This project will develop upper elementary school students’ abilities to work with Artificial intelligence (AI) in future careers. AI will be a critical tool for influencing and increasing productivity in the future of work. As such, it is increasingly important to introduce K-12 students to basic AI knowledge and skills, build familiarity with AI technologies, and train students to be competitive in the workforce. Through this project, a team of robotics and education researchers at Tufts University in Massachusetts and Maryville University in St.

The development of spatial orientation (SO) skills – the ability to identify the position of objects in space – is a strong predictor of math skills and later school success and academic achievement. However, even with the increasing evidence in the importance of SO skills for children, they are rarely included in kindergarten and primary school curriculum. This puts children at a severe learning disadvantage; children who lag behind their peers in school-entry mathematical skills are at high risk to continue to do so.

This project will develop and study an innovative community-based engineering education model to support science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) knowledge, identity, and career awareness of rural, economically disadvantaged students. The project leverages strategic partnerships between North Carolina State University, Edgecombe School District, and local industry to create an Engineering Design and Exploration course.

Many elementary school children in urban communities are not given the opportunity to relate what they see in school to the mathematics they see in their homes, families, and communities. This project will help solve this problem through a digital storytelling approach. It will investigate how elementary grade children can use mobile technology to create digital mathematics stories. These stories will be made from videos, photos, and audio. Students will connect mathematics from out-of-school settings to the mathematics they learn in school.

This exploratory project will study the integration of science, design and advanced technology in high school education through a set of innovative learning experiences in the context of plant science using augmented and virtual reality (AVR) technologies. Underrepresented and underserved students from both urban and rural communities will have access to novel educational tools while learning how to create 3D models of different parts of plants in small collaborative teams.

This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Research has indicated limited digital technology use and engineering instruction among elementary teachers. This project addresses two of the seven ITEST guiding questions: student experiences with emerging technologies and instructional and curricular innovations.

In the wake of COVID-19, Greater Cleveland’s low-income families need a stronger pathway out of poverty. Cleveland’s residents are getting poorer: the city’s overall poverty rate reached 34.6% in 2018, up from 27% in 2006. For children, that rate reached 50.9%, up from 41.9% in 2006.

This project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM).  The Coding Makerspace is providing hands-on digital maker projects and support for boys of color to earn certification in Python, the computer programming language related to cybersecurity.  The Makerspace is also exposing boys of color ages eight and above to research-based and best pr

This Innovative Technology Experience for Teachers and Students project provides a model for increasing student interest in STEM careers and active engagement of business and industry partners with grade 6-12 aged youth in Arizona. The Chief Science Officers (CSO) program expands on the student government model to select one or several youth at participating middle or high schools who champion STEM interest, engagement, and communication. On-campus, CSOs identify and lead STEM opportunities such as speakers, field trips, and science nights, and other activities.