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--- Wednesday April 14, 1999 --- Vol. 2 --- No. X ---
NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL
NEGP Weekly
THE UPDATE ON AMERICA'S NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS
in cooperation with the DAILY REPORT CARD
IN TODAY'S WEEKLY
NORTH CAROLINA
Making the grade in North Carolina now means passing proficiency exams in
grades 3, 5 and 8 in order to move to the next grade.
OUT OF THIS WORLD
One appealing hook to increasing student achievement in math and science
can be found in space - outer space. NASA recently unveiled a new category
of astronaut - the Educator Mission Specialist - open for classroom
teachers. The Young Astronaut's Council offers a club for K-9 students with
the purpose of inspiring students through a hands-on and inquiry-based
curriculum.
SAFE SCHOOL GRANTS
Safe Schools/Healthy Students is a new federal program for local
partnerships.
SPOTLIGHT
SPACE JAM
The appeal of space travel and exploration are universal. And now
pictures from Mars and other destinations makes boldly going where no one
has ever gone less sci fi and more real world. Math and science enthusiasts
couldn't ask for more. Coupled with the TIMSS results, it should be easy to
expect more from our schools and students in math and science.
One program hopes to motivate and educate young children with their eyes
on the stars. (#3) Another targets teachers who want to bring the universe
into the classroom.(#2)
============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"The most lasting and exciting reforms going on right now, like the science
and math standards, are all being done with great teacher input."
Barbara Morgan, classroom teacher and astronaut candidate. (#2)
_______________________________________________________________
| (c) by the Education Policy Network, Inc. |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Washington, D.C. 20010; 202/724-0124 |
| EPN, Inc. hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgment. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
|_______________________________________________________________|
============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============
GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
*1. PROMOTION: GETTING TOUGHER IN NORTH CAROLINA
GOAL FOUR: TEACHER ED/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
*2. MISSION: SPACE EDUCATION
GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE
*3. ASTRONAUT CLUB: IT'S ALL ABOUT SPACE
=== GOAL SEVEN: SAFE, DISCIPLINED AND DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS ===
*4. SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS: FEDERAL FUNDS AWARDED
= GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP =
*1 PROMOTION: GETTING TOUGHER IN NORTH CAROLINA
For the first time, North Carolina students "have specific
expectations for their performance" said state Superintendent Mike Ward.
The state school board late last month passed grade-promotion standards for
elementary and middle school students (Goode, EDUCATION DAILY, 4/5.)
The new standards call for third, fifth- and eighth-grade students
to pass proficiency exams in reading and math before they are promoted to
the next grade. In 2003, high school students will be required to pass a
new exit exam in addition to meeting existing local and state graduation
requirements. "The time is over when students can be promoted from grade to
grade without the skills they ended to be successful," added Ward.
While North Carolina third- fifth- and eighth-graders have been
tested for several years, the board's action marks the first time that
students face consequences for poor performance. According to ED DAILY, the
fifth-grade requirements will take place in the 2000-2001 school year;
third-grade and eighth-grade requirements will become effective during the
2001-2002 school year.
Kathy Christie, policy analyst at the Education Commission of the
States told ED DAILY that more states nationwide are developing requirements
for grade promotion, with 25 states requiring graduation exit exams.
= GOAL FOUR: TEACHER ED/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT =
*2 MISSION: SPACE EDUCATION
A new category of space mission specialists was announced in January
- the educator mission specialist. Elementary school teacher Barbara
Morgan, from McCall, Idaho, the back-up teacher for Christa McAuliffe in
1986, is the first teacher to enter the two-year training program, according
to an interview with Morgan in TECHNOS (Spring 1999).
TECHNOS explains the two categories of astronaut: the commander and
pilots, and the mission specialists who are scientists, engineers and
medical doctors, and now, educators. Last summer, Morgan entered the next
class of astronauts, who will spend a year in training. Next she will be
assigned to a technical job, and then to a flight. At that point, she will
train an additional two years in "mission-specific training."
Morgan said her role on a mission would focus on hands-on science
and technology, "along with specific duties for education." According to
Morgan, "We've spent the last 12 years in anticipation of NASA's giving the
go-ahead to fly, and so we've designed many lessons over the years with the
help of a lot of teachers, getting a basic idea and a feeling for what
teachers and students want and making sure that it meets their needs."
Morgan talks about space education in America's K-12 schools. Last
year, she worked on a K-12 program called "Mission Mathematics," jointly
produced by NASA and the NCTM. She praises NASA for its efforts to include
classroom teachers, particularly through its Teaching from Space Program.
