Benchmarks for Science Literacy » (New Edition)

Since its founding in 1848, the American Association for the Advancement of Science has continually worked to advance science, initially by promoting communication and cooperation between scientists, and, more recently, by enhancing the public understanding and appreciation of science in human progress. An international organization, the AAAS includes over 140,000 scientists, engineers, science educators, policymakers, and others interested in science and technology.

Published to glowing praise in 1990, Science for All Americans defined the science-literate American—describing the knowledge, skills, and attitudes all students should retain from their learning experience—and offered a series of recommendations for reforming our system of education in science, mathematics, and technology. Benchmarks for Science Literacy takes this one step further. Created in close consultation with a cross-section of American teachers, administrators, and scientists, Benchmarks elaborates on the recommendations to provide guidelines for what all students should know and be able to do in science, mathematics, and technology by the end of grades 2, 5, 8, and 12. These grade levels offer reasonable checkpoints for student progress toward science literacy, but do not suggest a rigid formula for teaching. Benchmarks is not a proposed curriculum, nor is it a plan for one: it is a tool educators can use as they design curricula that fit their student's needs and meet the goals first outlined in Science for All Americans. Far from pressing for a single educational program, Project 2061 advocates a reform strategy that will lead to more curriculum diversity than is common today.
IBenchmarks emerged from the work of six diverse school-district teams who were asked to rethink the K-12 curriculum and outline alternative ways of achieving science literacy for all students. These teams based their work on published research and the continuing advice of prominent educators, as well as their own teaching experience. Focusing on the understanding and interconnection of key concepts rather than rote memorization of terms and isolated facts, Benchmarks advocates building a lasting understanding of science and related fields. In a culture increasingly pervaded by science, mathematics, and technology, science literacy require habits of mind that will enable citizens to understand the world around them, make some sense of new technologies as they emerge and grow, and deal sensibly with problems that involve evidence, numbers, patterns, logical arguments, and technology—as well as the relationship of these disciplines to the arts, humanities, and vocational sciences—making science literacy relevant to all students, regardless of their career paths.
If Americans are to participate in a world shaped by modern science and mathematics, a world where technological know-how will offer the keys to economic and political stability in the twenty-first century, education in these areas must become one of the nation's highest priorities. Together with Science for All Americans, Benchmarks for Science Literacy offers a bold new agenda for the future of science education in this country, one that is certain to prepare our children for life in the twenty-first century.

Library Journal

Benchmarks is a companion volume to the acclaimed Science for All Americans (Oxford Univ. Pr., 1990), which told us what it means to be science-literate. Intended for educators at levels K-12, Science told ``what'' while Benchmarks tells ``how.'' The result of a four-year, grass-roots project developed by six teams of educators across the United States, Benchmarks is not an actual curriculum but a ``tool'' for teachers to use in designing curriculum that fits local needs, calls upon their imagination, and meets the grade-level standards set in Science. It is anticipated that, as a ``developing product,'' Benchmarks will always be changing. This first printing guides teachers in meeting ``thresholds'' in achieving the important goal of creating science-literate adults, who can think ``critically and independently'' in this increasingly complex world. Essential for all school libraries.-- Diane M. Fortner, Univ. of California Lib., Berkeley