Thursday, May 26, 2011

From "Is America Falling Off The Flat Earth"

Published in 2007 by the National Academy of Sciences:
"According to the most recently available data, 69% of US fifth- through eighth-grade
students are being taught mathematics by teachers who do not possess a degree or cer-
tificate in mathematics. Fully 93% of students in those grades are being taught physical
sciences by teachers with no degree or certificate in the physical sciences. Even in high school, the corresponding likelihoods are 31% for mathematics, 61% for chemistry, and 67% for physics. (In contrast, 81% of the physical-education teachers in grades 5-8 and 9-12 have degrees in physical education.) Many entire school districts do not have a single teacher with an academic degree in mathematics or science. "