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Mission Statement
Facts about Student Achievement in Science and Technology
The NSRC Mission
The National Science Resources Center is committed to establishing effective science programs for all students. The NSRC employs strategies that are informed by research, incorporate best practices, and leverage change through the development of strategic partnerships.
The NSRC was formed by the Smithsonian Institution (www.si.edu) and The National Academies (www.nas.edu) in 1985 in order to achieve this goal. Through its parent institutions, the NSRC has actively engaged the scientific, engineering, and education communities in all of its programs.
The NSRC offers:
Integrated leadership development for school districts Professional development for teachers Exemplary science curriculum for K-8 students
Facts about Student Achievement in Science and Technology
Achievement data shows students are poorly prepared "As measured by the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), few students are attaining levels deemed Proficient or Advanced by a national proficient level on the NAEP mathematics assessment in 2000.1 Internationally, U.S. student relative performance becomes increasingly weaker at higher grade levels. Even the most advanced students performed poorly compared with students in other countries taking advanced mathematics and science course.1 Remedial work (in mathematics, science, reading and writing) is widespread at the college level, particularly in two-year colleges.1 “…only about a quarter of graduating high school seniors who took the 2003 ACT college entrance exams were prepared for college biology….math and science skills were the most pressing problems.”2 Only one in four U.S. students scored "proficient" or higher in science in the year 2000 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The implications of this level of science knowledge are sobering: Future shortages of home-grown scientists and engineers An electorate unable to distinguish between emotional and rational points of view Public discourse lacking in scientific perspective
1Science and Engineering Indicators – 2002 National Science Foundation
2”Seniors Found Weak in Math and Science,” New York Times, August 20, 2003
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