With report after report lamenting the scientific ignorance of many college students, professors gathered this week at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to talk about how to improve science teaching.
ââ?¬Å?I think we do have a crisis,ââ?¬Â said Jo Handelsman, a professor of plant pathology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, noting that demographics play a role in the lack of interest in science. Handelsman cited statistics from the National Academies, noting that women earn around 50 percent of doctorates in biology but make up only 25 percent of faculty. Why so many female doctorates drop out of academe is unknown, she said.