Tag Archives: education

Future Trends for Doctorate Degree Programs

On September 14th, a Council of Graduate Schools report found that for the 2008-2009 academic year, women earned a majority of doctorate degrees. While women have been earning the majority of master’s degrees, this was the first year that women took the lead in doctorate degrees as well.

Yesterday, the National Academies released A Data-Based Assessment of Research Doctorate Programs in the United States. This report assesses U.S. research doctorate programs, ranking academic programs in 62 major fields based on a variety of characteristics, including measures of faculty diversity.

Earlier this year, the National Academies published Gender Differences at Critical Transitions in the Careers of Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Faculty. Using original data from surveys of faculty at major U.S. research universities, Gender Differences paints a picture of the status of female faculty.

Links to more information about these and other National Academies reports that may also interest you are listed below.

Gender Differences at Critical Transitions in the Careers of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Faculty Gender Differences at Critical Transitions in the Careers of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Faculty

Gender Differences at Critical Transitions in the Careers of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Faculty presents new and surprising findings about career differences between female and male full-time, tenure-track, and tenured faculty in science, engineering, and mathematics at the nation’s top …
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A Data-Based Assessment of Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States A Data-Based Assessment of Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States

A Data-Based Assessment of Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States provides an unparalleled dataset that can be used to assess the quality and effectiveness of doctoral programs based on measures important to faculty, students, administrators, funders, and other stakeholders…
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To Recruit and Advance To Recruit and Advance: Women Students and Faculty in Science and Engineering

Although more women than men participate in higher education in the United States, the same is not true when it comes to pursuing careers in science and engineering. To Recruit and Advance: Women Students and Faculty in Science and Engineering identifies and…
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Beyond Bias and Barriers Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fulfilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering

The United States economy relies on the productivity, entrepreneurship, and creativity of its people. To maintain its scientific and engineering leadership amid increasing economic and educational globalization, the United States must aggressively pursue the…
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Educating the Engineer of 2020 Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting Engineering Education to the New Century

Phase I in the Engineer of 2020 project, Visions of Engineering in the New Century, described a set of
attributes that are expected to be necessary for engineers that will perform well in a world that is driven by rapid
technological advancement,…
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In the Nation's Compelling Interest In the Nation’s Compelling Interest: Ensuring Diversity in the Health Care Workforce

The United States is rapidly transforming into one of the most racially and ethnically diverse nations in the world. Groups commonly referred to as minorities–including Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, African Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, and…
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Bridges to Independence Bridges to Independence: Fostering the Independence of New Investigators in Biomedical Research

A rising median age at which PhDs receive their first research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is among the factors forcing academic biomedical researchers to spend longer periods of time before they can set their own research directions and…
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16 New Books: Greenhouse Gases, Gulf War and Health, Helium Reserve, and more

I hope that those of you in the U.S. had a happy and relaxing Independence Day weekend. We welcome you back to the working week with one of the biggest lists of new books that we’ve had since we’ve started posting them once a week here on Notes From NAP. There’s sixteen of them, the vast majority of which have free PDFs available.

Because of the high number of new books this week, we’re going to present it here as a simple list. If you have any comments or questions about Notes From NAP, feel free to contact us through this form. We’d love to get any feedback you might have.

New Publications This Week

Persistent Forecasting of Disruptive Technologies–Report 2 (final)

A Foundation for Evidence-Driven Practice: A Rapid Learning System for Cancer Care: Workshop Summary (final)

Strengthening the National Institute of Justice (prepublication)

Steps Toward Large-Scale Data Integration in the Sciences: Summary of a Workshop (final)

Review of the Research Program of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership: Third Report (prepublication)

International Differences in Mortality at Older Ages: Dimensions and Sources (prepublication)

Toward Sustainable Agricultural Systems in the 21st Century (final)

Demographic Changes, a View from California: Implications for Framing Health Disparities: Workshop Summary (final)

Selling the Nation’s Helium Reserve (final)

Preparing Teachers: Building Evidence for Sound Policy (final)

Verifying Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Methods to Support International Climate Agreements (final)

Certifiably Sustainable?: The Role of Third-Party Certification Systems: Report of a Workshop (final)

