Assessment and Science

(Adopted by Council on April 27, 2001)

Science must be included in any mandated program of educational assessment. Science, well learned, is a requirement for the workforce of the 21st Century as well as for informed citizenship. Further, it is well documented that assessment influences what is taught, both in terms of hours spent and in the nature of classroom activity.

Any testing or assessment should be designed so that it not only encourages time spent on science but also motivates teaching methods that recognize that science is more than a body of facts. Students must also learn the methods of observation and experimentation and the modes of thinking that are used to discover and test scientific knowledge.