A Systems Approach to Improving K-12 STEM Education

Opening Statement By Chairman Daniel Lipinski

Good morning and welcome to this Research and Science Education Subcommittee hearing on science, technology, engineering, and math education, commonly called Stem ed. This is the third STEM related hearing that this Subcommittee has held this year, a fact that reflects both the national importance of the STEM fields and the complexity of STEM education reform.

The Science and Technology Committee, and our Subcommittee in particular, have made STEM ed a top priority. In hearings and reports we have repeatedly heard that innovation is key to maintaining a high standard of living for all Americans, and that we need more teachers and more graduates in the STEM fields if we want our country to continue to lead in the global economy. Unfortunately, American students have been lagging their international peers, while American businesses are warning about a wave of retirements without adequately trained young people to fill these vacated positions, especially in engineering fields. But we know that there is no panacea and no one entity that can solve this alone, as recent reports from the National Science Board and the Institute for Advanced Study have made clear.

Reform of our STEM education system will require coordination on multiple fronts across many diverse stakeholders. In addition to several federal agencies, there are state and local governments, school districts, universities, non-profits, businesses, community organizations, teachers, students, and – if a child is fortunate – their parents. I don’t doubt that some high-level planning and coordination will be helpful – including in the movement toward common core standards in which almost all states are now engaged. The Science and Technology Committee has begun addressing coordination issues at the federal level, notably through the STEM Education Coordination Bill of 2009. But federal issues and even standards are only the tip of the iceberg. Implementation of any reform has to happen in the 50 states and, even more so, the 15,000 school districts across the country.

Today we focus on one school district, Chicago, which is the third largest district in the country. The witnesses represent a range of key stakeholder groups in the City of Chicago, including the school district, a large company dependent on a highly trained STEM workforce, a local university that has been a leader in K-12 reform efforts, a city-wide informal education provider, and a federal agency that has funded many of the innovative programs we will learn about today. Chicago’s diverse population of over four hundred thousand public school students, its top-notch universities, and the commitment of local industry, the school system, and city leaders such as Mrs. Daley, make it an ideal case study for understanding what works in improving STEM ed, how various stakeholders in the system can work together, and what can be done at the federal level to encourage best practices across the country.

This hearing will consider the entirety of the STEM ed system, with all of its partners and key leverage points. I look forward to hearing our witnesses shed some light on how we can approach systemic reform more methodically, including through strong partnerships, innovative approaches to in-school and out-of-school teaching, and rigorous assessment of old and new programs alike.

America needs to be successful in improving STEM education. Without it, we will lose our capacity for innovation and diminish our country’s economic strength and competitiveness in the international marketplace. I am confident that Americans can do it, and we can maintain our world leadership. We see some pockets of success across the country. It is our job as national leaders to make sure that we all learn from these successes and that the best possible information and tools are available to state officials and local school districts. I want to thank all of the witnesses for taking the time to appear before the subcommittee this morning to share your insights and I look forward to your testimony.
 

Witnesses

Panel

0 - Dr. Wanda Ward
Acting Assistant Director Directorate for Education and Human Resources National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for Education and Human Resources National
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Ms. Maggie Daley
Chair After School Matters After School Matters
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Ms. Katherine Pickus
Divisional Vice President Global Citizenship and Policy Abbott Global Citizenship and Policy Abbott
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Mr. Michael Lach
Officer of Teaching and Learning Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Dr. Donald Wink
Director of Undergraduate Studies Department of Chemistry Director of Graduate Studies Department of Chemistry Director of Graduate Studies
Download the Witness Testimony