Promoting Cardiovascular Health in the Developing World: A Critical Challenge to Achieve Global Health (final)

Realizing the Energy Potential of Methane Hydrate for the United States (final)

Gulf War and Health: Volume 8: Update of Health Effects of Serving in the Gulf War (final)

Envisioning the 2020 Census (final)

7 New Books In Education, Hydrology, Climate Change & Hybrid Vehicles

Our featured publication of the new books this week is in the topic of education and has already found a good deal of popularity thanks to this article in Education Week. There’s six more books (five with free PDFs) new to nap.edu this week, dealing with subjects such as water and hydrology, testing, and conflict and security issues.

Featured Publication

Preparing Teachers: Building Evidence for Sound Policy (prepublication)

Teachers make a difference. The success of any plan for improving educational outcomes depends on the teachers who carry it out and thus on the abilities of those attracted to the field and their preparation. Yet there are many questions about how teachers are being prepared and how they ought to be prepared. Yet, teacher preparation is often treated as an afterthought in discussions of improving the public education system.

Preparing Teachers addresses the issue of teacher preparation with specific attention to reading, mathematics, and science. The book evaluates the characteristics of the candidates who enter teacher preparation programs, the sorts of instruction and experiences teacher candidates receive in preparation programs, and the extent that the required instruction and experiences are consistent with converging scientific evidence. Preparing Teachers also identifies a need for a data collection model to provide valid and reliable information about the content knowledge, pedagogical competence, and effectiveness of graduates from the various kinds of teacher preparation programs.

Federal and state policy makers need reliable, outcomes-based information to make sound decisions, and teacher educators need to know how best to contribute to the development of effective teachers. Clearer understanding of the content and character of effective teacher preparation is critical to improving it and to ensuring that the same critiques and questions are not being repeated 10 years from now.

All New Publications

Best Practices for State Assessment Systems Part I: Summary of a Workshop (prepublication)

Language Diversity, School Learning, and Closing Achievement Gaps: A Workshop Summary (prepublication)

Review of the WATERS Network Science Plan (prepublication)

The Use of Title 42 Authority at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: A Letter Report (prepublication)

National Security Implications of Climate Change for U.S. Naval Forces: Letter Report (final)

Transitions to Alternative Transportation Technologies–Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (final)

Seven New Books: Genetically Engineered Crops, Healthcare Quality, and more

Last week saw seven new books, including books in the topics of agriculture; construction: design, research, planning; health and medicine; and behavioral and social sciences. Five of the seven books also have free PDFs available to download.

Featured Publication

Impact of Genetically Engineered Crops on Farm Sustainability in the United States (prepublication)

Since genetically engineered (GE) crops were introduced in 1996, their use in the United States has grown rapidly, accounting for 80-90 percent of soybean, corn, and cotton acreage in 2009. To date, crops with traits that provide resistance to some herbicides and to specific insect pests have benefited adopting farmers by reducing crop losses to insect damage, by increasing flexibility in time management, and by facilitating the use of more environmentally friendly pesticides and tillage practices. However, excessive reliance on a single technology combined with a lack of diverse farming practices could undermine the economic and environmental gains from these GE crops. Other challenges could hinder the application of the technology to a broader spectrum of crops and uses.

Several reports from the National Research Council have addressed the effects of GE crops on the environment and on human health. However, The Impact of Genetically Engineered Crops on Farm Sustainability in the United States is the first comprehensive assessment of the environmental, economic, and social impacts of the GE-crop revolution on U.S. farms. It addresses how GE crops have affected U.S. farmers, both adopters and nonadopters of the technology, their incomes, agronomic practices, production decisions, environmental resources, and personal well-being. The book offers several new findings and four recommendations that could be useful to farmers, industry, science organizations, policy makers, and others in government agencies.

