But because we're scientists, we're also experimenting—experimenting with a variety of approaches to engage the community in high-impact teaching. Right now, we're in the midst of evaluating applications for the second group of HHMI Professors, and I'm struck by the number of accomplished research scientists who have applied. We're committed to the broad dissemination of their experiments in education. In another initiative, HHMI and the journal Science have begun a collaboration that will bring information about innovative teaching approaches directly to scientists. In January 2006, the editorial staff at Science began producing a monthly section about education. We hope it will engage a broad array of scientists—beyond the life sciences and beyond colleges and universities—with a lively selection of articles intended to pique interest and spark discussion.

The challenge, of course, goes beyond how an individual professor structures a course or even how an individual college or university organizes its science curriculum. In fact, we need to think broadly about how we structure science education, with two goals in mind: generating a cadre of creative scientific thinkers as well as an educated citizenry. When we choose those measurable results, applying the rubric of backward design, it becomes clear that we must rethink the nation's approach to science education.

A working paper issued by the National Bureau of Economic Research, which pulled together data from a variety of sources, is illustrative. The demographics of U.S.-trained Ph.D.s in science and engineering have changed substantially over the past 40 years. On the positive side, more women and minorities are pursuing careers in science, but, on the negative, the percentage of U.S. citizens receiving Ph.D.s has dropped significantly. In 1966, 71 percent of Ph.D. graduates in science and engineering were men born in the United States, 6 percent were U.S.-born women, and 23 percent were foreign-born. By 2000, the statistical picture had shifted: 36 percent of all science and engineering Ph.D.s were U.S.-born men, 25 percent were U.S.-born women, and 39 percent were foreign-born.

The recent Summit on National Competitiveness— convened by U.S. Reps. Frank Wolf (R-Virginia), Sherwood L. Boehlert (R-New York), and Vernon J. Ehlers (R-Michigan)—was spurred by an outcry from corporations both large and small about the dearth of well-trained scientists and engineers. The summit has called for nothing less than a transformation of the U.S. educational system. High on the list is a doubling of the number of undergraduate degrees in science and mathematics to 400,000 a year by 2015. It's a tall order, particularly in an era when many technical jobs are being exported overseas and federal research funding is being reduced. By defining the goal—and working backward—the nation may, with contributions from organizations like HHMI, move forward.

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