National Science Education Standards Released

New standards aimed at unifying what K–12 science students learn and how students and teachers are evaluated nationwide were released last week. The Next Generation Science Standards—developed by teachers, state science administrators, and professional standards writers—are based on a 2011 National Research Council report that lays out what students should know about science and engineering when they graduate from high school. The standards went through two rounds of public comment and revision before the final version was released. So far, 26 states have agreed to consider adopting the standards, which emphasize important concepts across disciplines and hands-on learning. The standards “are going to pull together inquiry and practice, and recognize engineering for the first time,” says Ellen Ebert, a Washington state science education official.