All New Publications This Week

Engineering, Social Justice, and Sustainable Community Development: Summary of a Workshop (prepublication)

A National Cancer Clinical Trials System for the 21st Century: Reinvigorating the NCI Cooperative Group Program (prepublication)

Future Directions for the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports (prepublication)

A Summary of the October 2009 Forum on the Future of Nursing: Acute Care (final)

Strategic Planning for the Florida Citrus Industry: Addressing Citrus Greening (final)

Student Mobility: Exploring the Impact of Frequent Moves on Achievement: Summary of a Workshop (final)

Explore Free Case Studies from Surrounded by Science


Surrounded by Science: Learning Science in Informal Environments is designed to facilitate informal science learning. Based on the National Research Council study, Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places, and Pursuits, this book is a tool that provides case studies, illustrative examples, and probing questions for practitioners. In short, this book makes valuable research accessible to those working in informal science: educators, museum professionals, university faculty, youth leaders, media specialists, publishers, broadcast journalists, and many others.

Surrounded by Science is filled with case studies of informal science activities. Here we present three of them for you to download at no cost. If you decide to replicate or adapt these activities for your own use, be sure to visit our Facebook page and let us know how it goes!

Research in Your Backyard: Participating in the Practices of Science

Download a free PDF of this case study

 bakcyard
celllab

Cell Lab: An Opportunity to Interact with Scientific Instruments

Download a free PDF of this case study

Culturally Relevant Exhibits for People with Disabilities

Download a free PDF of this case study

 disabilities

New Books: Gaming, Science Education, Water Quality and More

Our weekly roundup of the new books on the NAP site this week includes a technical assessment of modeling, simulation and gaming, a look at science education in the 21st century and a couple of publications around energy.

Featured Publication

The Rise of Games and High Performance Computing for Modeling and Simulation (prepublication)

The technical and cultural boundaries between modeling, simulation, and games are increasingly blurring, providing broader access to capabilities in modeling and simulation and further credibility to game-based applications. The purpose of this study is to provide a technical assessment of Modeling, Simulation, and Games (MS&G) research and development worldwide and to identify future applications of this technology and its potential impacts on government and society. Further, this study identifies feasible applications of gaming and simulation for military systems; associated vulnerabilities of, risks to, and impacts on critical defense capabilities; and other significant indicators and warnings that can help prevent or mitigate surprises related to technology applications by those with hostile intent. Finally, this book recommends priorities for future action by appropriate departments of the intelligence community, the Department of Defense research community, and other government entities.

The Rise of Games and High Performance Computing for Modeling and Simulation will serve as a useful tutorial and reference document for this particular era in the evolution of MS&G. The book also highlights a number of rising capabilities facilitated by MS&G to watch for in the coming years.

All New Publications This Week

Exploring the Intersection of Science Education and 21st Century Skills: A Workshop Summary (final)

Realizing the Energy Potential of Methane Hydrate for the United States (prepublication)

Medical Surge Capacity: Workshop Summary (prepublication)

Review and Assessment of Closure Plans for the Tooele Chemical Agent Disposal Facility and the Chemical Agent Munition Disposal System: Letter Report (final)

Driving and the Built Environment: The Effects of Compact Development on Motorized Travel, Energy Use, and CO2 Emissions — Special Report 298 (final)

Data on Federal Research and Development Investments: A Pathway to Modernization (final)

Improving State Voter Registration Databases: Final Report (final)

Protecting and Accessing Data from the Survey of Earned Doctorates: A Workshop Summary (final)

Technical Capabilities Necessary for Systemic Risk Regulation: Summary of a Workshop (final)

Letter Report Assessing the USGS National Water Quality Assessment Program’s Science Framework (final)

New From NAP: Mathematics Education, US Construction Industry and more

It’s the end of the week, so it’s time to round up the books new to our website this week. Check back here every Friday afternoon to get all the latest, or better yet, subscribe to the New From NAP RSS feed to get the newest books every day.

Featured New Book

Mathematics Learning in Early Childhood: Paths Toward Excellence and Equity (final)


Early childhood mathematics is vitally important for young children’s present and future educational success. Research has demonstrated that virtually all young children have the capability to learn and become competent in mathematics. Furthermore, young children enjoy their early informal experiences with mathematics. Unfortunately, many children’s potential in mathematics is not fully realized, especially those children who are economically disadvantaged. This is due, in part, to a lack of opportunities to learn mathematics in early childhood settings or through everyday experiences in the home and in their communities. Improvements in early childhood mathematics education can provide young children with the foundation for school success.

