Join NSF's STEM Education Directorate Sept. 14 from 3-4 p.m. (EST) to hear from Paul Morgan, professor of education at The Pennsylvania State University, about achievement gaps in math and science.

Addressing mathematics and science achievement gaps in United States elementary schools may help to broaden participation in the STEM workforce. During this lecture, Paul Morgan will present findings from a series of studies analyzing data from population-based cohorts. These findings indicate that mathematics and science achievement gaps are already large by kindergarten. These gaps are highly stable across the subsequent elementary grades. Regression modeling indicates that the family’s socioeconomic resources and the student’s initial level of knowledge about mathematics, science, and reading by kindergarten substantially or fully explain between-group differences in mathematics and science achievement across elementary school. Collectively, the findings suggest that economic and educational policies introduced prior to or by kindergarten may be needed to address mathematics and science achievement gaps in U.S. elementary schools and to broaden participation in the STEM workforce. 

This event is part of the EDU Core Research (ECR) program's 10th anniversary. Find more information about ECR's activities on the ECR insights page and @ECRhub