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1. Certification Requirements

A. Grades 9-12

1. Total number of 9-12 teachers with main assignment in science: 2,774
2. Total number of science teachers in grades 9-12 with an Earth science assignment: 1,003
3. Percentage of 9-12 science teachers with an Earth science certification: 73%
4. Specific licensure requirements for secondary teachers: Requires a specific minimum number of units in the subject area taught; specifies components in program.

B. Grades 6-8

1. Total number of teachers in grades 7-8 with a main assignment in science: 1,695
2. Total number of grades 7-8 science teachers in all assignments: 1,836
3. Percentage of middle grade science teachers certified in science: 89%
4. Specific licensure requirements for middle school teachers: Requires a specific minimum number of units in the subject area taught; specifies components in program.

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2. Course Requirements

A. Grades 9-12

1. Number of science credits required for high school graduation: 3 units of lab science
2. Required science courses: Must select two of the sciences:  Earth science, biology, chemistry, or physics
3. Is an Earth science course included in the recommended high school science curriculum? Yes
4. Is Earth science part of another course required for high school graduation? No
5. If Earth science is taken, does it count towards graduation requirements?   Yes
6. Is an Environmental science course included in the recommended high school science curriculum? No
7. Is Environmental science part of another course required for high school graduation? Yes
8.  If Environmental science is taken, does it count towards graduation requirements?   Yes 

B. Grades 6-8

1. Is Earth Science part of the middle school science curriculum (grades 6-8)?  Yes
2. Is it taught as a full year curriculum or an integrated curriculum?  Full Year
3. At what grade level(s) is Earth science taught? 6th

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3.  K-12 Enrollment

A. Student Enrollment

Grades	K-12	K-5	6-8	9-12
Students	1,234,857	550,686	274,165	380,131

B. Percent of Grade 9 students enrolled in selected courses

Course	Earth science	Chemistry	Biology	Physics
Percent	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available

C. Enrollment trends in Grade 9 Earth science

Year	Percent	Students
1996-97	Not Available	Not Available
1997-98	Not Available	Not Available
1999-00	Not Available	Not Available
2003-04	Not Available	Not Available

D. Students in grades 7-8 enrolled in selected science courses

	1999-2000	2003-2004
Course	Students (Percentage)	Students (Percentage)
Earth Science	Not Available (Not Available)	Not Available (Not Available)
General Science	Not Available (Not Available)	Not Available (Not Available)
Physical Science	Not Available (Not Available)	Not Available (Not Available)
Life Science	Not Available (Not Available)	Not Available (Not Available)
Integrated or Coordinated Science	Not Available (Not Available)	Not Available (Not Available)

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4. K-12 Indicators

	State	National
Average Freshman Graduation Rate	74.5%	73.2%
College Enrollment Rate	68.3%	68.6%
AP Participation Rate	34.1%	25%

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5. Science Standards

• Standards Publication: Standards of Learning for Virginia Public Schools
• Year in which science standards were adopted: 2010
• Are state standards determined at the district level?No. The state has the Standards of Learning (SOL) that each school division must teach in Science, Mathematics, English and Social Sciences. However, the school division determines how to incorporate those SOL into their curriculum, i.e the delivery, instructional materials, sequencing, etc. They only need to make sure that all of the content is taught in time for the corresponding SOL test at the end of the course, or in a span of grade levels for elementary and middle school science.
• When will the state standards be revised? 2010

The National Science Education Standards outline the concepts and principles that students should understand about Earth and space science. At the middle school level, the standards are divided into three areas: Structure of the Earth System, Earth’s History, and Earth in the Solar System. At the high school level, the standards are divided into four areas: Energy in the Earth System, Geochemical Cycles, Origin and Evolution of the Earth System, and Origin and Evolution of the Universe. For the AGI Report, the Earth science standards for each state were reviewed to determine whether they incorporate the concepts and principles outlined in the National Science Education Standards.

A. Do the state standards for grades 9-12 contain principles and concepts related to:

Energy in the Earth system? Yes	Origin and evolution of the Earth system? Yes
Geochemical cycles? Yes	Origin and evolution of the universe? Yes

B. Do the state standards for grades 9-12 include environmental science concepts?
Yes.  Embedded within Earth Science Standards

C. Do the state standards for grades 5-8 contain principles and concepts related to:

Structure of the Earth system? Yes	Earth in the Solar System? v
Earth’s history? Yes

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6. Testing and Assessment

A. State Science Tests

Test	Grade Levels Tested:	Earth Science Component on the Test?
Standards of Learning (SOL) Assessment	3, 5, 8	Yes

B. State High School Exit Exam

1. Name of Exam: None
2. Type of Test: N/A
3. Does the exam have a science component?N/A
4. At what grade do students first take the exam?N/A
5. Is passing the exam a requirement for a diploma?N/A
6. Does the exam have an Earth science component?N/A

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7. Textbook Adoptions

• Does the state select or recommend textbooks? Recommends. 
• Earth science textbook(s)/program(s) used in the state at the high school level: A list of textbooks can be found here.
• Environmental science textbook(s)/program(s) used in the state at the high school level: A list of textbooks can be found here.
• Earth science textbook(s)/program(s) used in the state at the middle school level:  A list of textbooks can be found here.

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8. Undergraduate Education

Students Graduating with an Associates Degree

Physical Sciences	Geosciences	Life Sciences	Natural and Physical Sciences	Science and Engineering Technologies
191	N/A	1,836	N/A	2,100

Students Graduating with a Bachelor's Degree

Physical Sciences	Geosciences	Life Sciences	Natural and Physical Sciences	Science and Engineering Technologies
629	97	4,339	5,065	849

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9. Graduate Education

Students Graduating with a Master's Degree

Physical Sciences	Geosciences	Life Sciences	Natural and Physical Sciences	Science and Engineering Technologies
93	16	1,018	1,127	191

Students Graduating with a Doctorate Degree

Physical Sciences	Geosciences	Life Sciences	Natural and Physical Sciences	Science and Engineering Technologies
80	11	420	511	7

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10. State Contact Person

James (Jim) Firebaugh	Director, Middle and High School Instruction
Virginia Dept. of Education P O Box 2120 Richmond, VA 23218-2120	jim.firebaugh@doe.virginia.gov 804-225-2651

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