In April 2013, a consortium of 26 states and a partnership of science and education organizations released to the public a new set of K–12 science standards for U.S. schools. The highly anticipated document, drafted over the course of three years, has generated a lot of buzz in the science education community. For many, the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) represent a total transformation in the way educators teach science.
But challenges come with such a major shift. "I think it's going to require a change in perceptions and actions with teachers, students, parents, and leaders within the school," says Jeff Marshall, associate professor of science education at Clemson University and author of Succeeding with Inquiry in Science and Math Classrooms (ASCD, 2013). "This is not just a rewriting or redrafting of standards as they were in the past. It is a totally new conceptualization of what the learner needs to achieve."
A Shift in How We Teach
The NGSS mark a shift in science education because, according to Executive Director of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) David Evans, their primary emphasis is on the practices of science and engineering as opposed to detailed content. "Students will formulate questions, make mistakes in formulating questions, discuss how to collect evidence, take a look at what they're studying, and then do the inquiry-based learning experience," Evans says.
The NGSS stress the importance of how science is conducted. Each standard has three parts: disciplinary core ideas (content), scientific and engineering practices, and cross-cutting concepts. "The integration of rigorous content and application reflects how science and engineering is practiced in the real world," an executive summary of the standards says. Although content is still an integral part of the standards, the summary specifies that the NGSS "focus on a smaller set of disciplinary core ideas that students should know by the time they graduate from high school, focusing on deeper understanding and application of content."
One example of a disciplinary core idea from the NGSS for physical sciences is developing a deep understanding of matter and its interactions. According to Marshall, this core idea will encourage students to model, analyze, and plan as they learn about matter at developmentally appropriate levels. Other examples of disciplinary core ideas that are used in K–12 science learning include Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits, Earth's Systems, and From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes.
The hope is that teachers will spend more time on these core ideas and delve into them, for instance, by having students develop questions, build models (conceptual, physical, or computer), and gather evidence. As part of this effort, students may conduct inquiry-based investigations on bigger-picture science issues, such as climate change.
"The primary shift in the NGSS is toward a more student-centered learning environment," says Marshall. "This requires a shift away from activity-based science, in which students just perform a series of detailed steps with little or no input in procedure, data, et cetera."
With the new standards, students will experience more scientific learning in the earlier grades and build on a knowledge base that will prepare them for a more rigorous high school curriculum.
Throughout all grades, the standards emphasize engineering design. According to an NGSS fact sheet, including engineering aspects in the standards will help students learn how crucial science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are to everyday life. Paul Andersen, a science teacher in Bozeman, Mont., agrees. "Adding engineering to the standards gives purpose to science," he says. "That's what engineering is—applying science to make our life better."
Challenges Ahead
One of the biggest ongoing challenges will be giving teachers the time to allow for the deep thinking and exploration that the new standards require. Marshall says that in the past, teachers could address a standard in a class period or two. "Now, it's going to take days or weeks to address that proficiency," he says. "Students will be asked to create or plan an investigation or model a complex idea—and it takes time to get to that level."
Andersen agrees. "Time is an issue. It's hard because you're asking them to spend more time not just teaching content, but the process of science." But, he adds that the NGSS may provide teachers with some flexibility. "The standards are really saying you need to focus on the bigger concepts. It might allow teachers to have more time to do actual science."
Jason Buell, an elementary science specialist in Milpitas, Calif. (http://alwaysformative.blogspot.com), also likes the standards' focus on in-depth learning. "You are expected to take more time to deeply work on a single idea," he says. He reiterates Marshall's point about the additional teaching time necessary, but adds that he's still excited about the change.
Buell believes that this new approach will require the support of principals, superintendents, parents, and the community. "You are doomed to fail if your principal walks in your classroom and expects to see things done the way they've always been done," he says.
Assessing Understanding
Once a state adopts the NGSS, the next step is to develop appropriate curriculum and assessments based on the standards. "Standards are not a curriculum; they are performance expectations. The curriculum still has to be written," says Evans. "Honestly, that's largely the work that needs to be done."
The same goes for assessments. "The assessments that will measure these efficiencies or expectations are going to lag several years behind," says Marshall. The National Research Council's Board on Testing and Assessment and Board on Science Education are currently conducting a study to provide guidance on assessment that is aligned to the NGSS.
Michael Doyle, a high school science teacher in Bloomfield, N.J. (http://doyle-scienceteach.blogspot.com), is concerned about how state assessments will turn out. "I love the idea of NGSS because they are trying to focus more on scientific practices," he says. "But we can't test a child's understanding of science in four hours. True observation takes time."
Professional Development
Science supervisors in the adopting states have begun discussions on curriculum and assessments, but Evans says the primary focus right now is professional development for teachers. "For elementary school teachers, the primary challenges are going to be centered on content knowledge because most elementary school teachers don't have a lot of training in science," he explains. For secondary school teachers, Evans says that the challenge is going to be on the pedagogical side: "We're going to have to provide them with tools to teach NGSS." Preservice science teachers should also be well-versed in the expectations of the new standards, he adds.
"We did an informal survey of science educators, and 83 percent were very enthused and very supportive about the new standards," says Evans. On the negative side, though, two-thirds said they were concerned about a lack of resources for implementation.
To address that concern, NSTA and other groups are creating professional development resources for teachers. NSTA, for example, has dedicated a series of webinars, journal articles, and books to aid NGSS implementation. Evans says that the association's efforts also involve developing a web portal with NGSS resources.
Andersen agrees that professional development for teachers will be important. He says that as a science educator himself, he has enjoyed learning about the standards and became so interested in them that he developed a video series on the NGSS to help other teachers (www.bozemanscience.com).
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