Groundbreaking Report Details Status of U.S. Secondary Earth Science Education

Alexandria, VA - The Center for Geoscience Education and Public Understanding at the American Geosciences Institute has released a landmark report on the status of Earth Science education in U.S. middle and high schools. The report, “Earth and Space Sciences Education in U.S. Secondary Schools: Key Indicators and Trends,” offers baseline data on indicators of the subject’s status since the release of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in April 2013.

The report shows that school districts and other organizations fail to assign Earth Science equal status with Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Technology, and Engineering. For instance, only one of the nation’s 50 states requires a year-long Earth/Environmental Science course for high school graduation, whereas 32 states require a Life Science course, and 27 require a Physical Science course. Only six states require that students are taught Earth Science concepts as part of their graduation requirements.

Key indicators such as the presence of Earth Science topics in state and national standards, evaluation of Earth Science concepts on high-stakes assessments, and commendations for better treatment of Earth Science subject matter are detailed and analyzed in the report. Recommendations include changes in the subject’s relevance to graduation requirements, the discipline’s presence on assessments, designation of Earth Science courses as laboratory courses, and establishment of an Advanced Placement Earth Science program.

The 2013 report is the first original offering of the Center, which launched an online hub of geoscience education and resources on October 16, 2013. The site can be found at www.geocntr.org, and the report at http://bit.ly/19UBQMt.