STEM Education Reorganization April 3, 2013

STEM Reorganization: Background  The President has placed a very high priority on using government resources more effectively to meet national goals. As a result, the Administration is launching a bold reorganization of STEM education programs.  The Administration has set goals of improving STEM education by preparing and training 100,000 new, effective STEM teachers and 1 million STEM graduates.  Nearly $3 billion is invested in STEM education government-wide.  And yet:  States and districts are unprepared to implement the Common Core math and New Generation Science standards.  Math and science outcomes, in particular for underrepresented students, need to improve  STEM workforce needs are not being met

Issues Addressed by the STEM Reorganization  STEM efforts face extreme fragmentation that limits reform and improvements  220 programs in 13 agencies  Inability to evaluate programs rigorously  Lack of dissemination of research and best practices  Inconsistencies across programs  Low public visibility and under-utilization of resources  Many STEM programs are untested or poorly targeted and aren’t connected to the needs of students and school or to national priorities.  New initiatives have been sprinkled across programs and don’t reflect a cohesive national strategy  STEM investments have stagnated – there is little willingness to increase STEM investment in a significant way without using the current investments more effectively.

STEM Reorganization Goals REORGANIZATION GOAL: Increase impact on STEM achievement and outcomes by supporting a cohesive national strategy that reaches more students, more teachers, more effectively.  Improve outcomes on a broad scale and increase the pool of STEM graduates, in particular among under-represented groups.  Re-orient Federal policy to meet the needs of those delivering STEM education: schools, districts, States, and post-secondary institutions.  Restructure functions to ensure all STEM agencies can focus on what they do best.  Support and scale-up evidence-based approaches.

Reorganization Strategy  Concentrate STEM education functions at ED and NSF and build high visibility initiatives centered around CoSTEM strategic goals and priorities:  Improve K-12 instruction through consortia of school districts implementing evidence-based practices and linking formal and informal education.[ED]  Reform STEM undergraduate education by consolidating, redirecting, and targeting STEM undergrad programs. [NSF]  Create a national strategy for graduate fellowships [to better meet national needs [NSF, in consultation with mission agencies] Note: Fellowship programs are not incorporated into a CoSTEM goal, but they are an area of significant investment and they support the workforce goals.  Develop an infrastructure to support STEM instruction and engagement to ensure more expansive, but strategic reach. [Smithsonian will create a “one-stop-shop” for materials and delivery mechanisms; ED will organize school districts; NSF will continue engagement research].  Consolidate programs with similar purposes in STEM agencies and redirect funds toward ED, NSF, and the Smithsonian Institution. The reorganization consolidates or restructures 90 programs (78 programs are eliminated and 12 are restructured).  Apply evidence-building strategies to new initiatives and underlying programs, and create a government-wide STEM learning network to support those efforts.  Build mechanisms to ensure connection between mission agency assets and on-the- ground needs to ensure greater reach and impact.

Improve K-12 Instruction (ED)  Reform K-12 instruction through the development of STEM Innovation Networks.  Support consortia of school districts in partnership with IHEs, federal mission science agencies, non-profits, museums, business partners, etc. to provide rich STEM learning and engagement experiences.  Use evidence-based practices, leverage STEM assets (scientists, labs, etc), adopt college and career ready standards, establish data systems and quick turnaround feedback mechanism to assess student learning and inform teaching, and link formal and informal learning.  Connect school districts to regional “hubs” (such as local NASA,NOAA, or NIH facilities) and establish STEM platform schools that have a particularly strong STEM focus.  Use research and evaluation to identify and scale up the most promising practices utilized in these networks.  Launch STEM Master Teacher Corps  Support high school redesign, with a strong STEM focus  Develop dissemination and technical assistance strategy (a Virtual Learning Network) to promote and help implement evidence-based practices funded through research and innovation grants at ED, NSF and other agencies.

Reform STEM Undergraduate Education (NSF)  Coordinate programs within NSF and consolidate programs from two other agencies to support evidence-based practices in undergraduate curriculum development and STEM instruction.  Move away from lecture format as primary delivery of curriculum  Make undergrad education more experiential and connected to the real word  Build links to careers  Evaluate strategies and build evidence  Ensure success for under-represented populations in STEM fields.

Create a National Strategy for Graduate Fellowships (NSF)  Redirect fellowship funds to NSF, but include mission agency input in the design and implementation of fellowship programs.  Goals -  Create better link to national needs  Streamline application process  Eliminate inconsistencies and competition between agencies  Establish a more visible and publicly accessible fellowship program  Design programs to collect data and support evaluation  Create identifiable pool of STEM graduates for agencies and industry to draw from  Create another lever for undergrad reform  Establish mechanism to ensure agency input and appropriate distribution of fellows among science disciplines, such as an advisory board comprised of STEM agencies and STEM field representatives.

Develop an Infrastructure to Support STEM Instruction and Engagement (Smithsonian with other agencies) Create a “knowledge transfer” infrastructure  Establish the Smithsonian as a “one-stop-shop” conduit between mission agencies, non-profit partners, ED, and school districts. The Smithsonian would help identify and develop material that is ripe for integration into schools and informal education, facilitate partnership-building, and help develop curriculum, materials, and professional development strategies that align with state standards.  Mission agencies that do STEM research would create a single office or point of contact to work with the Smithsonian.  ED’s STEM Innovation Networks (partnerships of school districts, IHE’s, and regional STEM assets including mission agencies) would link to the work of the Smithsonian.  ED’s dissemination network would also facilitate knowledge transfer to and from school districts.

Harness and amplify mission agency assets Federal science mission agencies will:  Continue their inspiring work in STEM.  Identify content, assets, and effective STEM programs that can be used in the classroom.  Play an active role in developing and implementing STEM initiatives to ensure they align with agency and national goals.  Coordinate with Department of Education, NSF, the Smithsonian to ensure broad use of agency expertise, assets, and effective approaches to STEM education.  Continue to build evidence through their STEM education programs.