Why Science Matters
Science education plays a critical role in our nation’s competitiveness and economic future. Learn more about what key stakeholders—including policy makers, educators, business leaders, and scientists—are saying about quality science education.
September 1996: Report of The National Commission on Teaching & America’s Future (PDF)
1996: National Research Council Report on National Science Education Standards
2000: Before It’s Too Late: A Report to the Nation From The National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century (PDF)
December 2001: Report of the 2000 National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education from Horizon Research, Inc.
2002: The Talent Imperative: Meeting America’s Challenge in Science and Engineering (PDF), ASAP from Building Engineering & Science Talent (BEST)
March 2003: The Merck Institute for Science Education: A Successful Intermediary for Education Reform (PDF) from The Consortium for Policy Research in Education
August 2003: National Science Board, The Science and Engineering Workforce: Realizing America’s Potential (PDF)
September 2003: Is There Really a Teacher Shortage? (PDF) by Richard M. Ingersoll University of Pennsylvania
2003: State Indicators of Science and Mathematics Education 2003 from The Council of Chief State School Officers
2003: Learning for the Future: Changing the Culture of Math and Science Education to Ensure a Competitive Workforce (PDF), A Statement by the Research and Policy Committee of the Committee for Economic Development
May 2004: The Bayer Facts of Science Education X: Are the Nation’s Colleges and Universities Adequately Preparing Elementary Schoolteachers of Tomorrow to Teach Science? (PDF) from Market Research Institute, Inc.
June 2004: Sustaining the Nation’s Innovation Ecosystem: Report on Maintaining the Strength of Our Science & Engineering Capabilities (PDF) from the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, Workforce/Education Subcommittee
October 5, 2004: No Time to Waste: The Vital Role of College and University Leaders in Improving Science and Mathematics Education from the United States Department of Education
December 2004: Innovate America Report (PDF) from the National Innovation Initiative, Council on Competitiveness
December 2004: 2003 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)
July 2005: Tapping America’s Potential from The Education for Innovation Initiative, Business Roundtable
October 12, 2005: Rising Above the Gathering Storm from the National Academy of Sciences
2005: State Indicators of Science and Mathematics Education (PDF) from The Council of Chief State School Officers
2005: A Commitment to America’s Future: Responding to the Crisis in Mathematics and Science Education (PDF) from Business-Higher Education Forum
2005: Sys tems for State Science Assessment by Mark R. Wilson and Meryl W. Bertenthal, Editors, Committee on Test Design for K–12 Science Achievement, National Research Council
February 2006: America's Pressing Challenge: Building a Stronger Foundation from the National Science Board
February 2006: Are We Losing Our Edge? by Michael D. Lemonick
May 2006: National Assessment of Educational Progress In Science: 2005: "Nation's Report Card"
May 2006: National Mathematics Advisory Panel
June 2006–October 2006: Mathematics and Science Education Task Force Report and Recommendations (PDF) from the Council of Chief State School Officers
October 2006: The Cost of Teacher Turnover in K–12 Science and Mathematics: What We Know and What We Need to Know (PDF) from the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future By Edward Crowe, Ph.D.; Benjamin Schaefer; and Gary Barnes, Ph.D.
October 2006: What the Data Tell Us About Shortages of Mathematics and Science Teachers (PDF) by Richard M. Ingersoll and David Perda
October 2006: What Works Best in Science & Mathematics Education Reform (PDF), A Report on the National Science Foundation’s Urban Systemic Program
November 2006: Mathematics and Science Education Task Force Report and Recommendations (PDF), A Policy Statement of the Council of Chief State School Officers
December 6, 2006: Poll Reveals Gap Between Public and Policy Makers on U.S. Competitiveness and Math and Science Education from The American Council on Education
Dec. 6, 2006: Teaching and California’s Future— California’s Teaching Force 2006: Key Issues and Trends (PDF) from The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning
2006: Programme for International Student Assessment ( PISA), 2006 Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World Volume 1: Analysis & Volume 2: Data
2006: Transforming America’s Scientific and Technological Infrastructure: Recommendations for Urgent Action from Project Kaleidoscope, Report on Reports II
2006: Scope and Consequences of K12 Science and Mathematics Teacher Turnover from National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future
December 2006–January 2007: Strategies for Science Education Reform, The National Science Teachers Association’s Gerry F. Wheeler, Educational Leadership
2006–2007: Innovation America from the National Governors Association
January 2007: NRC Report Taking Science to School: Learning and Teaching Science in Grades K–8
February 2007: Americans Support Bridging the Sciences (PDF) from Research America
April 23, 2007 (Updated): CRS Report for Congress—Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Education: Status and Issues (PDF)
May 2007: Report of the Academic Competitiveness Council from the U.S. Department of Education
June 20-21, 2007: Preparing STEM Teachers: The Key to Global Competitiveness (PDF)
September 2007: 50-State Analysis of the Preparation of Teachers and the Conditions for Teaching, Results from the NCES Schools and Staffing Survey (PDF) from The Council of Chief State School Officers
October 1, 2007: A National Action Plan for Addressing the Critical Needs of the U.S. Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education System from the National Science Board
October 30, 2007: National Science Board Commission on 21st Century Education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
October 30, 2007: Houston, Do We REALLY Have a Problem Here? Urban Institute Report Assesses Science and Engineering in America from The Urban Institute
2007: America’s Perfect Storm: Three Forces Changing Our Nation’s Future (PDF), Policy Information Report from Educational Testing Service
2007: State Indicators of Science and Mathematics Educationhttp://www.ccsso.org/projects/Science_and_Mathematics_Education_Indicators/
2007: U.S. Population Data Sheet, A Profile of the Labor Force With a Focus on Scientists and Engineers (PDF) from Population Reference Bureau
2007: Bridging the Diversity Gap in Science and Engineering: Introducing STEM Industries to K–12 Best Practice Programs—Highlights Report (PDF) from Bayer: Science for a Better Life
2007: Is America Falling Off the Flat Earth? Norman R. Augustine, National Academy of Sciences
2007: Important, but Not for Me: Parents and Students in Kansas and Missouri Talk About Math, Science, and Technology Education (PDF), A Report from Public Agenda
2007: An American Imperative, Transforming the Recruitment, Retention, and Renewal of Our Nation’s Mathematics and Science Teaching Workforce from Business-Higher Education Forum
January 22, 2008: America COMPETES Act: Programs, Funding, and Selected Issues (PDF), Congressional Research Service Report for Congress
March 2008: Foundations for Success (PDF) from the National Mathematics Advisory Panel
April 2, 2008: Science Generation, A National Imperative: An American Museum of Natural History Summit Rowing Together Panel Briefing
May 2008: Attrition of Public School Mathematics and Science Teachers Issue Brief Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics
June 2008: High School Level STEM Initiatives in the States
July 2008: Tapping America’s Potential: Gaining Momentum, Losing Ground (PDF)