There has been a great stress on student performance in math and science and a new study is suggesting that knowledge in the subjects is actually improving, but there is still a long way to go for the majority of the country.

According to a study out of the University of Michigan, adults in the U.S. are actually scoring higher on science tests than they did 20 years ago. The study found that in 1988, approximately 10 percent of American adults had an understanding of science, compared to 28 percent of adults 20 years later.

Interestingly, the researchers point out that America is the only major country that establishes a requirement for higher education students to attend at least a full year of science class in order to educate individuals with what's going on in the world.

"America's democracy depends on having a larger number of scientifically literate citizens," said study author Jon Miller. "Today's political agenda includes debates over global climate change, embryonic stem cells, future energy sources and the possibility of a viral pandemic. And as the twenty-first century progresses, scientific issues are only likely to become more prominent features of the political landscape."