NSF Board Wades Into Swirling Debate on School Reform

摘要

A new commission hopes to point the way toward helping U.S. students do better in science and math. What ails U.S. science and mathematics education? The candidates include teachers who don't know the subject matter, lousy textbooks, a badly designedcurriculum, low expectations by educators and parents, an outmoded school calendar, and the debilitating effects of poverty and race. These causes, and many more, have been offered up over the years in innumerable reports to explain U.S. students' dismalshowings on international tests. So why did a presidentially appointed oversight body for the National Science Foundation (NSF), whose responsibilities include improving science and math education at all levels, decide last week to take another bite atthis well-chewed apple?