Bill Gates on Capitol Hill, Discusses a 21st Century Sputnik, STEM Ed, and H-1B Visas

“Like many others, I have deep misgivings about the state of education in the United States…Our record on high school math and science education is particularly troubling. International tests indicate that U.S. fourth graders rank among the top students in the world in science and above average in math. By eighth grade, they have moved closer to the middle of the pack. By 12th grade, U.S. students score near the bottom of all industrialized nations. As a result, too many U.S. students enter college without even the basic skills needed to pursue a degree in science and engineering.”

-Bill Gates, March 12, 2008

On Wednesday, March 12, the House Science and Technology Committee had a hearing on competitiveness issues with just one name on the witness list: Bill Gates—Chairman of Microsoft, Co-Chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The hearing, held in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the committee’s founding, commenced with a brief opening statement (PDF) by committee Chairman Bart Gordon, followed by Ranking Member Ralph Hall and a few other members. Rep. Gordon then proceeded to introduce Mr. Gates, humorously revealing the committee’s high view of the esteemed businessman-philanthropist, saying: “Since we have a rock star, we should let him rock.”

The hearing lasted just over two hours, and the video is available online, on the right-hand side of the committee website, under “Webcast Info.” As with previous hearings, we will provide the minutes of particularly relevant sections of the video in italics throughout this summary, allowing readers to jump ahead in the video to these sections if interested. Our summary will be broken into the following sections (the latter three include questions from members of Congress, and the respective answers by Mr. Gates):

-HOW TO FIX THE COMPETITIVENESS SLUMP: Gates on the roles of business, non-profits and government in dealing with competitiveness issues

-CONFRONTING THE WAINING U.S. INTEREST IN STEM: Waiting for Sputnik in the 21st century

-EDUCATION: Gates on “teaching to the test”; preparing better math and science teachers; developing an effective STEM curriculum; and raising pay for STEM teachers

-IMMIGRATION FOR STEM WORKERS: Taking the jobs of B and C students in the U.S.?
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HOW TO FIX THE COMPETITIVENESS SLUMP: Gates on the roles of business, non-profits and government in dealing with competitiveness issues

Apparently due to time constraints, Mr. Gates shortened his 20-page opening remarks (PDF) to a briefer, ten minute introductory statement (video clip: minutes 17:34-27:05). During those remarks, Gates noted what he considered to be two major competitiveness issues facing the United States: the supply shortfall of scientists and engineers and the decline in public and private support of basic research and development.

Solutions? Business, non-profits, and government, said Gates. As evidence for the potential roles of the business and non-profit sectors, he used examples of both Microsoft and the Gates Foundation. For business, he used the example of Microsoft’s “Partners in Learning” initiative, saying it encouraged higher quality education and motivated kids to study math and science, affecting over 80,000 teachers and 3 million students in his estimation. He went on to note that the Gates Foundation participated in the non-profit sector’s attempt to curb competitiveness problems by investing heavily in U.S. education: nearly $2 billion towards establishing or improving around 2000 U.S. high schools, and over $1.7 billion towards college scholarship programs.

For the government’s part, Gates stated that it has the capacity to affect change on a broader scale, and that it should start with education. Among his education policy recommendations, was an oft-cited requirement for Gates Foundation grant recipients: data. Metrics are needed, he said, metrics that: 1. reflect what students learn and the progress that they are (or are not) making; 2. help determine best practices; and 3. identify the most effective teachers, and the factors that make those teachers so effective. He then noted the need for changes in policies and funding levels that relate to higher education, emphasizing full funding of the America COMPETES Act.

CONFRONTING THE WAINING U.S. INTEREST IN STEM: Waiting for Sputnik in the 21st century

Such a large number of committee members asked questions during the hearing, that Rep. Gordon eventually limited them to one—even then, not all of the members had an opportunity to do so. Many that did, asked some version of the following: What will be the Sputnik of our day?

