Influential Science Education Groups
On this page, you'll find a list of groups and organizations that help shape K-12 science education in the United States.
Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE), Informal Learning
Link: About Caise, About Informal STEM Learning
About: “The Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) works in cooperation with the National Science Foundation’s (NSF’s) Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program to build and advance the informal STEM education field. We do this by providing infrastructure, resources, and connectivity for educators, researchers, evaluators, and other interested stakeholders. CAISE is one of six resource centers funded by the NSF’s Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) within the Education and Human Resources (EHR) directorate that support and connect principal investigators and their projects. At our website, InformalScience.org, you will find over 8,000 resources, including project descriptions, research literature, evaluation reports, and other documents related to quality, evidence-based informal STEM learning work supported by a diversity of federal, local, and private funders.”
NSF’s Advancing Informal STEM Learning program
Link: NSF
About: “The Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program seeks to advance new approaches to and evidence-based understanding of the design and development of STEM learning opportunities for the public in informal environments; provide multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences; advance innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments; and engage the public of all ages in learning STEM in informal environments. The AISL program supports six types of projects: (1) Pilots and Feasibility Studies, (2) Research in Service to Practice, (3) Innovations in Development, (4) Broad Implementation, (5) Literature Reviews, Syntheses, or Meta-Analyses, and (6) Conferences.”
National Informal STEM Education Network
Link: National Informal STEM Education Network
About: “The National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Net) is a community of informal educators and scientists dedicated to supporting learning about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) across the United States. NISE Net advances the field of informal learning by incorporating current science into museum exhibits and programs, improving the practices and skills of educators and scientists, and creating lasting, valuable relationships among individuals and organizations. Network partners generate, develop, implement, and collaborate on projects that strengthen and advance informal STEM learning in a variety of settings, including science centers and children's museums. Network projects develop educational products and implement them with multiple and diverse public audiences, provide professional development for practitioners, and create opportunities for capacity building through collaboration and networking.”
Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education
Link: CADRE
About: “CADRE is a network for STEM education researchers funded by the National Science Foundation's Discovery Research PreK-12 (DRK-12) program. Through in-person meetings, a website, common interest groups, newsletters, and more, CADRE connects these researchers who are endeavoring to improve education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics in, and outside of, our schools.”
Funders: National Science Foundation and Education Development Center
Education Development Center
Link: EDC
About: “Education Development Center (EDC) is a global nonprofit that advances lasting solutions to improve education, promote health, and expand economic opportunity. Since 1958, we have been a leader in designing, implementing, and evaluating powerful and innovative programs in more than 80 countries around the world.”
STEM work: “Not all students have a high-quality STEM education, which can limit their post-secondary learning and career options. EDC works to improve the quality, effectiveness, and equity of STEM learning and teaching, giving all students a solid foundation in computer science and creating pathways to STEM careers for students from underrepresented groups, students from low-income families, and English learners. We develop STEM curricula, digital games, and apps that engage, excite, and challenge students, aiming to foster and use technology for robust STEM experiences. And through national resource centers and collaborative research, we guide STEM research and program design.”
Center for Innovative Research in Cyberlearning
Link: CIRCL
About: “CIRCL works with projects in the NSF Cyberlearning Program and cyberlearning-themed projects across NSF to support, synergize, and amplify their efforts. Digital Promise leads CIRCL, in collaboration with SRI International, EDC and NORC.”
Funders: National Science Foundation (NSF), Digital Promise, SRI Education, EDC, NORC
CS For All Teachers
Link: CS For All Teachers
About: “CS for All Teachers is a virtual community of practice, welcoming all teachers from PreK through high school who are interested in teaching computer science.”
U.S. Department of Education: Institution of Education Sciences
Link: ISE
Summary: Provides grants to organizations like AAAS to conduct research on science education (among other types of education). ISE is also “the nation’s leading resource for rigorous, independent education research, evaluation, and statistics” and houses a number of sub-departments, including the National Center for Education Research (NCER), which spearheaded the 1996 National Science Education Standards.
Project 2061 (AAAS)
Link: Project 2061
Summary: The American Association for the Advancement of the Sciences (AAAS) launched project 2061 in 1989 with the publication of “Science for All Americans.” This publication was the first of many documents designed to guide science curriculums in K-12 schools. These publications include “Benchmarks for Science Literacy” (1993), “Blueprints for Reform” (1998), and “Designs for Science Literacy” (2001).
National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)
Link: NSTA
Summary: Founded in 1944, NSTA helped develop the Next Generation Science Standards. The mission of this organization is to promote excellence in science teaching.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)
Link: NAEP
Summary: A government subsidiary under the National Center for Education Statistics that assesses the educational progress and achievement in different school subject areas via tests of its own design. NAEP evaluates student achievement in every subject.
BCSC Science Learning
Link: BSCS
Summary: A non-profit organization that has the mission “to transform science teaching and learning through research-driven innovation.” BCSC Science Learning both researches and creates curriculums.
