Family and communities that are committed to excellence are indispensable for the success of science, mathematics, and technology education reform and for achieving science literacy for everyone. Parents recognize that a high-quality science education can provide their children with skills that are useful for life, and this section presents resources to help them in their role of preparing their children for life.
International studies show that the United States continues to lag behind other countries in students' knowledge of science and math on virtually every measure available. The result is that many students are not being prepared for a world that is shaped by science and technology. And for our society to remain competitive in an advanced technological era, a good science education is critical, regardless of what a child's eventual course of study will be.
The good news is that for most children, science continues to be a source of fascination, and parents can play an active role in tapping into that curiosity and contributing to their success. Project 2061 has put together resources to help parents and families ensure that all children receive the good science education they deserve.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) founded Project 2061 in 1985 to help all Americans become literate in science, mathematics, and technology. With its 1989 landmark publication Science for All Americans, Project 2061 set out recommendations for what all students should know and be able to do in science, mathematics, and technology by the time they graduate from high school. Benchmarks for Science Literacy, published in 1993, translated the science literacy goals in Science for All Americans into learning goals or benchmarks for grades K-12. Many of today's state and national standards documents have drawn their content from Benchmarks.
More recently, AAAS has launched a public awareness initiative on science education and a special science news website for kids. The Partnership for Science Literacy, funded by the National Science Foundation, is a national effort aimed at empowering families to improve their children's science education, while the Science News Page for Kids provides fun and informative articles for children from the renowned scientific journal.
The resources in this section can help you understand more about the critical issues surrounding science education and what you, as parents, can do to help.
Key Initiatives
Partnership for Science Literacy
Resources
Family
Guide to Science
Click
here to order your
free copy of this
guide which provides
useful information
and hints on science
activities for parents
and families everywhere.
In addition to the
national version,
there are five community-specific
editions of the guides
to help you find
out about science
resources - including
science centers and
museums, nature centers
and botanical gardens,
zoos, aquariums,
local parks, science
organizations, schools,
and more - in Austin,
Chicago, Lehigh Valley,
Los Angeles, and
Tampa.
The
Partnership for Science
Literacy - Science is
Everywhere!
Your
children need a great
science education
and you can do a
lot to help make
that happen. The
first place to start
is with this website,
where you'll find
a world of information,
activities, and ideas
that are just like
science - exciting,
useful, and offering
something for the
whole family!
Science News
Page for Kids
Check
this
site
regularly
for new news features
on science
issues
that
your
children
will understand
and
enjoy!
This
site,
launched in June
2003,
is presented
by AAAS
and Science and
is hosted
on EurekAlert!,
the AAAS
science
news
Web site.
ParentsInvolved.org
Educational Research
Topics
This
special site from
the Education and
Human Resources Directorate
of AAAS includes
links to information
about educational
research topics of
interest to parents
and caregivers.
AAAS
Education and Human Resources:
Children, Family and
Communities page
This
special
site from the Education
and Human Resources
Directorate of AAAS
presents information
on the research and
educational programs
for students at the
K-12 and college
levels.
Articles
Is
Your Child's Science Education What It Should Be?
Ten Questions to Ask Your Local School
Scientists and
educators with Project 2061, a long-term reform initiative
to improve science, mathematics, and technology education,
worry that today’s students aren’t being
prepared well enough to live in tomorrow’s science-oriented
world. That is why Project 2061 has created a set of
ten questions parents can ask their local schools to
help them determine whether their child is gaining
the knowledge and skills they will need as adults in
the 21st century.
You
don't Have To Be A Rocket Scientist To Think
Like One
We don't necessarily
need more rocket scientists. But we do need leaders
and citizens who can think like scientists and schools
that can produce them. Scientific thinking skills
can be used to improve the chances of success in
virtually any endeavor, from building a bridge or
performing heart surgery to managing a business or
designing a school curriculum.
Elsewhere on the Web
TryScience
TryScience.org
is your gateway to experience the excitement of contemporary
science and technology through on and offline interactivity
with science and technology centers worldwide. TryScience
is brought to you through a partnership between IBM
Corporation, the New York Hall of Science (NYHOS),
the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC),
and science centers worldwide