For example, Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) asked, “what do you think we can do as the Fed. to actually inspire kids?” Gates said that much of that inspiration needed to start with the teachers, calling for teachers to be hired that “have proven that they can make the subject engaging.” He also noted that charter schools have been able to have some of the freedom that he felt necessary to bring about important innovations in teaching and learning. Interestingly, he went on to state that Europe is also experiencing the same wane in interest in science and technology among its students. (video clip: minutes 1:08:58-1:11:56)

More specifically, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) wanted to know, what today is comparable to the Sputnik of yesteryear? Gates felt that Sputnik was actually more abstract than some of the inspirational occurences of our current era. Today, he said, there is a much higher potential to personally affect change via technology, pointing out an example of providing Internet browsing software to the blind, allowing them to easily surf the Internet. However, he did admit that he is surprised that more students are not going into STEM fields, despite the draw. (video clip: minutes 55:50-1:00:04)

Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) offered his own diagnosis of the problem: “[T]hese maladies,” he said, “are the symptoms of a common disease. And that is, that a society gets what it appreciates. Our society just does not appreciate academic achievement, and as a society we do not appreciate scientists, mathematicians and engineers…The culture needs to change. And I’ll believe it’s changing when the White House invites academic achievers and scientists, mathematicians and engineers and slobbers all over them the way they do entertainers and sports figures.” Gates responded by saying that while he was perplexed by the obvious disinterest in the fields, that he felt there was at the same time a “fascination with science and engineering,” noting the public’s interest in businesses such as Google and Microsoft. The two went on to discuss how to garner interest in STEM fields. (video clip: minutes 1:14:07-1:21:51)

EDUCATION: Gates on “teaching to the test”; preparing better math and science teachers; developing an effective STEM curriculum; and raising pay for STEM teachers

Gates on “Teaching to the Test”

Chairman Gordon cut right to the chase with his first question to Mr. Gates, asking him about the concerns various parties have raised with the current U.S. education system and the issue of “teaching to a test.” Gates stood by the need for data, saying that America needed to get serious about testing. Tests do reflect the standards businesses want, he pointed out. Moreover, he went on, other nations are serious about using tests as the metrics by which they determine what changes may be needed with teachers, systems, and so on. This led him to note the trend in PISA scores that shows that the most significant drop-off in U.S. scores, compared to other countries, is in high school. In light of this, he stated, “Clearly in the high school period, there’s some level of rigor that exists in these other nations’ systems, that isn’t as strong in our systems.” Getting back to testing, he pointed out that there is a “temptation to say, ‘if the data are so bad, let’s stop testing’ ”—this is natural, he said, considering how costly it may be to fix the problems revealed by testing. (video clip: minutes 27:05-32:33)

Gates on Preparing Better Math and Science Teachers

Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-MI) later followed, asking about ways government could get involved to better prepare math and science teachers. Coming back again to data, Gates explained that data is needed that highlights the differences between teachers who are doing very well, and those who are not. That particular type of data, he stated, is imperative to be able to encourages all teachers to employ the habits and techniques that make some so successful. The assumptions that such things as the length of time someone has taught, or whether or not one is certified, are making the difference are often shown to be fallacious, said Gates. He also noted that many other countries are tracking the data on what separates an effective teacher from a less effective one, but that the U.S. is not doing so in robust ways. (video clip: minutes 1:03:19-1:08:58)

Gates on Developing an Effective STEM Curriculum

Rep. McNerney wanted to know how the curricula at STEM-specific schools started by the Gates Foundation in Texas and other states differed from regular schools. Gates offered a disclaimer first, emphasizing that there are two approaches to improving STEM education: one takes curriculum at normal schools and makes it better, the other involves STEM-specific schools. He went on to note that many schools are using curricula that focus on projects which purposefully cut across subject boundaries—boundaries of biology being different than chemistry, chemistry being different than math, and so on. In terms of STEM-specific schools however, Gates did point out that minority interest in STEM at these schools is more than double that of traditional schools. (video clip: minutes 1:11:56-1:14:01)

