Vision: Science: All students will be scientifically literate.
Mission: The District 11 K-12 science community supports D11’s mission of continuous improvement of student achievement; specifically, it is to:

• increase student achievement by collaborating with members of professional learning communities to develop, implement and evaluate standards-based science curriculum and assessment

• use research-based best practices in the teaching of science, K-12

• empower students to be responsible citizens by learning about the world in which they live

Rational: Scientific literacy is the knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes for personal decision making. Scientific literacy means that students can ask, find, or determine answers to questions derived from curiosity about everyday experiences. Students have the ability to describe, explain, and predict everyday phenomena. It implies that students can identify scientific issues underlying national and local decisions and express positions that are scientifically and technology informed.

Scientific literacy also implies the capacity to pose and evaluate arguments based on evidence and to apply conclusions from such arguments. Conducting scientific experiments and activities, implies an inquiry focus that requires students have easy, equitable, and frequent opportunities to use a wide range of equipment, materials, supplies, and other resources for experimentation and direct investigation of phenomena. This also implies having access to the world beyond the classroom. To implement scientific literacy, change must be implemented throughout the system. For science instruction to be meaningful, more emphasis is needed with students at ALL grade levels K-12 on the following:

• Science MUST be taught in all elementary schools and at all grades K-5; continued through the middle years and into the high school years.

• Focus on understanding and use of scientific knowledge, ideas, and inquiry processes.

• Understand scientific “big ideas” (concepts, theories, topics) and their applications.

• Understand that concepts and processes provide connections between and among traditional scientific disciplines (life, earth, physical, space).

• Understand that concepts and processes are fundamental and comprehensive.

• Understand that concepts and processes can be expressed in a developmentally appropriate manner during K-12 science education.

• Learn subject matter disciplines (life, earth, physical, space) in the context of inquiry, nature of science, and implications of science and technology.

• Provide opportunities to identify connections within (life, earth, physical, and space) and across the disciplines (reading, writing, mathematics, social studies, art, music, etc).

• Provide opportunities for investigations of the natural world outside the classroom (e.g. locations of study such as the Hayman Fire site, Rocky Mountains, Challenger Space Center, Fort Carson environmental areas, museums, etc).

• Engage in activities that investigate and analyze testable questions.

• Engage in investigations over extended periods of time.

• Engage in process skills in context.

• Design and conduct scientific investigations.

• Formulate hypotheses based on prior knowledge/research.

• Collect meaningful data/evidence.

• Present data/evidence in meaningful ways (e.g. graphs, charts, tables).

• Use data/evidence to construct a meaningful explanation.

• Use data/evidence/strategies for developing or revisiting an explanation.

• Communicate science investigations and explanations.

• Use mathematics to improve investigations and communications. Mathematical tools and models guide and improve the posing of questions and the gathering data/evidence.

• Provide opportunities for scientific discussion, debate, and reflect/ion among students.

• Continuously assess student understanding (formative and summative).