Why So Few? AAUW Report

A report on the underrepresentation of women in science and math by the American Association of University Women, to be released Monday, found that although women have made gains, stereotypes and cultural biases still impede their success.
http://www.aauw.org/research/whysofew.cfm

Study Finds that Female Teachers May Pass on Math Anxiety to Girls

After a year in the classroom with female teachers who say they are anxious about math, girls are more likely to share that attitude -- and score lower on tests, researchers say. Girls have long embraced the stereotype that they're not supposed to be good at math. It seems they may be getting the idea from a surprising source -- their female elementary school teachers.

http://www.educationnews.org/ednews_today/35118.html

$250 Million Initiative For STEM Instruction Announced.

President Obama "will announce a $250 million public-private effort Wednesday to improve [STEM] instruction, aiming to help the nation compete in key fields with global economic rivals." The effort "seeks to prepare more than 10,000 new math and science schoolteachers over five years and provide on-the-job training for an additional 100,000 in science, technology, engineering and math." The Post points out that "it's unclear how much federal spending can grow in a time of rising budget deficits." For this initiative, however, there has been "mobilization on several fronts," with "high-tech businesses, universities and foundations" contributing. The Intel Foundation, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, UTeach, NASA and PBS are all contributing in some respect.

For more information, click here.

Career Skills Said to Get Short Shrift

In education and workforce-training circles, there’s a sentiment one hears so often that it’s become something of a mantra: Students must graduate from high school prepared for both college and work. But amid the clarion calls for “college for all” and the clamor for more-rigorous academics, the “work” part of that imperative tends to get drowned out, business and industry groups say, to the point that high-wage jobs not requiring a bachelor’s degree often go unfilled.
To read the full EdWeek article click here.