March 14, 2010
TECHNOS QUARTERLY Winter 1995 Vol. 4 No. 4
The Office of Systemic Reform, National Science Foundation
Sidebar for Interview with Luther S. Williams
The
Office of Systemic Reform was established in June 1992 to serve as a focal
point for the Directorate for Education and Human Resources' growing emphasis
on systemic reform of the science, mathematics, engineering, and technology
education (SMETE) infrastructure. The office works with states, major cities,
and rural regions to meet its two broad goals: to support educational systemic
reform activities and to improve the academic research capabilities of states
that traditionally have been underrepresented in the nation's science and
technology enterprise. To achieve its goals, the office has established four
programs:
- The Statewide Systemic Initiatives (SSI)
- The Urban Systemic Initiatives (USI)
- The Rural Systemic Initiatives (RSI)
- The Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR)
The statewide, urban, and rural initiatives support educational systemic reform by providing large-scale awards to stimulate systemic change, principally in K-12 education. EPSCoR is directed at developing the academic research and development capability of states that have historically been less competitive in obtaining research funding.
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Through the Statewide Systemic Initiatives (SSI) program, NSF supports the efforts of 24 states and Puerto Rico to establish comprehensive changes in science and mathematics education through the development and alignment of new standards, partnerships, policies, and practices. The initiatives respond to state and local needs but typically cover teacher development, changes in governance, curriculum and instruction, and statewide assessments.
The maturing SSI program is having a positive effect on the science, mathematics, and technology education community. Collaboration among elementary and secondary education and higher education is now common; representatives of business and industry and educators work together regularly; curriculum, instruction, assessment, and staff development have become increasingly aligned; and policy makers are reducing policy barriers and creating enabling policy and legislation. Other agencies, notably the U.S. Department of Education, are emulating NSF's SSI program, with systemic reform applied to both science and nonscience disciplines.
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The Urban Systemic Initiatives (USI) program targets the 25 U.S. cities with the largest numbers of school-age children living in poverty. School districts in these cities are challenged through USI to reform their science and mathematics programs and provide high-quality education in these areas for all students. The USI addresses the need for systemic change in science and mathematics education at the elementary and secondary levels and the need for enhanced productivity for groups that have been underserved by our educational system. In fiscal years 1993 and 1994, USI awarded planning grants to each of the eligible cities. The first cohort of implementation awards was made in FY 1994 to Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Detroit, El Paso, Miami, New York City, and Phoenix. The second cohort of awards is being made in FY 1995 to Cleveland, Columbus, Fresno, Los Angeles, Memphis, New Orleans, and Philadelphia.
The USI program has had a positive impact on the ways that cities conceptualize, organize, and conduct science and mathematics education; the way they allocate their budgets and coordinate existing programs; and the way they increase support from educators, business and community leaders, and policy makers (including mayors) for SMETE and collaboration among all levels of education.
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The Rural Systemic Initiatives (RSI) program supports systemic reform of mathematics and science education in rural areas where more than 30 percent of the school-age children live in poverty. The first RSI awards for planning and development were given in FY 1994. In FY 1995, five-year implementation awards are being made to coalitions from Alaska, Appalachia, the Four Corners (Southwest), and the High Plains. The RSI program has helped to establish communication and partnerships across state and tribal lines and has resulted in several joint ventures in distance learning and telecommunications.
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The Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) was established in 1979 to increase the academic research capability and the competitiveness of research faculties in states that have had a relatively low number of NSF research awards. Eighteen states and Puerto Rico have participated in the program to date. Through EPSCoR, participating states have made significant advances in the quality of their graduate training and research efforts. The program provides a partnership between NSF and a state to develop improved science and technology (S&T) educational quality and opportunity, increased competitiveness for research and development funds, and development of an S&T infrastructure capable of supporting a knowledge-intensive economy. EPSCoR achieves its objectives through three- to five-year cooperative agreements, smaller nonrenewable awards to be used as "venture capital" to implement S&T efforts that exhibit significant potential for future growth, and co-sponsorship of select research projects with the foundation's research programs.
For more information, call NSF's Office of Systemic Reform at 703/306-1690, or access the foundation's website at this URL: http://red.www.nsf.gov/esr/.