the business role in improving math and science achievement
(2) Support More Rigorous Teacher Training That Incorporates Mastery of Content as Well as its Application to Success in the Workplace
"Without a sustained commitment to teachers'learning and school design, the goal of dramatically enhancing school performance for all America'a children will remain unfilled. 37	Despite the power of standards as an educational tool, standards cannot be mistaken for a magic wand. The mere existence of standards, quality assessments, and accountability measurements cannot yield higher student achievement unless teachers are prepared to rise to the challenge. Too often teachers are ill-equipped to meet these demands. Most teachers, including education professors, have rarely left the academic environment, going straight from being a student to teaching. As a result, many teachers are not aware of the advanced skill requirements associated with workforce changes. Moreover, many math and science teachers have very limited academic preparation in the subjects they teach. A critical component of preparing students to succeed on the job is ensuring that teachers have a mastery of mathematics and science and the understanding of how academic knowledge is applied on the job. Now is an excellent time to address these challenges. Approximately half of our nation's 2.7 million teachers will retire in the next decade. Using the most conservative estimates, the nation will need to hire at least 2 million teachers over the next 10 years. With so many new teachers entering the nation's classrooms, quality professional development efforts can significantly improve the way America's students are prepared for their lives.
AT THE POLICY/LEADERSHIP LEVEL... Urge state/local policymakers to encourage teachers to meet National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) Established in 1987, NBPTS is a non-partisan, independent, non-profit organization supported in part by the federal government and by American corporations and private foundations. Its mission is to establish high and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do, to create and operate a national voluntary system to assess and certify teachers who meet these standards, and to advance related education reforms for the purpose of improving student learning in American schools. NBPTS standards are based on subject matter expertise and knowledge of student developmental levels. National Board Certification is achieved after an extensive performance-based assessment process. There are currently 912 National Board Certified Teachers and over 2,000 more in the process of seeking certification. The goal is to certify 50,000 teachers in the next 5 years. For more information, contact Paula Shoecraft at 248-351-4444 and/or visit the NBPTS website at www.nbpts.org. Rewarding Expertise The Public School Forum of North Carolina, a coalition of state business leaders, elected officials, and educators recently supported major legislation changes creating 12 percent pay incentives for teachers who receive certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. As this practice of rewarding NBPTS certified teachers spreads, it will encourage other current and prospective teachers to seek the same certification. The Public School Forum recently conducted a statewide audit of the state of mathematics and science instruction. The report, "A State of Disconnectedness," led to the creation of a task force charged with better aligning the state's resources. For more information, contact John Dornan at 919- 781-6833 IN PRACTICE... Expose teachers to the world of work through internships, career days, mentoring, and workplace-based curriculum supplements. Helping Teachers Link Theory and Application The Somerset-Hunterdon Partnership, led by Charles Bartolotta, TCI Communications, Inc., and Joseph McGarry, Superintendent, Bridgewarter- Raritan School District, developed the Science Alliance, an education and industry collaboration focused on teacher training in science, math, and technology to enhance K-12 curriculum. Supported by 102 companies, the program meets the increasing need for a scientifically literate population and serves six counties in central New Jersey. Since its inception in 1991, working partnerships among scientists, engineers and technicians with educators have created over 250 innovative, standards-based, consumer-relevant, hands-on science modules integrating real-world applications with textbook theory. For more information, contact Mary Ribeiro at 908-725-6032. Enriching Instruction Through Experiences Outside the Classroom Industry Initiatives for Science and Math Education (IISME), founded in 1985 by a consortium of San Francisco Bay Area companies and government laboratories in partnership with the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California at Berkeley, established the IISME Summer Fellowship Program, which provides KŠ14 teachers with mentored, paid summer jobs in applied science and mathematics and access to the latest technology and technically trained professionals in industry, government labs, and universities. Sponsors enable teachers to spend 10 percent of their fellowship time developing an action plan to translate their summer experience into enriched instruction for students. The IISME program has impacted more than 500,000 students, and over 90 percent of the 600-plus teachers who have participated in the summer fellowship program rate IISME as one of the best professional development experiences they have had. For more information, contact Kaye Storm at 650-326-4860 or or check out IISME's website at www.emf.net/~iisme. Training Master Teachers To Promote Effective Practices The Public Education & Business Coalition (PEBC's) Teaching & Learning Center provides a full range of professional development opportunities to assist schools and teachers in pursuing professional learning that closely matches their needs and long-range goals. Originally funded by foundations and business members of PEBC, the Center has trained 49 master teachers who work in over 55 schools each year. In classrooms, the master teachers work with participating teachers to support and enhance good teaching practices. In addition, PEBC has just formed a cadre of trainers to work with schools developing school-to-career systems. These trainers are assisting schools to develop teacher externships in the workplace, integrated curriculum, experience-based learning and work-based experiences for students. Program evaluation has demonstrated promising results. For example, students in classrooms of teachers receiving the PEBC's professional development in reading instruction make greater gains in their reading comprehension than students in classrooms of teachers not receiving the training. For more information, see PEBC's website at www.pebc.org or contact Barbara Volpe at 303-861-8661.