Task force says California schools need to teach, test and promote science
Published: January 1, 2006
Dr. Kerry Clegg said working with CSBA colleagues and the California Science Teachers Association as chair of the Joint Task on Science Education was one of the real bright spots during his year as president of CSBA – a year that otherwise was largely consumed with damage control.
“The task force did a wonderful job,” Clegg, a science teacher himself, told members of the CSBA Delegate Assembly on Dec. 1. After spending so much time during his presidency trying to prevent bad things from happening to schools, Clegg said it was refreshing to focus on solutions for a change.
“As a professor, I can attest that students come in with poor science preparation. We need to make science a priority again,” he said.
After an intensive year-long investigation of the status of science education in the state, the task force issued a number of recommendations, including an increase in instructional time for science to provide for meaningful scientific inquiry and more comprehensive science assessments.
These and other recommendations to beef up science teacher recruitment and training and update state science content standards were adopted by CSBA’s Board of Directors at its Nov. 29 meeting and by the board of the science teachers association in September.
The task force will begin work in early 2006 on a resource guide to help local schools maintain and strengthen science programs.
Now that both associations have endorsed the recommendations, the task force will issue a joint policy statement and design strategies for getting legislation to implement the recommended changes on a statewide level.
Clegg said the federal No Child Left Behind Act focuses so exclusively on reading and math that other crucial components of the curriculum are neglected, shortchanging students and the nation as a whole. “All subjects must be equal – English, math, science, history and social science,” Clegg said. “That means getting away from the 180-day school year. We must find a way to pay teachers for an expanded school year. We need to recruit and train more science teachers. We must have better assessments to test students’ knowledge of science.”
The task force, Clegg said, recognized that requirements for additional science courses, better-trained teachers and more instructional time will cost money and will take time to implement.
Established in January 2005, the task force met with representatives from the California Department of Education, the state Board of Education and the business community.
Related links:
Science Education Task Force report and recommendations