Relying on a comprehensive review of the research, Mathematics Learning in Early Childhood lays out the critical areas that should be the focus of young children’s early mathematics education, explores the extent to which they are currently being incorporated in early childhood settings, and identifies the changes needed to improve the quality of mathematics experiences for young children. This book serves as a call to action to improve the state of early childhood mathematics. It will be especially useful for policy makers and practitioners-those who work directly with children and their families in shaping the policies that affect the education of young children.

All New Books This Week

2007-2008 Assessment of the Army Research Laboratory (final)

Systems for Research and Evaluation for Translating Genome-Based Discoveries for Health: Workshop Summary (final)

Evaluating Occupational Health and Safety Research Programs: Framework and Next Steps (final)

Advancing the Competitiveness and Efficiency of the U.S. Construction Industry (final)

New Publications This Week (10/12-10/16)

Friday brings us to our weekly roundup of all the publications that have been released this week. If you’d like faster notification of our new publications, subscribe to the New From NAP RSS feed or connect with us on Twitter or Facebook.

Featured Publication

Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects: Making Sense of the Evidence (prepublication)

Data suggest that exposure to secondhand smoke can result in heart disease in nonsmoking adults. Recently, progress has been made in reducing involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke through legislation banning smoking in workplaces, restaurants, and other public places. The effect of legislation to ban smoking and its effects on the cardiovascular health of nonsmoking adults, however, remains a question.

Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects reviews available scientific literature to assess the relationship between secondhand smoke exposure and acute coronary events. The authors, experts in secondhand smoke exposure and toxicology, clinical cardiology, epidemiology, and statistics, find that there is about a 25 to 30 percent increase in the risk of coronary heart disease from exposure to secondhand smoke. Their findings agree with the 2006 Surgeon General’s Report conclusion that there are increased risks of coronary heart disease morbidity and mortality among men and women exposed to secondhand smoke. However, the authors note that the evidence for determining the magnitude of the relationship between chronic secondhand smoke exposure and coronary heart disease is not very strong.

Public health professionals will rely upon Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Cardiovascular Effects for its survey of critical epidemiological studies on the effects of smoking bans and evidence of links between secondhand smoke exposure and cardiovascular events, as well as its findings and recommendations.

All Publications This Week

Science at Sea: Meeting Future Oceanographic Goals with a Robust Academic Research Fleet (prepublication)

Live Variola Virus: Considerations for Continuing Research (final)

Transforming Agricultural Education for a Changing World (final)

Initial National Priorities for Comparative Effectiveness Research (final)

Final Report from the NRC Committee on the Review of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration (LACPR) Program (final)

This Week’s New Publications (10/5-10/9)

Every Friday, we run down the publications that hit nap.edu in the past week. Every publication is available to read for free online, so follow the links to read them on our site.

Featured Publication

Approaches to Reducing the Use of Forced or Child Labor: Summary of a Workshop on Assessing Practice (final)



Globally, child labor and forced labor are widespread and complex problems. They are conceptually different phenomena, requiring different policy responses, though they may also overlap in practice. The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) was designed to reduce the use of child and forced labor in the production of goods consumed in the United States. The Act was reauthorized in 2003, 2005, and 2008.

In response to provisions of TVPA, the the Bureau of International Labor Affairs requested that the National Research Council organize a two-day workshop. The workshop, summarized in this volume, discusses methods for identifying and organizing a standard set of practices that will reduce the likelihood that persons will use forced labor or child labor to produce goods, with a focus on business and governmental practices.

All Publications This Week

Experimentation and Rapid Prototyping in Support of Counterterrorism (prepublication)

Review of the Methodology Proposed by the Food Safety and Inspection Service for Follow-up Surveillance of In-Commerce Businesses: A Letter Report (final)

Vital Statistics: Summary of a Workshop (final)

Letter Report to the U.S. Department of Education on the Race to the Top Fund (final)

Biographical Memoirs: V. 90 (final)

Sensing and Supporting Communications Capabilities for Special Operations Forces (final)

Toward a Universal Radio Frequency System for Special Operations Forces (final)