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Introduction
Standard 5.1: All Students Will
Learn To Identify Systems Of Interacting Components And Understand How Their Interactions
Combine To Produce The Overall Behavior Of The System.
5.2: All Students Will Develop
Problem-Solving, Decision-Making And Inquiry Skills, Reflected By Formulating Usable
Questions And Hypotheses, Planning Experiments, Conducting Systematic Observations,
Interpreting And Analyzing Data, Drawing Conclusions, And Communicating Results.
5.3: All Students Will
Develop An Understanding Of How People Of Various Cultures Have Contributed To The
Advancement Of Science And Technology, And How Major Discoveries And Events Have Advanced
Science And Technology.
5.4: All Students Will
Develop An Understanding Of Technology As An Application Of Scientific Principles.
5.5: All Students Will
Integrate Mathematics As A Tool For Problem-Solving In Science, And As A Means Of
Expressing And/Or Modeling Scientific Theories.
5.6: All Students Will Gain
An Understanding Of The Structure, Characteristics, And Basic Needs Of Organisms.
5.7: All Students Will
Investigate The Diversity Of Life.
5.8: All Students Will
Gain An Understanding Of The Structure And Behavior Of Matter.
5.9: All Students Will
Gain An Understanding Of Natural Laws As They Apply To Motion, Forces, And Energy
Transformations.
5.10: All Students Will Gain An
Understanding Of The Structure, Dynamics, And Geophysical Systems Of The Earth.
5.11: All Students Will Gain An
Understanding Of The Origin, Evolution, And Structure Of The Universe.
5.12: All Students Will Develop An
Understanding Of The Environment As A System Of Interdependent Components Affected By
Human Activity And Natural Phenomena.
This is one of three web pages; the list above appears to be
the same on all three pages.
Introduction
The New Jersey core curriculum content standards for Science reflect the belief
that all students can and must learn enough science to assume their role as concerned
citizens equipped with necessary information and decision-making skills.
The need for scientific literacy in today's increasingly technological world, for
fundamental reforms in how science is taught, and for established standards in science
education are by now well-known and documented. Presidential appeals for excellence,
combined with expressions of concern from scientists and educators, have led to national,
state, and local initiatives. New Jersey is host to an impressive array of scientific and
technological industries, and should play a leadership role in the development and
implementation of standards for the teaching and learning of science.
From the outset, the core curriculum content standards for Science were influenced by
certain understandings, events, and principles in the continuing improvement of science
education in New Jersey and the nation. Efforts to establish standards for the teaching
and learning of science have been pursued actively at the state and national level. In
1993, Benchmarks for Science Literacy was published by the American Association for the
Advancement of Science, followed in 1994 by a comprehensive draft of the National Science
Education Standards by the National Research Council. Both these documents contributed to
an ongoing interest in the formulation of world class educational standards rooted in
reform movements such as Project 2061 of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science, and the Scope, Sequence and Coordination Project of the National Science Teachers
Association. The simultaneously emerging national standards presented a reliable model
that was often consulted in the formulation of these standards.
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In New Jersey, the call for science education standards was heightened when the State was
awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation for the establishment of a Statewide
Systematic Initiative for the reform of mathematics, science, and technology education.
An enormous amount of scientific content has accumulated at an accelerating rate over the
years, causing textbooks to thicken as material is added but rarely deleted. Science
educators across the nation have come to recognize this as a disturbing and
counterproductive trend. The Science Standards in this section, therefore, are not
intended to include all of science, but rather are an attempt to define what all students
should know and be able to do as they grow towards scientific literacy. A guiding
principle of these standards is that an understanding of fundamental scientific principles
and the development of science-related skills are not limited by gender, economic status,
cultural background, or ability. While we recognize the need for the inclusion of
fundamental understandings in the life, earth, and physical sciences, the development of
critical thinking skills is considered of paramount importance. Also important are the
attitudes that students display as they learn science, and the development of qualities
inherent in the practice of science, such as curiosity, skepticism, open-mindedness, and
honesty when collecting and interpreting findings. While these habits of mind cannot be
measured easily, no science program can be considered complete or successful that does not
promote them.
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Science should be taught at all levels with awareness of its connection to other subjects
and the needs of society. While these standards do not suggest a specific curriculum
design or sequence of courses, they assume that the relationship of the various
disciplines of science to each other, and of science to the overall learning experience,
will be strongly emphasized. The standards also reflect the needs of the students and
teachers of New Jersey; indeed, incorporating New Jersey's unique natural resources in the
teaching of science should be a primary goal of school districts as they move towards
implementation.
The formulation of standards does not insure their proper implementation. The national
initiative mentioned above includes standards that address the preparation of science
teachers as well as the school environment in which science is taught. While this document
is not intended to deal with such issues, they have informed the development of these
standards and must be considered if the standards are to be realized. The standards can
only be of value as part of a larger, ongoing effort to improve the teaching and learning
of science in New Jersey schools. Defining scientific literacy for the citizens of New
Jersey and the nation is an important first step toward achieving this goal.
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02/17/10