The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Horizons Committee met in Iowa City (Iowa) before the 1982 Curriculum Update Conference. The committee was charged with planning a new future of science education. The thinking of the members of the Horizons Committee provided the framework for the 1982 conference. These proceedings represent a record of the thinking, deliberations, and outcomes of their efforts and, in a sense, represent a status report concerning the directions envisioned by some of the current leadership in science education. Areas and issues addressed include: aspects of a renewal in schooling and education; learning from past mistakes; status of precollege science/mathematics education; computer use in the science curriculum; activity-based curriculum projects for societal issue courses (includes a bibliographic list of activities/projects matched to science/society issues); a brief review of the Individualized Science Instructional System (ISIS); naive conceptions of science and instruction; and NSTA's 1982 Search for Excellence program. Other areas/issues considered include developing creativity as a result of science instruction; crisis in the science classroom; linking teacher behaviors to student outcomes; science educators and policy makers; teaching citizens about science/technology, relevance in science education; need for solutions for lingering problems; and supervision and teaching perspectives. (JN)