Chemical Education Today

JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu • Vol. 77 No. 12 December 2000 • Journal of Chemical Education 1535

Editorial

Before It’s Too LateBefore It’s Too Late is the report of the National Com-

mission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21stcentury. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley establishedthe commission on July 20, 1999—the 30th anniversary ofthe first landing on the moon. Former astronaut and senatorJohn Glenn was appointed chair, and approximately 30 mem-bers were chosen by virtue of their experience in science andmathematics education. The commission’s 50-page report wasreleased on September 27, 2000. It is on the Web at http://www.ed.gov/americacounts/glenn/toc.html.

The commission concludes that “the current preparationthat students in the United States receive in mathematics andscience is, in a word, unacceptable.” Its report makes a fewsimple points:

• The future of our country depends on how well weeducate children—especially in mathematics andscience.

• Our children are not world-class learners in mathemat-ics and science—they are achieving less than childrenin other countries.

• The most powerful instrument for change is goodteachers and good teaching.

The commission proposes urgently and insistently that thepeople of the United States commit to achieving three goalsthat could bring about fundamental change and enable ourstudents to compete with the best in the world.

Goal 1: Establish an ongoing system to improve the qual-ity of mathematics and science teaching in grades K–12.

Goal 2: Increase significantly the number of mathemat-ics and science teachers and improve the quality of theirpreparation.

Goal 3: Improve the working environment and make theteaching profession more attractive for K–12 mathemat-ics and science teachers.

These goals are not new, the commission does not claimthat they are novel, and it recognizes that they will be diffi-cult to achieve. It cites five factors that make this a good timeto focus on improving mathematics and science education:(i) education is receiving attention as a major public issue;(ii) we now have a surplus of resources to invest in educa-tion; (iii) there will be major changes in the teachingworkforce because two-thirds of all current teachers are ex-pected to retire in the next decade; (iv) much has been learnedin the field of education in the past decade; and (v) collegestudents are showing increased interest in teaching as a pro-fession. If we don’t address the situation now, it will be a longtime until another good opportunity arises.

The commission has proposed strategies by which eachof the goals can be achieved. These are based on its view that“the most consistent and most powerful predictors of higherstudent achievement in mathematics and science are: (a) fullcertification of the teacher and (b) a college major in the sub-

ject being taught.” Con-sequently strategies areoriented toward teachersand professional devel-opment. One specific ac-tion for achieving goal 1is determining whatteachers require in theirschools and their profes-sional lives in order todeliver high-quality in-struction routinely. Oth-ers are summer institutesfor professional develop-ment, inquiry groupswithin which teachers exchange and enrich content knowl-edge and pedagogical skills, and a dedicated Internet portalthat would become an expanding knowledge base on math-ematics and science teaching. Similarly, supporting goal 3 in-cludes providing materials, facilities, equipment, and men-tor stipends as part of a professional work environment andproviding salaries that are more competitive, especially formathematics and science teachers. The report states that toachieve high-quality teaching “school boards, administrators,parents, and policymakers must be willing to stand up forteachers as the primary drivers of student achievement.”

The commission should be applauded for including inits executive summary a section titled “The deeper value ofmathematical and scientific knowledge”. It recognizes thatstudents benefit more profoundly from learning science andmathematics than a recitation of practical advantages implies.Scientific inquiry skills and the skills of mathematical analy-sis provide a foundation for lifelong learning. An understand-ing of science and mathematics is essential to understandingand participating productively in modern society and cul-ture. Science and mathematics provide a milieu within whichchange is not fearsome but an opportunity, and students relishinquiry and questioning, activities that can lead to a better,more rational society.

The first year of the program is expected to cost morethan $5 billion. That’s a lot of money, and the total cost ismuch more. If the goals the commission has set forth can beachieved, the expenditure is a very worthwhile investmentin the future. The last section of the report encourages in-vestments of time and personal commitment by superinten-dents and school boards, principals, teachers, parents, politi-cal policy makers, business, and higher education institutions.I encourage you to read the appropriate parts of that sectionand consider how you might increase your involvement. Eachof us must contribute enthusiastically and creatively to im-proving mathematics and science education—before it’s toolate!

“school boards,

administrators, parents,

and policymakers must be

willing to stand up for

teachers as the primary

drivers of student

achievement.”