 |
teachers and students unite to combat a gathering storm
This article originally appeared in the Lamp, 2008 — Number 1
In a 2005 landmark study of America’s ability to compete in the world marketplace, the National Academies reached a sobering conclusion: “The scientific and technological building blocks critical to our economic leadership are eroding at a time when many other nations are gaining strength.”
The study, Rising Above the Gathering Storm, stresses the need to improve math and science education in the nation’s elementary and secondary schools. To help address these concerns, in March 2007 ExxonMobil announced a commitment of $125 million to establish the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI). Support for NMSI also comes from the Bill & Melinda Gates and Michael & Susan Dell Foundations.
NMSI has selected two proven programs for national scale-up: a program to develop a new generation of highly qualified math and science teachers; and a training and incentive program to encourage students to take college-level courses in high school.
Attracting teachers
NMSI awarded more than $30 million to 13 colleges and universities. The grants — as much as $2.4 million per school — will help establish teacher training modeled on the University of Texas’ “UTeach” program. UTeach is a collaborative effort between the colleges of Natural Science and Education. UTeach students can earn a math or science degree and teacher certification through a compact degree plan. One study found that more than 80 percent of UTeach’s alumni were still teaching after five years, compared with a national average of about 50 percent.
At the University of Kansas, a grant recipient, the UKanTeach program is a joint effort of the College of Liberal Arts and the School of Education.
Program coordinator Jan Lariviere of the KU Center for Science Education says the shortage of math and science teachers has long been a concern in Kansas. “More than 40 percent of the state’s teachers leave the field within seven years,” she says. “Teaching licenses in the sciences have been declining steadily.”
To recruit KU students to UKanTeach, Lariviere and others make presentations at large lectures and in other classroom settings. First-year and transfer students receive letters explaining the program. E-mails go out to students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, encouraging them to consider teaching careers.
Incentives to enter the program include free tuition for initial courses, paid internships with nonprofit organizations, and long-term mentoring and professional development.
Lariviere says the program often attracts students who are uncertain about becoming teachers. “UKanTeach gives them the chance to learn what a rewarding career teaching can be,” she says.
Getting a jump on college
NMSI also has provided grants of up to $13.2 million to seven state nonprofit organizations. The funds will be used to encourage high school students to take Advanced Placement Program (AP) courses in math, science and English, and to improve the skills of AP teachers.
The Advanced Placement Program allows students to pursue college-level studies while still in high school. Students who do well in AP classes are prepared to tackle college-level courses.
In Alabama, a $13.2 million NMSI grant was used to establish A+College Ready, which provides funds to individual schools to promote AP study and instruction.
“When we received the NMSI grant,” says Mary Boehm, president of A+CollegeReady, “we immediately asked schools in two counties to submit proposals describing how they would use the money. Nineteen schools applied.”
Teams of experts made full-day visits to each school. They spoke with principals, counselors and students, and met individually with classroom teachers.
The 12 schools selected will receive training and incentives to help expand their AP programs. A+ College Ready will pay for AP teachers in math, science and English to hone their skills at the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program Summer Institutes. Experienced AP teachers will coach and mentor classroom instructors.
Teachers receive stipends to compensate them for the extra time and work involved in conducting AP classes, and students can earn money as well for excellent performance.
“Financial incentives are a motivating factor,” says Boehm, “just as they are in the business world.”
Funds are also used to purchase and upgrade classroom equipment and supplies, technological resources and books.
“Our teachers are very excited about this program,” says Boehm. “It gives them the chance to help many deserving students.”
Resource development
NMSI is one of many programs ExxonMobil sponsors to improve math and science education.
“ExxonMobil invests in people and communities around the globe,” said Chairman Rex Tillerson in a 2007 speech announcing the NMSI program. “We do so because we believe that meeting the world’s economic, energy and environmental challenges requires the development of the world’s most powerful natural resource — the human mind.”
