How to Get Involved in the Drafting of New Science Standards | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of the John Locke Foundation. The author of this post is Dr. Terry Stoops.

    Last week, the North Carolina State Board of Education approved a request to begin drafting new science and healthful living standards for public schools.

    There is a lot at stake.

    On Thursday, the Department of Public Instruction announced two ways for North Carolinians to get involved in the process: a survey and a data review committee. A description of each is below.

    NCDPI K-12 Science Standards Stakeholder Standard-by-Standard Survey

    The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) K-12 Science team is seeking input on the current K-12 Science Standards from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies.

    This survey is being shared to gather thoughtful input and comments from stakeholders familiar with the Science Standard Course of Study in order to inform revision decisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the current standards.

    This survey is estimated to take about 10 to 20 minutes to complete, depending on how many grades or courses you choose to review.

    We thank you for your time and input. Your feedback is extremely valuable to the Science standards revision process. In addition to this survey, there will be several additional opportunities for you to provide feedback on the standards throughout the revision process.

    NCDPI K-12 Science Standards Data Review Committee Application

    The NCDPI K-12 Science Team is excited to share an opportunity for interested educators and community partners to participate in the K-12 Science Standards review process by serving on the Data Review Committee (DRC). The goal of this committee is to review data and trends on the current Science Standard Course of Study along with feedback collected from interviews, focus groups, and survey responses from stakeholders. The DRC will analyze this data to make recommendations for a separate Standards Writing Team (SWT) to consider.

    NCDPI is seeking applications from a range of stakeholders with experience in reviewing and compiling data including K-12 educators from all grade levels, content areas, and resource specialists. Equally important are school/district leaders, educators from institutions of higher education, and business and community leaders.

    If you are interested in being a part of the SWT, a separate application will be coming out in the next couple of weeks. Individuals may apply for BOTH teams, but are only able to serve on one.

    Please use the link below for additional information and to apply for the DRC. The application window will remain open until 11:59 pm on June 6, 2022