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INTRODUCTION
T
his report responds to a request from
Representative Frank Wolf (VA) for
the National Science Foundation
(NSF) to identify highly success-
ful K-12 schools and programs in
science, technology, engineering, and/or math-
ematics (STEM). In response to a request and with
support from NSF, in October 2010 the National
Research Council (NRC) convened an expert com-
mittee to explore this issue.
The Committee on Highly Successful Schools or Programs
for K-12 STEM Education was charged with “outlining cri-
teria for identifying effective STEM schools and programs
and identifying which of those criteria could be addressed with
available data and research, and those where further work is need-
ed to develop appropriate data sources.” This effort also included a public
workshop on May 10-11, 20111 that was planned to address the following charge:
An ad hoc steering committee will plan and conduct a public workshop to explore cri-
teria for identifying highly successful K-12 schools and programs in the area of STEM
education through examination of a select set of examples. The committee will deter-
mine some initial criteria for nominating successful schools to be considered at the
workshop. The examples included in the workshop must have been studied in enough
detail to provide evidence to support claims of success. Discussions at the workshop
will focus on refining criteria for success, exploring models of “best practice,” and
analyzing factors that evidence indicates lead to success. The discussion from the
workshop will be synthesized in an individually authored workshop summary.
To carry out its charge, the committee solicited background papers to be prepared for the work-
shop (see the Appendix for a list of the papers). The committee also examined the limited body of
existing and forthcoming research on STEM-focused schools, the broader base of research related
to effective STEM education practices, and research on effective schooling generally.2 The goal of
this report is to provide information that leaders at the school district, state, and national level can
use to make strategic decisions about improving STEM education.
In examining the research, the committee considered findings to be suggestive if they identified con-
ditions that were associated with success, but could not be disentangled from the types of students
found in such conditions. We considered findings to give evidence of success if they resulted from
research studies that were designed to support causal conclusions by distinguishing the effective-
ness of schools from the characteristics of the students attending them.
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SucceSSful K–12 STeM educaTion
What Aspects of STEM Are Addressed in This Report?
Although there are a variety of perspectives on what STEM education in K-12
schools entails, for the purposes of this report the committee focused its analysis on
the science and mathematics parts of STEM. This decision was influenced by the
fact that the bulk of the research and data concerning STEM education at the K-12
level relates to mathematics and science education. Research in technology and
engineering education is less mature because those subjects are not as commonly
taught in K-12 education.3 Although integrating STEM subjects is not the focus of
this report, the committee recognizes the variety of conceptual connections among
STEM subjects and the fact that science inquiry and engineering design provide
opportunities for making STEM learning more concrete and relevant.
The nature and potential value of integrated K-12 STEM education are the focus
of an ongoing study of the National Academy of Engineering and the National
Research Council by the Committee on Integrated STEM Education. It is expected
to be completed in 2013.
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