New Jersey State House.
New Jersey readopted its state science standards (Word document) on June 3, 2026, with minor revisions involving the treatment of climate change.
In particular, the phrase "climate change" was removed from two kindergarten and one third-grade performance expectations, although the document explaining the revisions repeatedly emphasized (Word document) that it is important for teachers to remember that these standards are prerequisites for a later understanding of climate change.
Additionally, a performance expectation for high school earth and space sciences about evaluating competing design solutions with regard to energy and mineral sources was revised to "more accurately reflect the complexity of the performance expectation and better align it with its foundational disciplinary core ideas."
A previous version of New Jersey's science standards received the grade of B+ in "Making the Grade?" — a 2020 report evaluating the treatment of climate change in state science standards conducted by NCSE and the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund — reflecting the B+ grade earned by the Next Generation Science Standards.
The standards were then revised, prompting NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch to write, in his contribution to Climate Change Education Across Disciplines K-12: New Jersey and Beyond (2025), ed. Lauren Madden, "New Jersey would [now] probably receive an A- or even an A, reflecting the added emphasis on climate change in its current science standards."
New Jersey is unique in incorporating material on climate change throughout all of its state education standards, as NCSE previously reported.
