Review Gives Many States 'D' or 'F' for Science Standards

[sinkingfeeling]

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/01/think_tank_many_states_earn_d.html

A new report offers a "bleak picture" of the state of state science standards across the nation, with just over half earning a grade of D or F. Among the 10 states to receive a failing grade were Idaho, Oregon, and Wisconsin. (See the full list below.)

Only California and the District of Columbia were given a solid A, while four states were handed an A-minus, according to the review by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a Washington-based think tank.

Here's the breakdown of states by the grade they received:

A: California, District of Columbia

A-: Indiana, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Virginia

B+: New York

B: Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, Utah

C: Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Texas, Vermont, Washington

D: Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, West Virginia

F: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Wyoming

[Liberal Veteran]

1. Kind of shocking to see Oregon and Wisconsin on that F list.

That's sad.

[kestrel91316]

2. Indeed. Bet they have strong Dominionist contingents that have

infiltrated school boards and other levels of administration to pull this off.

[exboyfil]

3. Bull on this list

Iowa is at a D and Louisiana is at a B. No way. I would be curious to see how national standard testing compares for these various states. It is one thing to have standards, it is an entirely different thing to teaching of the subjects. Frankly I agree that Iowa's standards are next to meaningless, but most standards I have read are happy words without any meaning. They define impossible to achieve levels of understanding for the particular age group. They are more like reach goals than standards.

Especially at the middle and high school level, understanding of the subject is more important that the teaching method employed. At least that is my opinion.