"Science in the National Interest"
Improving education and scientific and technological literacy are now central elements of the national agenda. A wide variety of efforts are either underway or in development aimed towards making profound changes in the methods for teaching science, mathematics, and technology; strengthening the preparation of elementary and secondary school teachers; and developing standards and benchmarks for all levels of the precollege curriculum. The space science community has the opportunity to make a significant contribution to meeting these critical national needs.
The future needs of a technical society for well trained people, together with the changing demographics of the American workforce, require the inclusion of groups that are seriously underrepresented in science and technology. In particular, the participation in science and technology by minorities is disappointingly small. According to a 1991 National Science Foundation study comparing representation in the United States population to representation in the employed Ph.D. science and engineering workforce, African Americans, Hispanics, and American Indians were underrepresented by factors of 6.4, 5.6, and 4.0 respectively. In addition, although increasing numbers of women have chosen careers in science and technology during the past 20 years, they remain underrepresented in engineering and the physical sciences. The space science community has an obligation to play a substantial role in helping the country to arrive at solutions to such critical problems by stimulating interest and building skills through the education of young people.
Many of the most important issues facing the country involve understanding the capabilities and limitations of science and technology in contributing to the solution of a wide range of national problems. Informed debate by the public and the political system requires increased understanding and appreciation of science and technology. The space science community is in a strong position to communicate the methods and accomplishments of science to the public and, in so doing, to make a major contribution to raising the level of scientific and technological literacy throughout the United States.
However, as we pursue these goals, we must recognize that NASA and the Office of Space Science are not primarily education organizations. At the present time, very large investments in educational reform, curriculum development, teacher training, and the development of science, mathematics, and technology standards are being made by individual states and school districts, and other agencies within the U.S. Government (particularly the Department of Education and the National Science Foundation). The space science community must meet three challenges to be effective in enhancing these larger ongoing efforts. Space researchers must understand what is happening nationally, become aware of and sensitive to the needs of the education community, and identify those areas where space scientists can make significant contributions. A wide variety of small- and large-scale contributions are possible. The key to making a useful contribution is to identify and participate in those activities that draw on the unique character of the space science program and the special talents of the space science community, and that can be highly leveraged to have a large impact.
Meeting these new responsibilities will require both a redirection of resources and the enthusiastic participation of the space science community in a range of education and public outreach activities that go well beyond its traditional role in undergraduate and graduate education.
Both the NASA and OSS budgets are not likely to grow over the next several years. A new emphasis on education and public outreach will require the application of some resources to these activities. But major changes should not be necessary. The national mandates and the national needs are clear. Expectations have changed and the "social contract" between the federal government and the scientific community is being rewritten. NASA, OSS, and space scientists across the country must make a significant contribution to meeting these larger national goals. Incorporating education and public outreach components into the planning and implementation of missions and research programs will be relatively easy provided that it is understood from the beginning that the inclusion of such activities must be an important part of what we do. Such efforts must also be well focused, well coordinated, and carried out in collaboration with individuals who can supply critical expertise.
Space science's extensive utilization of advanced technology is
an ideal vehicle for enhancing scientific and technological
skills of teachers. Pictured above teachers participate in a
satellite operations class at the University of California at
Berkeley's Center for EUV Astrophysics. Photo: Isabel Hawkins,
Center for EUV Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley.
The most precious resource of all is the people who participate in the space science program. A key element in our strategy is to bring together the education and space science communities. By creating long-term partnerships between the education and space science communities, we can make a substantial contribution to science, technology, and mathematics education and literacy, to the public understanding of science and technology, and to broadening the participation in the space science program. Our willingness and our ability to participate are now a central element of the contribution we must make to society in return for its sponsorship of our scientific research.