ITEST Projects

Empowering Math Teachers with an AI Tool for Auto-Generation of Technology-Enhanced Assessments

2023 - 2024

The proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) and powerful Large Language Models (LLMs) has evoked excitement and confusion among K-12 teachers regarding AI's impact on teaching, assessments, and student work. It is vital for researchers with expertise in human-centered teaching and learning to

A Community-Inclusive AI Chatbot to Support Teachers in Developing Culturally Focused and Universally Designed STEM Activities

2023 - 2024

Large language models (LLM) represent a new and rapidly changing technological advancement for K12 STEM learning. It is critical at this point in time to investigate and provide pathways for including justice, equity, inclusion, and community cultural capital and wealth in designing LLM-based

COVID-Inspired Data Science Education through Epidemiology

2023 - 2024

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic provides a starting point for empowering young people to understand uses of data science through epidemiology. Through this program, 400 underserved youth nationwide will engage in a 15-hour out-of-school multimedia program centered on a project-developed text, The Case

Envisioning STEM Education for the Green and Blue Economies

2023 - 2024

Climate change is one of the most formidable challenges of our time. Countries are experiencing record heat, wildfires, drought, and powerful monsoons. These natural disasters have created an urgent need for a workforce that can build stronger green and blue economies. Green economies emit low

Responsible, Ethical, and Effective Acceptable Use Policies for the Integration of Generative AI in US School Districts and Beyond

2023 - 2024

The rapidly evolving space of artificial intelligence (AI) is requiring school and district leaders to make sense of how emerging technology applications, including those that use generative AI (GenAI), are being integrated in schools and districts across the United States. Much uncertainty exists

From Black Boys to Men in a Multiyear STEM Education Intervention and Mixed Methods Research Project

2022 - 2027

Conceptualizing a community-based model that enhances the recruitment, engagement, and transition to STEM teaching roles for Black male students while retaining and advancing Black male teachers is critical to addressing their significant and historically disproportionate representation in teaching

Enhancing Underrepresented Student Engagement in STEM through Mentoring and Family Involvement

2022 - 2027

This collaborative project is an informal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) intervention that will uniquely combine partnerships between STEM and education faculty at the University of Houston (UH) with mentorship from the participants’ families and UH STEM undergraduate

Engaging Underrepresented Populations in Environmental Action through Mentoring, Geospatial Technology and Digital Media Storytelling

2022 - 2026

This project seeks to address several challenges simultaneously: there is a need to improve the diversity of learners and workers in environmentally-focused STEAM (i.e., science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) careers and educational programs, a need to broaden participation in

QuEST: Quantum Education for Students and Teachers

2022 - 2026

The National Quantum Initiative Act stipulates the growth and acceleration of quantum information science and technology research and education. However, high school science teachers may not have a background in quantum physics, and this creates a challenge for them to keep track of academic and

STEM-based University Pathway Encouraging Relationships with Chicago High schools in Automation, Robotics and Green Energy

2022 - 2026

This Developing and Testing Innovations project will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' knowledge and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM

SEARCH FOR PROJECTS