Sat, May 17, 2008 (2:06 a.m.)

Test scores from schools across the country show the ample need for student improvement in math and science at all grade levels.

Educators say the need is critical for two related reasons — so that students themselves, upon reaching adulthood, will be competitive in an increasingly global and technological world, and so that their contributions will keep the country competitive with other nations in areas such as medicine, energy and communications.

One key to improving student achievement in math and science is to get them interested in the subjects. To this end, NASA this week announced it is expanding its educational programming on TV and the Internet (under “Multimedia” at www.nasa.gov).

For the 2008-09 school year, in honor of its 50th anniversary, NASA will be offering special on-demand video segments tailored to augment lessons prepared by math and science teachers.

The segments, produced in partnership with the National Institute of Aerospace, will run from 5 to 10 minutes apiece. For elementary students, the segments will provide a general introduction to the fields of science and engineering. Middle school students will learn about math and why gaining expertise in it will help them in their careers. High school students will learn the math, science and engineering principles behind several NASA projects and missions.

This assist to education was announced Wednesday at the NASA Future Forum in San Jose, Calif. Attendees represented the country’s leading high-tech companies, including Microsoft, Aerojet, Google, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Symantec — exactly the types of companies that need employees who have a solid grounding in math and science.

While we believe the physical presence of a teacher offers the best opportunity for children to learn, we also believe that multimedia programs that can add interest to classroom education are useful.

NASA’s new video offerings, in our view, will be an invaluable aid to education. We understand that time is of the essence in today’s school environment, but we hope teachers can work the short NASA videos into their presentations. Few subjects capture a child’s imagination better than space travel.