Gates on Raising Pay for STEM Teachers

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) brought up teacher pay, asking if science, math and engineering teachers should be paid more than other teachers. Gates prefaced his answer by stating that, if reasonable, but rigorous standards were set for teachers, this would reveal a “supply shortage” of STEM teachers who met those standards. Based on that shortage, he said, there likely would be a need to be higher pay for STEM teachers in order to attract them to the profession. (video clip: minutes 50:15-52:25)

IMMIGRATION FOR STEM WORKERS: Taking the jobs of B and C students in the U.S.?

Another issue that discussions consistently came back to, was that of H-1B Visas. H-1B Visas are issued to foreigners who wish to temporarily work in the U.S. in what are deemed “specialty occupations” (this category of occupations includes those in engineering, math and science). There is currently a cap on the number of immigrants allowed into the U.S. with H-1B Visa status—a cap that, throughout the hearing, Mr. Gates consistently called for Congress and the government to raise.

He summed up his case at one point saying, “One thing that’s unique in this era, is that it’s controversial to let smart people come to the country and stay and work here. That is really novel.” The fundamentals of his case, however, were made in his opening statement. Within that statement, he noted that the National Science Board’s Science and Engineering Indicators showed how 59% of U.S. doctoral degrees, and 43% of all higher education degrees in engineering and computer science, are awarded to temporary residents; but current immigration policy, he said, “makes it increasingly difficult for these students to stay in the US.”

In support of his overall point, he noted a study that showed that between 1995 and 2005, firms with at least one foreign born founder created 450,000 new U.S. jobs. He cited another study that claimed that five new jobs are created around every H-1B Visa-holder hired by technology companies. Last year, however, he said that Microsoft was not able to obtain H-1B visas for over a third of its candidates. At one point he said that, while it is the preference of Microsoft to employ U.S. students, the jobs have to go where the engineering talent is; in this vein, he noted that Microsoft had opened a Vancouver, Canada office because their government allowed companies to hire more immigrants, who were educated in Canada, than the U.S. did, for those students educated in the U.S.

Does he suggest any cap at all on H-1B Visas though, asked Rep. Steven Rothman (D-NJ). Gates noted that the key focus is on highly-skilled people, and said that the number of those individuals needed would not significantly affect aggregate numbers of immigrants to the U.S. (video clip: minutes 1:36:41-1:41:07). Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA) later asked if an increase in H-1B Visas could deter American students from pursuing STEM education, and ultimately getting highly-skilled jobs. Gates responded by saying that U.S. kids would be competing with foreign students, even if those students are turned away from the U.S. He went on to say that no H-1 B Visa-related policy decision would affect the number of foreign students who are employed in STEM-related sectors worldwide—it would only affect the numbers employed in the U.S., and the related number of surrounding jobs that would be created, said Gates. (video clip: minutes 1:52:25-1:56:33)

Finally, the most heated exchange of the hearing occurred the series of H-1B Visa-related questions asked by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) (video clip: minutes 52:25-55:50). “Our goal,” said Rohrabacher, “isn’t to replace the job of the B students with A students from India”—what did Gates think of that? Gates said that those B and C students could have the jobs that he claimed would be created around top engineers—that is, as long as the top engineers were allowed in, via a raise in the cap on H-1B Visas. Rohrabacher quickly countered that, “according to Business Week…almost 150,000 computer programmers have lost their job in this country since the year 2000”; he went on to state that he reads that as saying that American companies are willing to hire top foreign students, while at the same time allowing those, such as the 150,000 programmers, to go unemployed. Gates responded somewhat tersely that the study is not “according to Business Week,” but that it is an Urban Institute study that Business Week was quoting—a study, he went on, that he claimed was “deeply flawed in terms of how it defined what an engineer is.” The exchange ended shortly thereafter, when Rep. Gordon noted that Rep. Rohrabacher’s time was up.