By Karina Verduzco

1. CHAPTER 1: Science
Learning Past/Present
Karina Verduzco

2. Scientific Evolvment

3.  U.S. students fare poorly – peers of other Countries
 Large achievement gap: majority students- economically
disadvantaged- Non Asian minority persist
 Trends in achievement; deadline of NLCB
 NCLB- state level assessments 2007-2008 for Science
 In the end: Concerned effort to examine and improve
Science Education
After 15 yrs……

4.  1950-1960s 1st federal foray of summer institutes’ &
curriculum development projects
 1970 challenges raised through programs
 NSF sponsored teacher development.. Ceased to operate
 1980s policy makers examine K-12 rates, declare nation
“ at risk”!
 Increase high school requirements in science
 Crises continue to influence
Historical Context

5.  Cold War: scientific productivity essential to security
and federal spending on rise
 Goal was to broaden/deepen the understanding of
scientific knowledge, inquiry, institutions
 NSF 1964 sponsored 20 K-12 projects
 Physical Science Committee, Earth Science
Curriculum Study, Chemstudy
Legacy Science Reform

6.  NSF curricula called for “active learner”, engaged
hands on activities
 Process skills: making
observations, measurements, hypothesis, designing
and carrying out experiments
 Science Curriculum Improvement Study->

7.  Learning Cycle: * explore concept (lab
exp)*conceptual convention st/t derive from data
during classroom discussion * concept application
 1960s reform mixed, curricula pushed
educators, proved to be more complex and overall
underestimated students: prior
knowledge, ideas, impact of st/t inquiry, challenge
improving science

8.  RR- 20 yr decline in K-12 science/math; direct harm
of American economy/ standard living
 Standards:
content, instruction, assessment, professional
development
 2 Guiding Frameworks : Benchmarks for Science
Literacy, National Education Standards
Emergence of Standards-based
Reform

9.  Progressed since first NSF Curriculum
 Since 1960s philosophers have challenged “what is
science, how doe it operate?”
 Scholars: social/ technical
 New emergences: geophysics, nanoscience, computational
biology
 E.G- automobile repairs such as gas compression, combustion
now governed by micro comp
 Background knowledge used to apply new knowledge
Recent Development in Science