Page 147 - Standards for K-12 Engineering Education

Standards for K-12 Engineering Education?

132 STANDARDS FOR K–12 ENGINEERING EDUCATION?

Engineering standards based on a big ideas like these could be more concise and focused than past
standards and could emphasize connections and distinctions among fields of science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics.

Conclusion

The preliminary ideas offered here do not even begin to address the deeper issues of implementation. In
Massachusetts, which enacted the strongest set of technology and engineering standards in the nation in
2001, considerable progress has been made in many school districts to implement the standards.
However, change at the classroom level has required significant time and funding from a number of
governmental and private organizations in the state.

Although educational systems have a great deal of inertia, they can be moved. Recent discussions about
accountability in the forthcoming reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act have
suggested the need for “. . . incorporating indicators of the many fields of knowledge and skills that young
people need to be successful.” (A Broader, Bolder Approach, available on-line at
http://www.boldapproach.org/report_20090625.html) If enacted into law, this philosophy may help
motivate change as well.

We are optimistic that, if a clear, concise vision for engineering education can be developed and
integrated into the fabric of state standards in the core subjects of science and mathematics, then
implementation of engineering education will begin to take hold.

References

AAAS (1990). Science for All Americans: A Project 2061 Report. American Association for the
Advancement of Science, Project 2061. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

AAAS (1993). Benchmarks for Science Literacy. American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Project 2061. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Beatty, Alexandra, Rapporteur (2008). Common Standards for K–12 Education?: Considering the
Evidence: Summary of a Workshop Series, Committee on State Standards in Education: A
Workshop Series, National Research Council. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

Duschl, R.A., Schweingruber, H.A., and Shouse, A.W., eds. (2007). Taking Science to School: Learning
and Teaching Science in Grades K–8. National Research Council. Washington, DC: National
Academies Press.
Foecke, H. A. (1970). “Engineering in the Humanistic Tradition,” Impact of Science on Society, vol. XX,
no. 2.

Foecke, Harold A. (1995). “Fifty Years of UNESCO Leadership in Science and Technology Education,”
UNESCO 50 Years for Education, CD-ROM.

Hudson, S., McMahon, K., and Overstreet, C. (2002). The 2000 National Survey of Science and
Mathematics Education: Compendium of Tables. Chapel Hill, NC: Horizon Research, Inc.

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