News Release - House Passes Etheridge Plan to Enhance Math and Science Education, Instruction

News Release
Congressman Bob Etheridge
North Carolina

July 31, 2001

Contact: Brad Woodhouse
Phone:(202) 225-4531

House Passes Etheridge Plan to Enhance Math and Science Education, Instruction

WASHINGTON - Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1858 the National Mathematics & Science Partnerships Act, bipartisan legislation to improve America's standing in math, science, engineering and technology education and instruction U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-Lillington) announced today. The bill, which now goes to the Senate for consideration, includes a major legislative initiative proposed by Etheridge to enhance math and science education and teacher preparation through the National Science Foundation (NSF).

"A solid academic foundation in math and science is crucial for success in the 21st Century. This measure will help ensure that improving math and science education remains an important national priority," said Etheridge, the former Superintendent of North Carolina's schools. "Quality instruction in the classroom is absolutely key to helping students learn in these critical fields. This action will make a real difference for our children and will strengthen America's global economic leadership."

The Etheridge measure authorizes $200 million for NSF to establish partnerships between institutions of higher learning and local or state school systems to improve the instruction of elementary and secondary science education. N.C. State University in Raleigh, a nationally recognized leader in math, science and technology disciplines, has expressed interest in participating in the Etheridge math and science initiative.

Grants awarded as part of the Etheridge initiative will be used for activities to improve elementary and/or secondary math and science education. Such activities may include:

Recruiting and preparing students for careers in mathematics or science education

Offering professional development initiatives, including summer or academic year institutes or workshops, to strengthen the capabilities of existing mathematics and science teachers

Offering innovative initiatives that instruct teachers on using technology more effectively
Developing distance learning programs for teachers and students

Offering teacher preparation and certification programs for professional mathematicians, scientists, and engineers who wish to begin a career in teaching

Developing assessment tools to measure student mastery of content and cognitive skills

Developing undergraduate mathematics and science courses for education majors

Using professional mathematicians and scientists to help recruit & train math and science teachers

Developing and offering mathematics or science enrichment programs for students

Providing research opportunities in business or academia for students and teachers

Bringing mathematicians, scientists and engineers from business and academia into elementary and secondary school classrooms

"We in the Research Triangle region know that technology is America's economic engine," said Etheridge. "Our nation's continued international economic competitiveness depends on preparing our children for the math and science based careers of the 21st Century. The partnerships this initiative will foster will provide a solid foundation on which to build better math and science education initiatives across the country."

Twelve years ago, President George Herbert Walker Bush called on the nation's governors to establish common goals for improving K-12 education. One of the goals was that by the year 2000, U.S. students would be first in the world in math and science achievement. Despite that goal, U.S. 8th graders have only demonstrated average performance in math and science. As a veteran member of the House Science Committee, Etheridge has repeatedly called for additional funding and innovative initiatives to enhance math and science education initiatives.

In addition to Etheridge's initiative, the National Mathematics & Science Partnerships Act will direct NSF to:

Develop teacher research scholarships in math, science and engineering
Establish four multidisciplinary Centers for Research on Learning and Education Improvement

Scholarships for teacher recruitment and training

Establish an initiative to expand the National Science, mathematics, Engineering and Technology Education Digital Library initiative to enable timely dissemination of educational materials, resources, practices and policies to partners through the Internet and other digital technologies.

Convene a conference on improving K-12 science, math and technology education