SCIENCE CURRICULUM REVIEW - EVALUATING MATERIALS FOR HIGH-ABILITY LEARNERS

This article describes the findings of a review of existing K-8 scienc e curriculum materials that was carried out under the National Science Curriculum Project for High-Ability Learners. Twenty-seven sets of ma terials were reviewed using criteria developed and refined by project staff. The purpose of the review was to ascertain whether currently av ailable materials met the new standards in the teaching of science and the needs of gifted learners. The review findings suggest that existi ng basal textbooks fail to meet new science curriculum standards for a ll students, but particularly for high-ability learners. Modular progr ams and supplementary materials were found to be superior to basal tex tbooks on most dimensions.