The SEED Web Site and the National Science Education Standards

National Science Education Standards
SEED – NSES Correlations
Science Lab– NSES Correlations
Science WAtch– NSES Correlations
Content Standards Grades 5-8
Content Standards Grades 9-12

The NSES were developed in the United States in the early 1990s through a process coordinated by the National Research Council. A wide variety of professionals and organizations participated in this effort over a period of several years. The NSES were published in 1996 by the National Academy Press. Although written for a US audience, they may provide useful guidance for science educators throughout the world

Education in the United States is locally controlled and administered. In the absence of a national Ministry of Education, the NSES are intended to guide local school boards in achieving the goal that all students should achieve scientific literacy. They suggest a vision of science education and its many aspects, and provide guideposts for the journey toward scientific literacy, in the form of standards in six areas:

• Science teaching
• Professional development for teachers of science
• Assessment in science education
• Science content
• Science education programs
• Science education systems

SEED – NSES Correlations
The charts below correlate SEED web site material with the NSES for Science Content in grades 5 - 8 (age 10 to 13) and grades 9 -12 (age 14 to 18). The Standards are divided into broad categories designated by the letters A through G. Within each of these categories there are between 3 and 9 specific Standards.

We chart the Standards that apply to each SEED article and activity. For brevity, we list them by letter-number combinations. Refer to our lists of Science Content Standards for titles and page references in the full NSES publication, where you will find complete descriptions of the Standards.

NSES Correlations with SEED Science Lab Activities

NSES Correlations with Science Watch Articles

Science Content Standards for Grades 5-8

Standard A - Science as Inquiry
A1. Identify questions that can be answered through scientific investigations 145
A2. Design and conduct a scientific investigation 145
A3. Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze, and interpret data 145
A4. Develop descriptions, explanations, predictions, and model using evidence 145
A5. Think critically and logically to make the relationships between evidence and explanations 145-8
A6. Recognize and analyze alternative explanations and predictions 148
A7. Communicate scientific procedures and explanations 148
A8. Use mathematics in all aspects of scientific inquiry 148
A9. Understandings about scientific inquiry 148

Standard B - Physical Science
B1. Properties and changes of properties in matter 154
B2. Motions and forces 154
B3. Transfer of energy 155

Standard C - Life Science
C1. Structure and function in living systems 156-7
C2. Reproduction and heredity 157
C3. Regulation and behavior 157
C4. Populations and ecosystems 157-8
C5. Diversity and adaptations of organisms 158

Standard D - Earth and Space Science
D1. Structure of the earth system 159-60
D2. Earth’s history 160
D3. Earth in the solar system 160-1

Standard E - Science and Technology
E1. Identify appropriate problems for technological design 165
E2. Design a solution or product 165
E3. Implement a proposed design 165
E4. Evaluate completed technological designs or products 165-6
E5. Communicate the process of technological design 166
E6. Understandings about science and technology 166

Standard F - Science in Personal and Social Perspectives
F1. Personal health 168
F2. Populations, resources, and environments 168
F3. Natural hazards 168-9
F4. Risks and benefits 169
F5. Science and technology in society 169-70

Standard G - History and Nature of Science
G1. Science as a human endeavor 170
G2. Nature of science 171
G3. History of science 171

Science Content Standards for Grades 9 - 12

Standard A - Science as Inquiry
A1. Identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations 175
A2. Design and conduct scientific investigations 175
A3. Use technology and mathematics to improve investigations and communications 175
A4. Formulate and revise scientific explanations and models using logic and evidence 175
A5. Recognize and analyze alternative explanations and models 175
A6. Communicate and defend a scientific argument 176
A7. Understandings about scientific inquiry 176

Standard B - Physical Science
B1. Structure of atoms 178
B2. Structure and properties of matter 178-9
B3. Chemical reactions 179
B4. Motions and forces 179-80
B5. Conservation of energy and the increase in disorder 180
B6. Interactions of energy and matter 180

Standard C - Life Science
C1. The cell 184-5
C2. The molecular basis of heredity 185
C3. Biological evolution 185
C4. The interdependence of organisms 186
C5. Matter, energy, and organization in living systems 186-7
C6. The behavior of organisms 187

Standard D - Earth and Space Science
D1. Energy in the earth system 189
D2. Geochemical cycles 189
D3. The origin and evolution of the earth system 189-90
D4. The origin and evolution of the universe 190

Standard E - Science and Technology
E1. Identify a problem or design an opportunity 192
E2. Propose designs and choose between alternative solutions 192
E3. Implement a proposed solution 192
E4. Evaluate the solution and its consequences 192
E5. Communicate the problem, process, and solution 192
E6. Understandings about science and technology 192-3

Standard F - Science in Personal and Social Perspectives
F1. Personal and community health 197
F2. Population growth 198
F3. Natural resources 198
F4. Environmental quality 198
F5. Natural and human-induced hazards 198-9
F6. Science and technology in local, national, and global challenges 199

Standard G - History and Nature of Science
G1. Science as a human endeavor 200-1
G2. Nature of scientific knowledge 201
G3. Historical perspectives 201-4