NSTA Collaborates with Others to Improve Science Education

​The National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) is a community of 40,000 science educators and professionals committed to advancing teaching science and STEM and improving student learning. To reach this goal, NSTA engages in partnerships with other organizations.

In April 2020, NSTA, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AAIA), and Estes Industries collaborated on a multiyear initiative to implement research-based aerospace education to students nationwide. Beginning in April, K-12 educators accessed free lesson plans and curriculum through Exploration Generation (ExGen). These lessons cover topics in aerospace, engineering, and rocketry.

NSTA Executive Director Erika Shugart, Ph.D., stated that students must have access to high-quality learning experiences in today's technology-driven world. Further, Aerospace and rocketry become opportunities to attract students to STEP concepts. The organization is excited about its partnership with AIAA to provide research-based instructional materials to educators.

In addition to the AIAA-Estes Industries collaboration, NSTA announced its partnership with the National Institute of Health's National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) to provide educators with resources and educational material related to teaching genetic and genomic science to attract students to these fields.

The initiative's name is Genome Unlocking Life's Code, and it provides educators with free lesson plans and storyline units that teachers can integrate into high school classrooms. The lessons culminate in students completing a do-it-yourself, a community-centered project at the end of the term.

Dr. Shugart stated that the influence of genetics and genome studies goes beyond academia to understanding how it applies to the human diet and life-saving vaccines. Through these lessons, educators can help students connect their studies of genetics and genomes to real-world applications. Furthermore, she expressed gratitude for partnering with the NIH to provide educators with these valuable lessons.

NSTA also partnered with the education publisher Routledge/Taylor & Francis to provide members with access to its five academic journals, according to an April 2023 press release. In January 2024, the educational publisher will publish Science & Children, The Science Teacher, Science Scope, Journal of College Science Teaching, and Connected Science Learning. The publishing house also began distributing these journals, and NSTA members have online access to them. This access will replace the NSTA library subscriptions as of October 1, 2023.

In October 2023, NSTA announced that it had also joined with Johns Hopkins University Press to provide teachers with STEM- and science-related lesson plans. The unit, called Johns Hopkins Wavelengths: Tuning in to Cutting Edge, will help educators teach middle and high school students about the pioneering innovations of the researchers at Johns Hopkins through lesson plans called Daily Do.

The lessons are team-based ones designed to encourage student curiosity and interests while also getting them to understand some of the world's most significant issues. Artificial intelligence, sustainable and equitable food systems, and the interior forces of the planets are a few of the curriculum's lessons. One of the newest lesson plans tackled the auroras and why observers can see them at the North and South Poles.

John Hopkins University's Assistant Vice Provost for Research Julie Messersmith asserted the importance of educators to connect academic research with what is happening in society for students. This collaboration does that by bringing the research done at the university into the classrooms. These lessons include companion resources, such as mentorship profile videos promoting career-connected learning and STEM pathways.

Toni Brand PHD

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