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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
National Research Council
Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education
Center for Education
Board on Science Education
Committee on Science Learning, Kindergarten Through Eighth Grade

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Congressional Briefing
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
2320 Rayburn House Office Bldg. – 10:30 a.m.

on

Taking Science to School:
Learning and Teaching Science in Grades K-8

After decades of education reform efforts that have produced only modest gains in science performance, the need for change is clear. And the issue takes on even greater significance with the looming mandate of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which says that states must measure students' annual progress in science beginning in 2007. This new report from the National Academies looks at ways of improving science education in kindergarten through eighth grade, requiring major changes in how science is taught in America's classrooms, as well as shifts in commonly held views of what young children know and how they learn.

This briefing was for members of Congress and congressional staff only. The report was publicly released on September 21, 2006 and can be found, in its entirety, on the Web site of the National Academies Press.