Hearing on A Plan to Renew Science, Math, Engineering
and Technology Education In Kindergarten through 12th
Grade
Testimony of
Dr. Judy S. Sunley, Assistant Director (Interim)
Education and Human Resources
National Science Foundation
Committee on Science
U.S. House of Representatives
July 19, 2000
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this
hearing on renewing science, math, engineering and
technology education in K-12 schools and the legislation
recently introduced by Mr. Ehlers to address this
important issue. Mr. Ehlers and his staff are to be
commended for the leadership they have exhibited,
as well as the hard work and careful thought that
went into the bill's development.
The opening statement of findings in the National Science
Education Act is based on a series of hearings and
roundtables held over the past year. It is an eloquent
description of the importance of math and science
education to the nation's future that makes the key
connections to ideas underlying and stimulating renewal.
The resulting action language - with the goal of enhanced
student learning of math and science - focuses on
three major issues:
- Professionalism of teachers of math and science
in the face of isolation in the classroom, separation
from on-going developments in math and science
disciplines, and teaching math and science in
the context of much broader responsibilities;
- Understanding the current and potential role of
information technologies in education, what makes
them effective, and how to expand that effectiveness;
and
- Development, identification, and dissemination
of excellent instructional materials for math
and science.
One might briefly describe this as a focus on teachers
and the tools available to them for effective instruction.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has a strong
base of programming aimed at these areas. For example,
developing teacher leadership is a key element of
teacher enhancement activities. Likewise, our systemic
reform activities usually decide quickly that working
through lead or master teachers is critical to making
progress within schools. This is particularly true
for elementary schools.
Our experience is that these activities are most effective
when embedded in a context that allows for their continuation
over the long term without federal funding. Usually
this implies that the school or district has a plan
within which they develop teacher leadership and expand
the content knowledge and pedagogical strength of
several teachers simultaneously.
NSF's Science and Technology Centers and Engineering
Research Centers have highly developed outreach programs
that include research experiences for teachers and
K-12 students, among other activities. In addition,
several directorates are expanding their efforts to
include current K-12 teachers in research experiences
of different types.
NSF supports many projects exploring the effectiveness
of information technology in education. These include
both formal research projects aimed at experimenting
with the use of information technology and information
technology components, including distance learning
activities, in teacher enhancement, materials development,
and systemic reform activities. There is no question
that these technologies have great promise for education,
but that we need a better knowledge base for their
effective use.
Developing cutting edge K-12 science and math instructional
materials has long been a staple of NSF programming.
Our systemic reform activities frequently build on
exemplary materials aligned with local, state, and
national standards. Districts may adopt new materials
and link them with teacher enhancement that incorporates
relevant content and pedagogy. A fairly recent addition
to the materials portfolio is a set of implementation
sites that identify exemplary materials and provide
guidance to interested districts on the process and
criteria for selecting high quality materials and
on the steps the district will need to take for effective
implementation.
In sum, both the spirit underlying the bill and the
types of actions suggested are implemented in extant
NSF activities. The language of the National Science
Foundation Act of 1950 (42 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.) has
provided NSF with great flexibility in developing
programs that respond to the issues of particular
times. In considering the NSF activities, we urge
the Subcommittee to focus on the overarching issues
to be addressed rather than the specifics of program
implementation. We need to retain the agility to move
forward with programming that addresses the issues
of today and tomorrow and to do so within the resources
available to us.
We appreciate having had the opportunity for informal
interaction with the Committee and its staff on the
substance of the bill. We look forward to continuing
this interaction. The Administration is continuing
to review H.R. 4271 and, before the Committee completes
consideration of the bill, would like the opportunity
to present in writing its detailed views.
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