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News Release 04-157
International Study Shows Select Improvements in U.S. Math and Science Performance – Gains Also Seen Among Some Minority Students
U.S. blacks, Latinos show modest but significant gains at fourth and eighth grades
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A third grader picks a Manduca sexta caterpillar from a tobacco plant. Young students in Arizona schools study this caterpillar because biologists find it a versatile insect to investigate questions ranging from basic ecology and growth, to neurobiology and muscle physiology, among other problems. Students study the Manduca sexta in the classroom, designing experiments, writing daily entries in their journals, and even composing poetry and songs.
Credit: The Manduca Project, University of Arizona
Eighth-grade black and Latino student scores in the United States continue to increase, moving closer toward scores of whites, according to the 2003 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study.
Credit: Zina Deretsky, National Science Foundation