 COURSE OF STUDY FOR CAREERS IN

9 SCIENCE, MATHEMATICS, ENGINEERING, AND

10 TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION.

11 The Director of the National Science Foundation

12 shall, jointly with the Secretary of Education, compile and

13 disseminate information (including, but not limited to,

14 through outreach, school counselor education, and visiting

15 speakers) regarding—

16 (1) standard prerequisites for middle school and

17 high school students who seek to enter a course of

18 study at an institution of higher education in

19 science, mathematics, engineering, or technology

20 education for purposes of teaching in an elementary

21 or secondary school; and

22 (2) the licensing requirements in each State for

23 science, mathematics, engineering, or technology ele24 mentary or secondary school teachers.
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1 SEC. 9. REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT STUDY EVALUATION.

2 (a) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Director of the National

3 Science Foundation shall enter into an agreement with the

4 National Academy of Sciences under which the Academy

5 shall compile and evaluate studies on the effectiveness of

6 technology in the classroom on learning and student per7 formance, as measured by State standardized tests. The

8 study evaluation shall include, to the extent available, in9 formation on the type of technology used in each class10 room, the reason that such technology works, and the

11 teacher training that is conducted in conjunction with the

12 technology.

13 (b) DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION.—The study eval14 uation required by subsection (a) shall be completed not

15 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of

16 this Act.

17 (c) DEFINITION OF TECHNOLOGY.—In this section,

18 the term ‘‘technology’’ has the meaning given that term

19 in section 3113(11) of the Elementary and Secondary

20 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6813(11)).

21 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

22 are authorized to be appropriated to the National Science

23 Foundation $600,000 for the purpose of conducting the

24 study evaluation required by subsection (a).
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1 SEC. 10. TEACHER TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOP2 MENT.

3 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

4 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is further amended in section 16 (as

5 added by section 4) by adding at the end the following

6 new subsection:

7 ‘‘(d) The Director shall establish a grant program

8 under which grants may be made for instruction of teach9 ers for grades kindergarten through the twelfth grade on

10 the use of technology in the classroom.’’.

11 SEC. 11. MIDDLE SCHOOL COMPUTER LITERACY ASSIST12 ANCE.

13 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

14 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is further amended in section 16 (as

15 added by section 4) by adding at the end the following

16 new subsection:

17 ‘‘(e)(1) The Director is authorized to award grants

18 to assist States in reaching the goal of making all middle

19 school graduates in the State technology literate.

20 ‘‘(2) Grants awarded under this subsection shall be

21 used for teacher training in technology, with an emphasis

22 on programs that prepare 1 or more teachers in each mid23 dle school in the State to become technology leaders who

24 then serve as experts and train other teachers.

25 ‘‘(3) Each State shall encourage schools that receive

26 assistance under this subsection to provide matching
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1 funds, with respect to the cost of teacher training in tech2 nology to be assisted under this subsection, in order to

3 enhance the impact of the teacher training and to help

4 ensure that all middle school graduates in the State are

5 computer literate.’’.

6 SEC. 12. SCIENCE, MATHEMATICS, ENGINEERING, AND

7 TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION CONFERENCE.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 180 days after the date

9 of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the National

10 Science Foundation shall convene a conference of rep11 resentatives from Federal, State, and local governments,

12 private industries, professional organizations, educators,

13 science, mathematics, engineering, and technology edu14 cational resource providers, students, and any other stake15 holders the Director decides would provide useful partici16 pation in the conference. Such conference shall be known

17 as the National Science Education Forum.

18 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the conference con19 vened under subsection (a) shall be to—

20 (1) identify existing science, mathematics, engi21 neering, and technology education programs and re22 source providers;

23 (2) examine how well existing programs are co24 ordinated and how much collaboration exists among

25 them;
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1 (3) examine the common goals and differences

2 among the participants at the conference; and

3 (4) develop strategies that will support partner4 ships and leverage resources.

5 (c) REPORT AND PUBLICATION.—At the conclusion

6 of the conference the Director of the National Science

7 Foundation shall—

8 (1) transmit to the Committee on Science of the

9 House of Representatives and to the Committee on

10 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen11 ate a report on the outcome and conclusions of the

12 conference; and

13 (2) ensure that a similar report is published

14 and distributed as widely as possible to stakeholders

15 in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology

16 education.

17 SEC. 13. GRANTS FOR DISTANCE LEARNING.

18 The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (42

19 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) is further amended in section 16 (as

20 added by section 4) by adding at the end the following

21 new subsection:

22 ‘‘(f) The Director may make grants to a State or local

23 educational agency or to a private elementary, middle, or

24 secondary school, under any grant program administered

25 by the Director using funds appropriated for the National
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1 Science Foundation for Education and Human Resources

2 Activities, for activities in which distance learning is inte3 grated into the education process in grades kindergarten

4 through the twelfth grade.’’.

5 SEC. 14. AVAILABILITY OF CURRICULAR PROGRAMS

6 THROUGH THE INTERNET.

7 The Director of the National Science Foundation

8 shall make available through the Internet at no cost a

9 complete field-test version (including text and graphics)

10 of any curricular program, the development for which the

11 National Science Foundation provided funds.

12 SEC. 15. SCHOLARSHIPS TO PARTICIPATE IN CERTAIN RE13 SEARCH ACTIVITIES.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting through the

15 National Science Foundation, shall provide scholarships to

16 teachers at public and private schools in grades kinder17 garten through the twelfth grade in order that such teach18 ers may participate in research programs conducted at

19 private entities or Federal or State Government agencies.

20 The purpose of such scholarships shall be to provide teach21 ers with an opportunity to expand their knowledge of

22 science and research techniques and encourage incorpora23 tion of such techniques into the classroom.

24 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In order to be eligible to re25 ceive a scholarship under this section, a teacher described
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1 in subsection (a) shall be required to develop, in conjunc2 tion with the private entity or Government agency at

3 which the teacher will be participating in a research pro4 gram, a proposal to be submitted to the President describ5 ing the types of research activities involved, and how tech6 niques with respect to such research may be incorporated

7 into the educational process.

8 (c) PERIOD OF PROGRAM.—Participation in a re9 search program in accordance with this section may be

10 for a period of one academic year or 2 sequential sum11 mers.

12 (d) INTERNET SITE.—The Director of the National

13 Science Foundation shall establish an Internet web site

14 which may be used by students and teachers participating

15 in the program under this section to incorporate research

16 knowledge and techniques into the educational process.

Æ