Jay Rockefeller: “one of our major national problems is the dismal educational achievement of our children in the areas of mathematics and…”

“one of our major national problems is the dismal educational achievement of our children in the areas of mathematics and science. In 1989 President George H. Bush proposed and the Governors adopted as a national goal that by the year 2000, the United States would be first in the world in mathematics and science. Not only has our country neglected this education goal, the evidence shows that our country has not made significant improvements. Several studies have shown that in the intervening years, our performance relative to other industrialized countries is about average and there is no indication of any change. Furthermore, the evidence clearly shows that between the 4th and 8th grades our achievement level actually declines relative to other countries. Not only is this a concern for our future competitiveness in the modern world but it could present a serious national security problem. The U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century concluded in a February 2001 report that the ``Second only to a weapon of mass destruction detonating in an American city, we can think of nothing more dangerous than a failure to manage properly science, technology, and education for the common good over the next quarter century.'' One major factor in this situation is the lack of sufficient qualified mathematics and science teachers. A large number of mathematics and science teachers are not certified in their subject area.”