Thirteen Ways to Improve Science Education in the U.S.

A new Corporation report offers recommendations for improvements to K–12 science education over the next 10 years, from state standards and instructional materials to professional learning and instruction

By Jim ShortJanuary 31, 2023

Carnegie Reporter Fall 2023 Future of Learning & Work

(Credit: Allison Shelley/The Verbatim Agency for Eduimages via Getty Images)

The Education program at Carnegie Corporation of New York builds on a legacy of investments in education involving standards reform, improving teaching practices, supporting school and system leaders, and increasing the supply of and demand for high-quality instructional materials and aligned assessments. These efforts have included sustaining the vision and implementation of college- and career-ready standards in science education. Since 2009, the Corporation has awarded 92 grants to 32 organizations related to investments in the field of public K–12 science education, representing more than $51 million. Most of the grants have focused on instructional materials, professional learning, and assessments.

Science education in the United States was revolutionized following the 1957 launch by the Soviets of Sputnik, the world’s first satellite. The subsequent Sputnik era, as it came to be known, spurred an increased focus on science education, leading to a new generation of scientists and engineers. Today, with challenges like the ongoing threats of global climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, we are facing a new “Sputnik moment.” We must respond to the current crisis in science education with an equally intense focus. How we respond will impact the nation’s future on issues ranging from public health and the environment to racial equity and economic prosperity.

To better understand the state of K–12 science education today, we commissioned Horizon Research to develop a landscape study. The report K–12 Science Education in the United States: A Landscape Study for Improving the Field assesses the progress over the last decade toward the vision of science instruction provided in 2012 by the Corporation-supported A Framework for K–12 Science Education, published by the National Research Council.

For the last decade, the Framework has shaped reform efforts across all components of K–12 science education — including state standards, instructional materials, professional learning, assessments and accountability policies, instruction, and preservice teacher preparation. Most notably, the Framework drove the development of the Next Generation Science Standards, a set of research-based, K–12 science content standards developed by states to improve science education by setting expectations for what all students need to know and be able to do.

As we look to elevate the status of science education in the U.S. and to broaden the involvement of underrepresented groups in ongoing reform efforts, we need a field-level agenda for change. To that end, the report includes recommendations to inform improvements over the next 10 years in service of making science education a priority for all.

RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE THE FIELD

State Standards

The long-term viability of the NGSS and similar standards will depend on broad public support, particularly from current students and their parents and guardians, who often lead demands for change. To that end, there is a need for efforts at the state and national levels to disseminate accurate depictions of standards-aligned instruction and to explain the benefits for students and society. An important societal benefit is the potential to close achievement and opportunity gaps in science by race/ethnicity.

Instructional Materials

States, school districts, and schools should ensure teachers are equipped with high-quality instructional materials and supports to meet the needs of their students rather than asking teachers to create their own or to find instructional resources on the Internet.
States and districts should increasingly allow for the adoption of open educational resources (OER), which some states already do, in addition to instructional materials created by commercial publishers. They should also increase flexibility in how budgets for instructional materials can be spent, allowing districts and schools to purchase commercial products associated with standards-aligned OER materials.

Professional Learning

One way to improve professional learning opportunities is to center them on helping teachers use high-quality, standards-aligned instructional materials as they become available. States and districts should provide curriculum-based professional learning focused on high-quality instructional materials, including OER materials.
The typical teacher has less than five days — over three years — of professional learning focused on science teaching. Science teachers must have more ongoing opportunities for professional learning.
School and district administrators who support and evaluate teachers of science should be provided with opportunities to learn about the standards and what standards-aligned instruction looks like.

Instruction

Instructional coaches are relatively common in ELA and mathematics. Similarly, many regional centers that support schools and districts with professional learning and other services tend to prioritize ELA and mathematics instruction. States could direct more coaching support to science, and their regional centers could give more priority to science.
States should put systems in place to identify and track inequities in access to standards- aligned science instruction to ensure that existing gaps begin to narrow and that new gaps do not appear. These systems should prioritize identifying and supporting schools and districts that need help, not penalizing them.

Assessments and Accountability

Education accountability is ingrained in state and federal policy, and it prioritizes ELA and mathematics. Until science is elevated to the same level in these policies, it will continue to receive fewer resources, both financial and nonfinancial. States should include science in their accountability systems as a first step toward giving science the priority it deserves.
Standards-aligned science assessments should reflect the standards-aligned materials districts have adopted, enabling districts to monitor student performance locally and more frequently rather than relying on end-of-year state assessments. Assessments like these would provide better information about student learning and relieve some of the pressure teachers and students feel due to state-administered assessments.

Preservice Teacher Preparation

Those leading the reform of preservice teacher preparation should develop a strategy that involves a large number of preservice faculty in developing model programs for preparing science teachers for standards-aligned instruction using high-quality instructional materials.
With the growing availability of high-quality, standards-aligned instructional materials, teacher preparation programs should include a requirement for preservice teachers to demonstrate the ability to identify and use these types of materials.
Preservice faculty should have opportunities to develop their understanding of the Framework and the NGSS. One strategy to accomplish this is for preservice programs to partner with schools and districts engaged in professional learning focused on standards-aligned instructional materials.

Read the full report K—12 Science Education in the United States: A Landscape Study for Improving the Field

Jim Short is a program director within Carnegie Corporation of New York’s Education program, where he manages the Leadership and Teaching to Advance Learning portfolio.