WASHINGTON DC - Today, Rep Michael Honda (CA-15) continued his groundbreaking work to improve K-12 STEM education by introducing H.R. 6248, the Elevating Science Technology Engineering Mathematics Act (e-STEM).  Building on President Obama’s announcement this week to recruit 10,000 new STEM school teachers, Rep Honda’s bill improves STEM education coordination and coherence among Federal and state governments in order to advance STEM education across the nation. 

“For our nation to remain a leader in scientific advancement and technological innovation, we must strengthen America’s schools and provide them with the resources and curriculum they need to succeed,” said Rep Honda, a former science teacher and educator for over 30 years. “H.R. 6248 provides the education and skills necessary for students to compete in today’s global economy and to understand increasingly complex issues.   H.R. 6248 also provides an important framework for my upcoming legislative agenda in the 112th Congress.  Early next year, I plan to introduce innovative and comprehensive STEM education legislation informed by the STEM education and research community, including the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, which recently released the education report Prepare and Inspire K-12 Education to provide the nation with a blueprint for improving K-12 STEM education.”

“America’s STEM workforce is retiring and too few students are motivated and prepared to replace them,” continued Rep Honda.  “American students consistently display lower scores on most STEM-related assessments.  The US National Assessment of Educational Progress showed that from 2004 to 2008, 41 percent of 17-year-olds do not have a basic understanding of medium-difficulty math procedures. Furthermore, Programme for International Student Assessment comparisons in 2006 show American students ranking 21st out of 30 in science literacy, and 25th out of 30 in math literacy, among students from developed countries.”  

Current federal efforts in STEM education are neither coordinated, nor coherent, nor cooperative.  Agencies involved in STEM education efforts are often unaware of what is being done and what has already been done elsewhere.  In 2006, the federal government sponsored 105 STEM education programs through 15 different federal agencies at a cost of $3.12 billion. Yet the following year, American students did poorly in a test offered world-wide that measures student proficiency in understanding and applying science.  The e-STEM bill will create the mechanisms and venue for cooperative relationships to develop.

Dr. Aart J. de Geus, founder and CEO of Synopsys, a world leader in electronic design automation applauded Congressman Honda's bill introduction, “I have great respect and appreciation for your leadership on national education issues and your efforts to repair the K-12 STEM pipeline to ensure students are prepared to participate in STEM careers. Your proposal to elevate the prominence of STEM education will help ensure that the United States remains the most innovative, technologically capable economy in the world.”

Specifically, Rep. Honda’s bill will:

• Create an Office of STEM at the U.S. Department of Education at the assistant-secretary level. This office will coordinate STEM education initiatives among all federal agencies and have a seat at the OSTP STEM Committee.

• Institute a voluntary Consortium on STEM education. The Consortium would be integrated by no less than five states representing at least five of the nation’s nine geographical regions. Its mission is to develop common content standards for K-12 STEM education, engineered at the state and local levels.

• Create the National STEM Education Research Repository. This would be a clearing house for educators to research the latest innovations in STEM. This will break the silos that keep creative programs from being replicated and will make these resources available through simple internet searches rather than having to sift through convoluted websites.