While resolutions will be local, the dialogue that precedes them should reflect experiences from across the Nation, as well as research and evaluation of processes and outcomes, including international comparisons. In the new global context, the statement continues, a scientifically literate population is vital to the democratic process, a healthy economy, and our quality of life. Just as the inability to read puts a child at risk of truancy and becoming a school dropout, deficiencies in mathematics and science have become a barrier to higher education and the 21st century workplace. Thus, the articulation of K-12 content standards with college admissions criteria is vital for conveying the national expectation that educational excellence improves not just the health of science, but everyone s life chances through productive employment, active citizenship, and continuous learning. In a culture dedicated to opportunity for all, nothing is more important than preparing our children for the future workplace.
Education reform is a long-term proposition.
In this report, the Board sets forth what it considers the necessary conditions for academic achievement, including concurrence on what constitutes basic skills for the 21st century. Science education in the U.S. has received several national wake-up calls since the launching of Sputnik in 1957, including the publication of A Nation at Risk in 1983. These data range from content analysis of textbooks, curricula, and classroom videotapes, to ethnographic case studies and surveys of teach-ers attitudes and students coursetaking. All high-performing countries show student gains between grades 3 and 4, and again between grades 7 and 8. The U.S. does not.