ABSTRACT
In 2002, the National Research Council (NRC), with support from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the US Department of Education published the results of a two-year study of the Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs. The report, Learning and Understanding: Improving Advanced Study of Mathematics and Science in US High Schools (NRC, 2002) called for important improvements to advanced study in high school mathematics and science programs. Numerous other reports from government, business, and the academy all stress the need to rethink, reshape and deliver science education in new ways that ensure a science literate citizenry and a workforce that will enable the US to remain a world leader in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) disciplines and to retake leadership in the new, global, knowledge-based economies. Reports such as Rising Above the Gathering Storm (NRC, 2010) , An American Imperative ( Johnson Foundation, Inc., 1993), Bio2010 (Steen, 2005), and Vision and Change (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2011) outline these needs and the consequences of not meeting them. Addressing these challenges requires changes in how we approach STEM education at the national, state, and local levels, from kindergarten through graduate school. In response to this challenge, The Next Generation Science Standards ( NGSS ) (NGSS Lead States, 2013) provides descriptions of what K-12 students should know and be able to do and builds upon the recommendations of the Framework for K-12 Science Education (NRC, 2012a).
