25 percent of math teachers and 20 percent of science teachers are teaching outside their fields, Glenn said, and 30 percent of math and science teachers leave their positions within three years after starting because of low pay.

As part of its study, the commission examined teaching methods in other countries.

Glenn cited Japanese teaching methods as beneficial because they promote critical thinking rather than teaching skills.

Japanese teachers, Glenn said, promote a more interactive style of learning in which students collaborate to solve problems before being presented with a potential method for finding a solution.

Glenn sent out the findings of the commission to every school board in the United States, in the hope of facilitating the implementation of corrective measures at all levels.

"Local school boards hold the key to correcting this," Glenn said. "People say, 'Can we afford to do this?' My idea is, can we afford not to?" Glenn said.

Glenn has had a distinguished career in the military, in space and in politics. After piloting a spacecraft for the first manned orbital mission of the United States, Glenn pursued his interest in politics.

He represented his home state of Ohio in the Senate for more than two decades, and became the oldest man to go into space in 1998 when he participated in a study on aging and space travel.