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The way to educational improvement
by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
Published in the Dallas Morning News January 8, 2009
Developing the skills of the next generation of Americans will be the prime engine for our economic growth, yet U.S. students are underperforming in the vitally important fields of science, technology, engineering and math.
In 2005, the National Academies identified alarming trends in these four areas in the eye-opening report "Rising Above the Gathering Storm." Their conclusion was clear: If we want to remain the undisputed global economic leader, we need to urgently improve in these core subjects.
In response, I charged the Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas to study ways to improve science, technology, engineering and math education. The academy is the perfect organization to help lead this mission. In 2004, I co-founded this group with Nobel laureates Michael Brown and the late Richard Smalley to join the state's top scientific minds to further position Texas as a national research leader.
On Dec. 9, the academy's education steering committee released its much-anticipated report, "The Next Frontier: World-Class Science and Math Education in Texas," which includes recommendations that should be read by parents, teachers, principals and, especially, policymakers. The report may be found at www.tamest.org/education.
Education steering committee co-chair William Brinkley, dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Science at Baylor College of Medicine-Houston, said: "In China today, over 40 percent of college undergraduates earn engineering and science degrees, while in the U.S., only 5 percent of students do, and Texas is in the bottom half among the states – our students consistently score lower than the national average on math and science proficiency tests. This is simply unacceptable."
American companies have to recruit heavily from overseas to fill positions in highly technical fields such as computer engineering and medical science. According to "The Next Frontier," two of the best ways to improve science, tech, engineering and math education are to expand Advanced Placement programs and strengthen the quality of these teachers.
I supported authorization of the first federal grants for Advanced Placement programs, and since 1998, their funding has grown from $3 million to $43.5 million annually. In 2007, I co-sponsored and helped pass the America Competes Act, which increases the number of Advanced Placement courses in underprivileged schools and bolsters the supply of teachers for the advanced math, science and foreign language courses.
"Great teachers are the foundation upon which we will build world-class science and math education here in Texas," observed committee member Kurt Swogger, executive vice president for investments at the Planned Innovation Institute.
The most consistent predictor of student achievement in these critical subjects is the presence of fully certified teachers who have at least a bachelor's degree in the field in which they teach. That's why I've been a strong advocate for a grant program, modeled after the UTeach program at UT-Austin, called Teachers for a Competitive Tomorrow, which encourages undergraduate students to gain degrees in their science, math, tech and engineering fields with teacher certification.
The "Next Frontier" report cited UTeach as a model. Nationwide, only 50 percent of new teachers are still teaching after three years, while 80 percent of UTeach graduates are still teaching after five years. UTeach is now being replicated as a national standard for science and math teacher preparation by the National Math and Science Initiative.
Through the Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas, which is holding its annual conference in Dallas today and tomorrow, our state's brightest science and math academics have created a bold plan to address one of the greatest challenges facing our country. Now it is our responsibility – as citizens and legislators – to act on their proposals and renew our commitment to a better and more prosperous future.
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