[2] NSTA was formed by the merger of two existing non-professional organizations, the American Science Teachers Association and the American Council of Science Teachers, at a July 1944 meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

[4] This first permanent headquarters, purchased in 1972, was located on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C., and then moved to Arlington, Virginia in 1994.

[3] NSTA is engaged in an ongoing effort to "identify the qualities and standards of good science education," publishing its findings in the form of position statements.

In 2018, the NSTA urged teachers to "emphasize to students that no scientific controversy exists regarding the basic facts of climate change.

[15] NSTA and the student chapters are separate but interdependent organizations that have elected to ally themselves to encourage professional development and networking of preservice teachers of science from across the United States and Canada.