How was California involved in the development of the NGSS?

In September 2011, California was selected as a lead state partner in the development of the NGSS. As a lead state partner, California agreed to commit staff time to the initiative and, upon completion, give serious consideration to adopting the NGSS. Lead states guided the standards writing process, gathering and delivering feedback from state-level committees, and came together to address common issues and challenges.

In November 2011, SSPI Torlakson convened a State Review Team (SRT) consisting of 80 science experts representing K–12 science teachers, administrators, county science consultants, college and university professors, scientists, science informal centers, and business and industry. Over a span of nearly 18 months, the SRT reviewed five public and private drafts of the NGSS and provided feedback to Achieve, Inc. and the CDE.

In April 2013, after the final draft of the NGSS were released, SSPI Torlakson convened a Science Expert Panel (SEP), a smaller group representative of the SRT. The SEP met three times from April to June 2013, to review feedback from three regional public meetings and SRT surveys, and to make final recommendations for the California standards based on NGSS to the SSPI.

The final recommendations include proposed learning progressions for Elementary (K–5), Middle (6–8), and High School (9–12) Science.