• BlazeDaley@lemmy.world
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    4 days ago

    Graduate students provide enormous value for their cost in funding. I’d like to better understand how k-12 students contribute here. Those students make up 88.7k of the reduction. How much do these students contribute and at what cost?

    I’m in no way against inspiring the next generation. My question is aimed at correctly interpreting this table. The NSF is a worthwhile expense, but let’s understand the data we have.

    • fossilesque@mander.xyzOPM
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      4 days ago

      I don’t even know where to start here. The report is literally linked.

      PreK-12 Teachers include teachers at elementary, middle, and secondary schools. These individuals actively participate in intensive professional development experiences in the sciences and mathematics.

      PreK-12 Students are those attending elementary, middle, and secondary schools. They are supported through program components that directly engage students in science and mathematics experiences.

      This is the foundation building of a national science program and every dollar you spend on this comes back tenfold over time. This is also class warfare, further defending education for the marginalised populations. This also fucks climate education and so, so, so many other things. The value of public outreach, especially for the youth is not only a well studied topic, but also inherently an issue of national security.

      • BlazeDaley@lemmy.world
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        4 days ago

        I’m not disagreeing. The report isn’t clear. This is written by people asking Congress for a budget cut.

        NSF programs indirectly impact millions of people, reaching PreK-12 students and teachers, the general public, and researchers

        The actual impact to the pipeline may be far larger.