A review of STEM education programs across the federal government finds
that few programs have been rigorously evaluated and little is known
about their impact on students. This report, by the Academic Competitiveness
Council, recommends that funding for federal programs to improve STEM
education outcomes "should not increase unless a plan for rigorous,
independent evaluation is in place." Another report, released earlier
this year by the National Governors Association, highlights the importance
of STEM education to the nation's ability to innovate, and calls for
greater efforts by states and the federal government, in partnership,
to improve STEM instruction and data tracking across the nation.
ACADEMIC COMPETITIVENESS COUNCIL REPORT: In fiscal year 2006,
the federal government supported 105 programs across 13 departments
and agencies that focused on kindergarten through postgraduate STEM
education, with an expenditure of $3.12 billion. Also in 2006, the Deficit
Reduction Act called for the establishment of an Academic Competitiveness
Council (ACC), comprising federal officials with responsibility for
STEM education programs and chaired by the Secretary of Education. The
Council was charged with identifying and reviewing all federal STEM
education programs and their target populations; assessing their effectiveness;
identifying areas of duplication; and making recommendations for greater
integration and coordination. After a yearlong effort, on May 10, the
ACC released its findings.
According to the report, the ACC developed goals and metrics in three
areas: K-12 Education, Postsecondary Education, and Informal Education
and Outreach. The ACC sought the help of a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization
to assess existing program evaluations. Of 115 evaluations of federal
STEM education programs, the organization "found 10 impact evaluations
that were scientifically rigorous, four of which concluded that the
educational activity evaluated had a meaningful positive impact."
The report finds that "despite decades of significant federal investment
in science and math education, there is a general dearth of evidence
of effective practices and activities." The report offers six recommendations:
1. "The ACC program inventory and goals and metrics should be
living resources, updated regularly and used to facilitate stronger
interagency coordination."
2. "Agencies and the federal government at large should foster
knowledge of effective practices through improved evaluation and-or
implementation of proven-effective, research-based instructional materials
and methods."
3. "Federal agencies should improve the coordination of their
K-12 STEM education programs with states and local school systems."
4. "Federal agencies should adjust program designs and operations
so that programs can be assessed and measurable results can be achieved,
consistent with the programs' goals."
5. "Funding for federal STEM education programs designed to improve
STEM education outcomes should not increase unless a plan for rigorous,
independent evaluation is in place, appropriate to the types of activities
funded."
6. "Agencies with STEM education programs should collaborate on
implementing ACC recommendations under the auspices of the National
Science and Technology Council (NSTC)."
In a press release on the report, Education Secretary Margaret Spellings
urged Congress to "focus investments in programs that demonstrate
measurable effects on student achievement or fill gaps in the large
portfolio of existing programs." The 87-page "Report of the
Academic Competitiveness Council" can be accessed at http://www.ed.gov/print/about/inits/ed/competitiveness/acc-mathscience/index.html.
NATIONAL GOVERNORS ASSOCIATION INITIATIVE: The National Governors
Association, chaired by Governor Janet Napolitano of Arizona, earlier
this year issued an initiative entitled "Innovation America,"
describing what states, working in partnership with the federal government,
can do to enhance education, workforce, and innovation capacity. "In
the new global economy, states need a workforce with the knowledge and
skills to compete," says the initiative. "A key to developing
these skills is strengthening science, technology, engineering, and
math (STEM) competencies in every K-12 student."
"Innovation America" offers strategies for governors, and
suggestions for federal assistance, in three areas: Improving K-12 STEM
education; improving postsecondary education and workforce training;
and encouraging regional private sector innovation. The initiative offers
the following STEM education recommendations for governors, and includes
examples of specific states that have implemented such strategies:
1. "Align state K-12 STEM standards and assessments with postsecondary
and workforce expectations for what high school graduates know and can
do." States should participate in international assessments and
align their standards and assessments with international benchmarks;
align K-12 STEM expectations with all paths students might take after
graduation; and align elementary, middle and high school STEM education
"to create a coherent K-12 system."
2. "Examine and increase the state's internal capacity to improve
teaching and learning." Statues should use international benchmarks
to evaluate their capacity; improve K-16 data systems "to track
the STEM preparation of students;" develop strategies to communicate
to the public "the urgency of improving STEM;" develop or
charge P-16 councils to spearhead alignments of the STEM education system;
support "promising new models of recruiting, preparing, certifying,
compensating, and evaluating teachers" in STEM fields; and "support
extra learning opportunities" in STEM fields.
3. "Identify best practices in STEM education and bring them to
scale." States should support and expand the availability of specialized
STEM schools; develop standards and assessments in technology and engineering
as well as math and science; support development of high quality STEM
curricula; and develop standards for Career and Technical Education
programs.
The initiative also includes "Innovation America: A Partnership,"
which outlines complementary recommendations for what the federal government
can do to assist, enhance and accelerate state actions in the areas
of education, economic development, and workforce training. In the area
of education, the initiative seeks federal support for: student tuition
assistance for STEM and critical foreign language career paths; recruitment
and retention of high-quality teachers; STEM education improvement grants;
high school redesign enhancement; grants to Governors for P-16+ Councils
and Data Systems; and international benchmarking. Further information
on "Innovation America" can be found at http://www.nga.org
on the left-hand side under "2006-2007 NGA Chair Gov. Janet Napolitano's
Initiative."
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