Elementary and Secondary Mathematics and Science Education. Science & Engineering Indicators 2020. NSB-2019-6

Overview & Synopsis

This report provides a portrait of K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the United States. It examines pre-college mathematics and science learning and how that learning affects postsecondary and career outcomes. It also compares U.S. student performance with that of other nations. Data sources include the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and other public sources. This report focuses on overall patterns in STEM education and notes variations in STEM access and performance by students' socioeconomic status (SES), race or ethnicity, and sex. STEM education can provide historically underrepresented populations with pathways for obtaining good jobs and a higher standard of living, if they can access these opportunities (Committee on STEM Education 2018; Doerschuk et al. 2016; Leadership Conference Education Fund 2015; Noonan 2017b; Wang and Degol 2016). Data in this report reveal access and achievement gaps in STEM education across the K-12 spectrum. With few exceptions, the data show strong associations between SES and STEM achievement levels, early and ongoing differences among racial or ethnic groups, and some differences in male and female student achievement. These results are consistent across many measures, including tests of different students across time, tests that follow specific age cohorts, immediate college enrollment rates, and choice of postsecondary STEM majors.