Contemplating Criteria for Science Education Reform: The Case of the Olympia School District

Proposals for current reform in science education elaborate national standards and a plethora of state‐level interpretations commonly labeled as curriculum or learning frameworks. The purpose of this case study was to examine the dynamics of the science curriculum reform process in one of the first school districts to use the Georgia Framework for Learning Mathematics and Science as a basis for their reform initiative. The paper describes the ways in which members of the Olympia School District's Science Curriculum Committee participated in the science curriculum reform process, as well as their personal beliefs about the criteria needed for reform to take place. The results highlight the nature of metaphors guiding reform efforts; the influence of social, historical, economic, and political forces on the reform process; the use of local and professional languages as discourses for communicating about reform; and the complex power relations that influence the micropolitics of reform in the Olympia School District. This study has important implications for other teachers and school districts engaged in standards‐based science curriculum reform. It points to the need for reform to include reflection and analysis of the role of teachers in the reform process and consideration of the purpose of science education reform in society.