She also attributes McAuliffe with ensuring that teaching and
teachers played prominent roles in education reform. "Some of the reform
movements came down to 'let's just plop a computer in front of every kid' or
'let's put this program in this teacher's hands' without any regard for the
professionalism of the person who has the biggest effect on any classroom -
the teacher," she said. "I think Christa really turned that around through
the Teacher in Space program. The most lasting and exciting reforms going
on right now, like the science and math standards, are all being done with
great teacher input," she added.
= GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE =
*3 ASTRONAUT CLUB: IT'S ALL ABOUT SPACE
Students pursuing dreams of space travel can become part of The
Young Astronaut Council, a non-profit corporation formed by the White House
in 1984 to promote the study of science, technology and math. More than
33,000 Young Astronaut Chapters are active in every state and 42 foreign
countries.
Students can join the Young Astronaut Council either through an
individual membership or a chapter. The Young Astronaut Club offers
individuals the "opportunity to learn about science and space, as well as to
participate in young Astronaut contests, conferences and other activities,"
according to a Young Astronaut Program fact sheet. Club members receive a
space activity book, which includes a self-directed, age-appropriate
curriculum that helps students understand and demonstrate basic scientific
principles. Club membership is $15.95; $9.95 for additional family
memberships.
A Young Astronaut Chapter is a school- or community-based group of
up to 30 students led by a volunteer adult. Each chapter receives
curriculum materials that include experiments and other hand-on activities.
The $60 annual Chapter membership fee covers all members and entitles
members to participate in contests, conferences and other Young Astronaut
activities.
Each chapter receives unites of the curriculum, "Mission: Science,"
a comprehensive standards-based K-9 curriculum "that takes students on a
journey into space where they examine what's out there, how do we get there,
how do we live there, and what do we do while we're there." Four units
comprise the curriculum: Astronomy: The Solar System and Beyond; Flight;
Living in Space; and earth and Space.
The material is based on the national science education standards
that stress inquiry-based learning. Materials are available for three
levels: Trainee (grades K-3), Pilot (grades 4-6), and Commander (grades
7-9). According to the fact sheet, the scope and sequence of "Mission:
Science" helps students "progress logically in their space exploration
activities."
The Young Astronaut Council also offers "Space School," an
interactive television course for grades 4-6. The 30-minute program,
broadcast twice weekly during the school year, is available to schools
nationwide. The course is divided into a series of modules dealing with
aerospace topics including flight, rockets, astronomy and the space shuttle.
Materials for the program are being developed and tested with support from
the U.S. Department of Education and the National Science Foundation.
An on-air master teacher leads the "Space School" presentation,
which often includes footage from real NASA space missions. Special guests
are featured, including astronauts, cosmonauts and scientists. Viewers can
communicate directly with the master teacher and his guests during the live
broadcast via an 800-telephone number. The course fee for "Space School" is
$1,250 per site, including a Teacher Kit. Additional Teacher Kits are
available for $350.
For more information contact the Young Astronaut Council; 1308 19th
Street NW; Washington, D.C. 20036; 202/682-1984. Visit the Young Astronaut
Council's Web site at www.yac.org.
=== GOAL SEVEN: SAFE, DISCIPLINED AND DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS ===
*4 SAFE SCHOOLS/HEALTHY STUDENTS: FEDERAL FUNDS AWARDED
Last October, a new program emerged from the White House Conference
on School Safety. The "Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative, a joint
program of the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Surgeon General and
the U.S. Justice Department, launched a grant program that will award funds
totaling more than $300 million to 50 communities nationwide to provide
young people with safer learning environments and to help them avoid the
dangers of violence, drugs and other high-risk behaviors.
According to a U.S. Department of Education press release, the
program is based on research that shows a comprehensive, integrated
community-wide approach is an effective way to promote healthy childhood
development and curtail future problems of school violence and drug abuse.
"Law enforcement alone cannot prevent tragedies like those we
witnessed last year in Paducah, Jonesboro and Springfield," said Janet Reno,
U.S. Attorney general. "But when law enforcement works in partnership with
our schools and our health professions, and with parents and the whole
community, we can prevent violence in all its forms before it occurs and
give our young people safer, healthier environments in which to learn."
Each community will receive up to $3 million per year for three
years to link existing and new services and activities into a comprehensive
community-wide approach to violence prevention and healthy child
development. In order to be eligible for a grant, a local safe schools
program must be the product of formal collaboration among the school
district, law enforcement, and the local mental health authority, with
family members, students, juvenile justice officials and community-based
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