CALIFORNIA NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS

Dear Friends, 

It's finally here. Tomorrow is the release of first draft of the Next Generation Science Standards!

In my comments to the California State Board of Education at their meeting on Wednesday, I provided the reasons why CSLNet supports these new standards and summarized the benefits we see for the state.

I encourage you to take a close look at these new standards for yourself, which emphasize scientific and engineering practices and cross-cutting concepts applied to rigorous, internationally bench marked content in science, engineering and technology that is aligned to college and career-ready expectations. 

You can get involved by providing feedback during a three-week public comment period that is open until June 1. By participating in the development process, you can provide an invaluable view of the skills required for college and career readiness.

Perhaps as important, I encourage you to share these new standards with your peers and let them know why they are important to our state's future - they will help students develop critical thinking, problem solving skills, increase scientific literacy and provide equal educational and career opportunities for all students. 

I am pleased to share with you a document being circulated by Achieve directed to business leaders, whose support will be critical during the comment and adoption period. In addition, I have attached a letter from the Battelle Memorial Institute urging businesses to sign on in support of the Next Generation Science Standards.

As one of 26 states helping to develop the Next Generation Science Standards, California is playing a key role in helping revitalize the Science, Technology and Engineering in STEM education. These standards were also developed to dovetail with the Common Core State Standards in Math and English Language Arts, creating the potential to provide high-quality, integrated STEM education for all students across the state and nation.

Stay tuned for more information from CSLNet about how you can get involved in supporting these new standards, but in the interim, please feel free to contact me or my staff with questions.

I am proud to be a part of this exciting effort to advance STEM education here in California and across the nation!

Thank you for your fortitude and your support!  

Yours,

 

Chris Roe, CEO

California STEM Learning Network