Findings from a Survey of State Science Leaders: Year 2

This report presents results from a study of the Council of State Science Supervisors (CSSS). CSSS is a professional association for state science leaders that works to sustain and nurture a dynamic learning community and to empower its members to be effective and articulate advocates for quality science education at the local, state, and national levels. Given that many state science supervisors are working to support implementation of the "Framework for K-12 Science Education," the authors sought to develop an understanding of CSSS members' roles and responsibilities, as well as their use of research to inform state implementation decisions. The research questions guiding the study were: (1) What roles and activities do CSSS members take on and participate in within the association and their states?; (2) What research findings and research-based resources do CSSS members use to inform their efforts to promote implementation of the Framework? What research findings and research-based resources do they share with local education leaders?; (3) To whom do CSSS members turn for research to inform their state's decisions regarding implementation of the Framework?; and (4) How, if at all, are CSSS member roles and activities associated with their research networks? In this report, the authors provide information related to the study design and sample, and findings on roles and activities in which respondents reported engaging as CSSS members and state leaders. The authors also present findings related to CSSS members' research use, with respect to the sources they sought for research to inform their state's decisions, as well as their efforts to acquire research. In addition, the authors investigate CSSS members' social networks, and specifically how research-related information flows between members. The authors also examine relationships between characteristics of CSSS members' networks and their activities in the association. Finally, the authors present key conclusions drawn from the survey data analysis. [For the "Framework for K-12 Science Education," see ED536476. For the previous report, "Findings from a Survey of State Science Leaders," see ED599937.]