By Lynn Hatter
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wfsu/local-wfsu-982769.mp3
Tallahassee, FL – For the past several years Florida has focused on reading and math skills in its public schools. Student scores in these subject areas on the state's standardized tests show students are performing better now than they did a decade ago. The same is true when you look at national tests that measure those same skills. But as Lynn Hatter reports, that same focus on the "Three R's" (Reading, writing and Arithmetic) has resulted in the lack of focus on another critical subject: Science.
In Justin Williamson's fifth grade class, the textbook is a MacBook. And turning the page is simply a matter of pointing and clicking.
"Technology is infused in everything we do. Instead of doing a worksheet to turn into me, my students are doing an Excel spreadsheet, showing the results of an experiment or they may make a PowerPoint presentation to share with the classroom. So our product is a little bit different from what's in most traditional classrooms."
Williamson teaches a gifted class at Tallahassee's Hartsfield Elementary. The program is aimed at boosting performance in a subject area that's been neglected for the past decade. In fact, when it comes to areas like biology, chemistry, and physics, the state as a whole has fallen way behind.
"Compared to early seventies, when we started testing reading and math, versus 2003 in science, statewide emphasis and reporting for accountability purposes didn't really start until the 2000's."
Kris Ellington heads the Florida Department of Education's Research and Accountability division. The department keeps records of scores in reading, writing, math, and most recently science on the state's Comprehensive Assessment Test, or FCAT. According to 2011 results, more than half of Florida students failed the science portion of the exam.
"There are a lot of measures out there and by and large, we don't look very good, as a nation or as a state on these comparative measures. Florida's NAEP performance is pretty much at the middle of the pack."
NAEP is the National Assessment of Education Progress. The drop off continues on international tests like the Programme for International Student Assessment or PISA. The test is done every three years, and according to 2009 results, the United States ranks 19th out of 35 other nations in the sciences. China, Finland, Japan, Canada and the United Kingdom are just a few of the countries ranked higher. Dr. Edith Davis sits on Florida's science curriculum development board and teaches at Florida A&M University's College of Education. She says schools are teaching science backwards.
"All scientists in America, throughout the world, we know this. And that's one of the issues."
Davis says schools should be starting with physics which many students end up taking in high school.
"Physics is the foundation of all sciences. What builds upon that is Chemistry chemistry is more complex Remember what I did that song? We're on planet Earth where we have an atmosphere and a biosphere, and a hydrosphere...that matter part is physics."
At the Bernard Harris Science camp students are trying to make a space suit. The camp is run by Bernard Harris, the first African-American to walk in Space. He says one reason students struggle in the sciences is because the interest in the subject is no longer there.
"I think we've lost focus. And you see this in societies. And you see this as a historian. They rise up, they reach a crest and then they sit back on their laurels, and for the longest time we've been the leaders and the innovators, and what happened over time is that we've changed the emphasis in our school systems, and we've seen a drop in that."
The state is now trying to turn the situation around. Lawmakers have started requiring end-course exams in science in high school. The state is rolling out new requirements for what students should know in elementary and middle schools. And its focusing more on industry-related programs, like science and technology based career academies.