This year, the Board on Science Education (BOSE) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine celebrates 20 years of work to improve and advance STEM education through the lifespan—both in- and out- of classrooms. BOSE explores what successful STEM education looks like and how to make meaningful links across STEM disciplines so that educators create effective and engaging interdisciplinary learning experiences. These recent publications from BOSE provide guidance to develop high-quality curriculum, help prepare STEM pre-service teachers, and support the professional development of STEM educators.
Rise and Thrive with Science: Teaching PK-5 Science and Engineering
Research shows that that children learn science and engineering subjects best by engaging from an early age in the kinds of practices used by real scientists and engineers. By doing science and engineering, children not only develop and refine their understanding of the core ideas and crosscutting concepts of these disciplines, but can also be …[more]
Starting in early childhood, children are capable of learning sophisticated science and engineering concepts and engage in disciplinary practices. They are deeply curious about the world around them and eager to investigate the many questions they have about their environment. Educators can develop learning environments that support the …[more]
Call to Action for Science Education: Building Opportunity for the Future
Scientific thinking and understanding are essential for all people navigating the world, not just for scientists and other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professionals. Knowledge of science and the practice of scientific thinking are essential components of a fully functioning democracy. Science is also crucial for the …[more]
Cultivating Interest and Competencies in Computing: Authentic Experiences and Design Factors
Computing in some form touches nearly every aspect of day to day life and is reflected in the ubiquitous use of cell phones, the expansion of automation into many industries, and the vast amounts of data that are routinely gathered about people’s health, education, and buying habits. Computing is now a part of nearly every occupation, not only …[more]
Teaching K-12 Science and Engineering During a Crisis
The COVID-19 pandemic is resulting in widespread and ongoing changes to how the K-12 education system functions, including disruptions to science teaching and learning environments. Students and teachers are all figuring out how to do schooling differently, and districts and states are working overtime to reimagine systems and processes. This …[more]
Reopening K-12 Schools During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Prioritizing Health, Equity, and Communities
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges to the nation’s K-12 education system. The rush to slow the spread of the virus led to closures of schools across the country, with little time to ensure continuity of instruction or to create a framework for deciding when and how to reopen schools. States, districts, and schools are …[more]
Building Capacity for Teaching Engineering in K-12 Education
Engineering education is emerging as an important component of US K-12 education. Across the country, students in classrooms and after- and out-of-school programs are participating in hands-on, problem-focused learning activities using the engineering design process. These experiences can be engaging; support learning in other areas, such as …[more]
Science and Engineering for Grades 6-12: Investigation and Design at the Center
It is essential for today’s students to learn about science and engineering in order to make sense of the world around them and participate as informed members of a democratic society. The skills and ways of thinking that are developed and honed through engaging in scientific and engineering endeavors can be used to engage with evidence in …[more]
English Learners in STEM Subjects: Transforming Classrooms, Schools, and Lives
The imperative that all students, including English learners (ELs), achieve high academic standards and have opportunities to participate in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning has become even more urgent and complex given shifts in science and mathematics standards. As a group, these students are underrepresented …[more]
Learning Through Citizen Science: Enhancing Opportunities by Design
In the last twenty years, citizen science has blossomed as a way to engage a broad range of individuals in doing science. Citizen science projects focus on, but are not limited to, nonscientists participating in the processes of scientific research, with the intended goal of advancing and using scientific knowledge. A rich range of projects …[more]
Science Literacy: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences
Science is a way of knowing about the world. At once a process, a product, and an institution, science enables people to both engage in the construction of new knowledge as well as use information to achieve desired ends. Access to science—whether using knowledge or creating it—necessitates some level of familiarity with the enterprise and …[more]
Seeing Students Learn Science: Integrating Assessment and Instruction in the Classroom
Science educators in the United States are adapting to a new vision of how students learn science. Children are natural explorers and their observations and intuitions about the world around them are the foundation for science learning. Unfortunately, the way science has been taught in the United States has not always taken advantage of those …[more]