In 1995, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) started implementing a two-year high school sequence of Integrated/Coordinated Science (ICS) classes that were substantially based on Science and Sustainability. The ICS students showed significant gains on the SAT9 (Stanford Achievement Test) science test (Scott, 2000). The SAT-9 is a norm-referenced assessment that includes a science subtest designed to assess knowledge from life, physical, and earth and space sciences. The results of the LAUSD study of ICS also showed higher numbers of students, and in particular underrepresented minority students, intended to enroll in advanced science courses after taking ICS. The report is available here and was also published, in part, in the article "Integrated Science Study," in The Science Teacher, 67 (6), 56-59 (2000).
Division of Instruction, Los Angeles Systemic Initiative