Science, math

For years it has been common knowledge that Ohio needs more people trained in science and math if the state is to be able to compete in the global economy.However, identifying a challenge doesn’t necessarily solve it. So it’s encouraging to read that former Gov. Taft’s Science & Mathematics Education Policy Advisory Council has come out with 13 proposals to remedy the situation.

Only one of them is really necessary -- the one that deals with recruiting better math and science teachers. The council recommended that college math and science students receive more financial aid so they don’t have to work as well as go to school. That makes sense, because one reason relatively few people choose to study math and science in college is that it’s difficult, requiring more study time to master. Ohio’s public college costs are among the highest in the country, and not everyone gets a full-ride scholarship or comes from a wealthy family. Given a choice between flunking out in math because you have to work a part-time job in order to eat, or getting straight A’s in a less-demanding field, what would you do?

Money also makes a difference at graduation time, when math and science majors have to choose between going for an MBA in order to secure a high-paying job in the business world, or getting a master’s degree in education so they can qualify for a low-paying (at least initially) teaching position. Some will still choose to teach, but many will not. If the state wants the best people to teach math and science, it will have to pay for them. Some school districts elsewhere in the country already do this -- offering to pay off student loans if a new graduate agrees to teach in that district for a certain number of years.

The council also made a variety of other recommendations -- among them better working conditions, higher licensing standards and more continuing education; and the creation of academies for math, science, engineering and technology. It’s worth noting that all these proposals require money -- something our new governor warns is in short supply. Well so has it always been and will continue to be until the state gets its business climate turned around. Maybe, just maybe, this is an investment worth making.

The sci-math advisory council (which includes representatives from the business community) did have one goofy idea -- the notion that Ohioans have a math and science phobia that could be overcome with a good marketing campaign.

If parents are phobic about math and science, it could be because they were taught poorly in school so they’ve never really understood it. That’s something that will require better teaching to change -- not just a PR campaign. Sometimes too, parents just aren’t interested in science or math, and their children either inherit or learn those attitudes. A gifted teacher who loves his subject can change students’ attitudes far more effectively than any marketing ploy. Finally, some students are just not smart enough to do well in science and math, hence the fear. No matter how talented the teacher or far-reaching the marketing campaign, those students probably won’t be going into a science or math-related field.

If the state wants to maximize the number of those who do choose science and math careers, it should focus its limited financial resources on what would do the most good. That means doing all it can to recruit and retain committed and gifted math and science teachers. Then, in a generation or two, maybe we’ll see a real difference in Ohio.

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