Learning What Works New York Times Special Section On Science Education

Earlier this month, the New York Times' Science Times featured several articles on science and math education in the United States in a special section called "Learning What Works." Some notable articles included:

• Answers from nineteen scientists, educators, and students who were asked: “If you could make one change to improve science education in the United States, what would it be?” Answers range from understanding the nature of science to making it more applicable to students’ lives and career prospects, and from making science more hands-on to offering deeper explanations that lead to real understanding.
• Field-Testing Math Apps, which highlights how apps (in this case, those developed by WGBH in Boston) can support children’s STEM learning. Mobile and touch-based games are increasingly recognized tools for learning in formal and informal settings—see this ISE Evidence Wiki article for more research.
• A profile of how Chinese educators look to American educational techniques—including the kinds of hands-on learning experiences typical of many informal learning institutions—to improve the skills of their students, whose learning experiences are tied to China’s rigorous educational standards and testing.
• New developments from Sesame Street’s Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization that produces the program informed by research about how young children learn. Sesame Workshop has done research on how young children can effectively learn science, including the NSF-funded Da Niao and Big Bird Look at the Sky project (read the project description and evaluation on informalscience.org).