Why is there little criticism of the Framework for K-12 Science Education that was released by the National Academy of Science (NAS) on Tuesday?

Is this the image of science that is portrayed in the new Framework?

The organizing committee of the NAS worked for more than a year to develop a new framework for the teaching of K-12 science education.  It was released to the public on the NAS website and you can download it free here.

As a science educator you probably are familiar with the 1990s publications AAAS Benchmarks for Science Literacy, and NRC National Science Education Standards, both of which preceded the new framework announced this week.  The new Framework for K-12 Science Education will lead to a new set of science standards which will be written and published by 2012, and they essentially will replace the Benchmarks and the NSES.  The new standards for science will be written by Achieve, Inc., Washington non-profit that is funded by billionaires and large corporations.  Achieve will hire consultants to write the standards that then will in some way to tied into the Common Core State Standards in Reading and Mathematics which most states required be used in formulating state standards, and will be used to generate high-stakes achievement tests.

Why is there no criticism of the new Framework?  If you read some of the press releases and articles that were written for newspapers and e-news sites, the writers tell us that science education needs a complete overhaul, and that the present science curriculum does not prepare students for STEM careers.  You’d think the sky is falling!

There is little criticism of the new Framework because it is not in the best interests of many science educators and science teachers to upset or question such a prestigious group selected by one of the most significant science organizations, the National Academy of Science.  There is little criticism because if you are a science education researcher it might have negative effects on future funding possibilities from government and non-government sources.  If you are a science teacher, the culture of schools today does not support critique or questioning of standards reform, or anything remotely connected to the Common Core State Standards movement.

These are general and overarching criticisms.  There are deeper, and serious issues with the report.  In the next post I am going to explore specific areas of the new Framework that are wanting, and how the developers created a document that is sterile, and lacks the messiness that teaching science turns out to be.

What do you think of the new Framework?  If you have not seen the Framework, follow this link, and download the PDF file for free.  Take a look at your area of expertise, and ask yourself if this is the kind of “content” that all students need to know?  Tell us what you think.