NASA's Elementary and Secondary Education Program Review and Critique (2008) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 11-20
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From page 11... ...
NASA's strategy for promoting these components has evolved during the life of the agency, and it has undergone considerable change in the last 10 years. Most recently, as part of a restructuring of the entire agency, agencywide education programs at NASA were reorganized and subjected to an internal review guided by a new, detailed strategic plan for education (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2006a)
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From page 12... ...
The committee included 12 members with expertise in the history and structure of NASA education programs; program evaluation for a range of program types (specifically targeted to the kinds of projects in the NASA portfolio) ; science and mathematics instruction at both the elementary and secondary levels, with particular knowledge of earth and space sciences; teacher professional development; education policy and practice in science and mathematics at the state and local levels; and measurement.
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From page 13... ...
The NASA headquarters Office of Education and the NRC agreed to focus the review on the seven projects in the Elementary and Secondary Education Program (see Box 1‑1 for a definition of programs and projects) . Those projects are referred to in this report as the seven core projects: 1.
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From page 14... ...
, which is under development, is a three-tiered project designed to maximize student participation and involvement in STEM and to enhance the STEM pipeline from middle school through high school to the under graduate college level. Recognizing that there are education activities related to K-12 education located outside of the Elementary and Secondary Program, the committee initially considered including all NASA projects related to K-12.
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From page 15... ...
In its search for relevant information, the committee held three public fact-finding meetings; reviewed documents related to NASA's K‑12 education portfolio, such as budget requests, project evaluations, project plans, and other technical reports; and commissioned background papers. Over the first three meetings, the committee heard presentations and engaged in discussions with staff of the NASA Office of Education who are involved with K‑12 education projects, as well as directors of education and outreach projects based in NASA's SMD.
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From page 16... ...
These latter projects are managed primarily in the headquarters Office of Education, which houses the Elementary and Secondary Education Program. The projects that are closely tied to the research exploration activities of the agency are managed entirely in individual mission directorates.
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From page 17... ...
In the early 1990s, NASA asked the NRC for advice and assistance in how to manage and monitor an expanding portfolio of education activities. The resulting NASA Education Programs Outcomes Committee was charged with defining appropriate goals for NASA's education projects and recommending data collection procedures and indicators that would show whether the projects were effectively meeting their goals.
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From page 18... ...
They also concluded that NASA had established appropriate goals, had an appropriate implementation plan, and had been effective in reaching its goals. PREVIOUS REVIEWS OF OTHER FEDERAL STEM EDUCATION PROGRAMS In order to review and evaluate NASA's K‑12 education portfolio, the committee determined that it needed to identify and understand the various ways that other federal science agencies are or could be involved in K‑12 education.
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From page 19... ...
a determination of the effectiveness of the overall program in meeting its defined goals and objectives; [to make] a determination of the extent and effectiveness of coordination and collaboration between NASA and other Federal agencies that sponsor science, technology, and mathematics education activities." Thus, the committee determined that a critical step in assessing NASA's K‑12 activities was to identify the appropriate roles for a federal science
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From page 20... ...
Chapter 4 evaluates the NASA portfolio in K‑12 STEM education based on briefings from NASA staff, administrative documents, annual reports, recent external evaluations, and research in K‑12 education regarding best practices in professional development, curriculum, instruction, and school reform. Particular attention was paid to program design and effectiveness in regard to the seven core Office of Education projects.
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