WASHINGTON, D.C.
It will take a rallying cry based on national pride, akin to the Soviet-era Sputnik satellite program that forced the United States to enhance its scientific knowledge, to get Americans to realize the importance of the science fields to the American economy, education leaders said on Wednesday.
Less than one-third of the public believe that math and science courses are relevant to life after education, and only 54 percent of the public believe that all students need to take more science and math courses, according to the results of a new poll. It is a significant disconnect, as policy makers and educators have emphasized science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, fields as vital for the United States to compete in the global economy.
“The public views our global competitiveness as a threat to wage levels, while policy makers view the issue as a need for a better prepared work force,” says David Ward, president of the American Council on Education, which manages the Solutions for Our Future campaign. Solutions for Our Future commissioned the study.
Americans are almost evenly split on whether colleges and universities are currently requiring enough math and science courses, with 46 percent agreeing that they do. A slight majority, 54 percent, believe that all students should be required to take more math and science courses.
Slightly less than half of those surveyed believe the United States will be at or near the top of the global economy in 20 years, and 86 percent believe that some countries, such as China and India, are putting in place policies intended to create a highly technically skilled work force.
The public can sense that there is a mid-term to long-term threat, says David H. Winston, president and founder of The Winston Group, which carried out the survey and hosted seven focus groups. The focus groups consisted of students, parents, recent college graduates and hiring employers.
