Although 20 states have adopted Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), 24 other states have developed their own K-12 science standards based on the same National Research Council (NRC) Framework. Understanding what influences content standards developers, realizing the supports and impediments to implementation they foresee, and knowing their…

Drawing upon interviews with key actors involved in the development of and support for the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in the United States, this article shows how a potentially controversial reform came to be actively supported by senior educators. We utilize Kingdon's (2003, "Agendas, alternatives, and public policies,"…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a critical text analysis of Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) policy documents and the resources teachers have access to help them implement these standards into their classroom. NGSS outlines the skills and content needed for students to become proficient in STEM fields. These standards increase the…

Decades of federal and state education legislation enacted to increase student academic achievement and enhance school quality have pronounced impacts on teachers and their instructional practice. That impact is captured in the term intensification. Intensification is multifaceted and manifests as additional tasks accomplished simultaneously, with…

This qualitative case study explored the teachers' and administrators' perceptions of a newly implemented teacher evaluation policy in a high-stakes testing state, and how this policy impacted their motivation. Five science teachers and their immediate supervisors were interviewed, and their perceptions were analyzed through motivational theories…

Purpose: In U.S. public schools, principals must implement reforms that require instructional leadership across subjects, though little is known about subject-specific supervision. Methods: Through interviews with 26 K-8 principals, we examine instructional leadership for science. Findings: Our findings showed that science supervision occurred…

The Southeast Comprehensive Center (SECC) at American Institutes for Research (AIR) publishes this biannual update of college- and career-readiness standards and assessment (CCRS-A) resources. This list of resources is designed to assist staff in state education agencies (SEAs) and other educators in their curricula, instruction, standards, and…

Professionalism and ethics have gained widespread recognition as competencies to be fulfilled, taught, and assessed within medical education. The role of the anatomy course in developed nations has evolved over time and now encompasses multiple domains, including knowledge, skills, and the inculcation of professionalism and ethics. The Medical…

"Transforming Science Assessment: Systems for Innovation," is a series of resources designed to provide state education leaders with: (1) Information about how states are currently pursuing statewide assessment systems in science; (2) Analyses of what features influence different approaches, with an eye to supporting state leaders as…

This study explored two elementary teachers and their students' perceptions of multiliteracies in science. The technological components of multiliteracies, including online communication tools, were of particular interest for this paper. The multiple case study included: two teachers and their students. One teacher taught a fourth grade classroom…

As widespread as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) initiatives and reforms are today in education, a rudimentary problem with these endeavors is being overlooked. In general, education programs and school districts are failing to ensure that elementary teachers who provide children's early academic experiences have the appropriate…

"Transforming Science Assessment: Systems for Innovation," is a series of resources designed to provide state education leaders with: (1) Information about how states are currently pursuing statewide assessment systems in science; (2) Analyses of what features influence different approaches, with an eye to supporting state leaders as…

This is a critical time for the science education community as we embark on the creation and implementation of new national science standards. The purpose of this essay is to offer insight into how the language of curriculum standards, including that found in state science standards in the United States over the past 15 years, has posed barriers…

We explore teachers' efforts to implement problem-based learning (PBL) in an elementary school serving predominantly English learners. Teachers had an opportunity to implement the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) using PBL in a summer school setting with no test-pressures. To understand the challenges and benefits of PBL implementation, a…

The purpose of this collaborative action research was to understand how science educators can negotiate the tension between integrating formative assessment (FA) for students' learning and meeting the need for standardized summative assessment (testing) from a critical perspective. Using formative assessment in the era of accountability testing…