|
|||||||||
|
High School · In the fourth grade, U.S. students score above the international average in math and near first in science. At eighth grade, they score below average in math, and only slightly above average in science. By 12th grade, U.S. students are near the bottom of a 49-country survey in both math and science, outscoring only Cyprus and South Africa. (William R. Brody, president of Johns Hopkins University, Congressional testimony; July 2005) · Less than 15 percent of U.S. students have the prerequisites even to pursue scientific or technical degrees in college. (William R. Brody, president of Johns Hopkins University, Congressional testimony; July 2005) · 88% of high school dropouts had passing grades, but dropped out due to boredom. (Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: “The Silent Epidemic”; March 2006) ·
Up to 20
percent of high school dropouts test in the gifted range. (Handbook for Gifted
Education;
2003)
·
Four-fifths (81%) of teachers surveyed believe that "our advanced students need special attention - they are the future leaders of this country, and their talents will enable us to compete in a global economy."
(High Achieving Students in the Era of NCLB, 2008) Bachelor
Degrees ·
The number of students in the United States planning to pursue engineering
degrees declined by one-third between 1992 and 2002. (The Business Roundtable;
July 2005) ·
Only 11
percent of bachelor’s degrees in the United States are in the sciences
or engineering, compared with 23 percent in the rest of the world and 50
percent in China. (National
Summit on Competitiveness;
December 2005) ·
Universities
in Asian countries now produce eight times as many bachelor’s degrees
in engineering as the United States. (National Science Board, Science
and Engineering Indicators 2004
cited in The World Is Flat, Release 2.0, Ch. 8, p. 331) ·
In 2003,
only 31 percent of American college graduates scored at the proficient
level in literacy, compared with 40 percent in 1992. (National
Assessment of Adult Literacy, 2003 cited in The
World Is Flat, Release 2.0, Ch. 8, p. 339) Advanced Degrees ·
China
graduates about 500,000 engineers per year, while India produces 200,000
and the United States turns out a mere 70,000. (National Academy of
Sciences: “Rising Above the Gathering Storm”;
October 2005) ·
The
United States in 1970 produced more than half of the world’s Ph.D.s.
But if patterns continue, it will be lucky to produce 15 percent
of the world’s doctorates by 2010.
(National Bureau of
Economic Research;
May 2005) Workforce/Career
Choices ·
About
one-third of all jobs in the United States require science or technology
competency, but currently only 17 percent of Americans graduate with
science or technology majors … in China, fully 52 percent of college
degrees awarded are in science and technology.
(William R. Brody,
president of Johns Hopkins University, Congressional testimony;
July 2005) ·
The
percentage of American women choosing math and computer science careers
fell four percentage points between 1993 and 1999. (National Science
Board, Science and Engineering
Indicators 2004 cited in
The World Is Flat, Release 2.0, Ch. 8, p. 332) Patents ·
45% of
new U.S. patents are granted now to foreigners.
(Education Week “A Quiet
Crisis is Clouding the Future of R&D”;
May 2005) ·
Only
three of the top 10 recipients of U.S. patents in 2003 were American
companies. (National Academy of Sciences: “Rising Above the Gathering Storm”;
October 2005) ### | |||||||||
|
Davidson Institute
for Talent Development | |||||||||
