Resources included in these libraries were submitted by ITEST projects or STELAR and are relevant to the work of the NSF ITEST Program. PDFs and/or URLs to the original resource are included in the resource description whenever possible. In some cases, full text publications are located behind publishers’ paywalls and a fee or membership to the third party site may be required for access. Permission for use must be requested through the publisher or author listed in each entry.
Innovations and Challenges in Project-Based STEM Education: Lessons from ITEST
PublicationFor over a decade, the National Science Foundation’s Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program has funded researchers and educators to build an understanding of best practices, contexts, and processes contributing to K-12 students’ motivation and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) activities that lead to STEM career pathways. The outcomes from these projects have contributed significantly to the national body of knowledge about strategies, successes, models, and interventions that support and encourage youth to pursue
Journal of Science Education and Technology Special Issue - Stories from ITEST: Inspiring Young People to Pursue STEM Careers
PublicationThe ITEST program has enabled creativity, experimentation, and cultural responsiveness in STEM education and workforce development and broadened participation in STEM initiatives to Native American communities, underresourced urban communities, girls, and populations underrepresented in STEM fields. By approaching research and evaluation with flexibility and resourcefulness, the authors provide empirical evidence for the value of innovative approaches to STEM education that promote STEM interest and career-related outcomes and that build the foundational skills of the scientific and engineering workforce of the future.
Framework for Evaluating Impacts of Broadening Participation Projects: Report from a National Science Foundation Workshop
PublicationBackgroundThis report grew out of a workshop and follow-up session sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF), Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR). The two-day workshop and subsequent meeting sought to develop and validate evaluation practices to assess the value of NSF’s investment in broadening participation across all directorates and programs. Invited participants included NSF grantees, professional evaluators, and the policy community (which included representatives from Congress, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), NSF staff, and staff from other federal
ITEST Data Brief: Research Methods in ITEST
PublicationITEST Data Brief Volume 3, Issue 3, September 2016The ITEST program requires that all proposals include a research component. This data brief examines the 63 projects that described their research between September 1, 2014 and August 31, 2015 as reported in the 2015 Management Information System (MIS) survey. Questions addressed include: - What kinds of study designs do projects use?- Which tools do projects use to measure outcomes?- What kinds of instruments do projects use to measure outcomes?- What data do projects intend to collect from participants after funding is over?- How do ITEST
Promising Approaches to Broadening Youth Participation in STEM
PublicationThis paper, based on a review of over 200 publications related to approximately 110 ITEST projects, seeks to respond to the broadening participation question in the ITEST solicitation. While all ITEST projects include “broadening participation” as a central goal, we found that publications relating to 43 projects contained specific information on broadening participation. Of those, publications relating to 25 projects had “broadening participation” as the primary focus. Here, we present the range of strategies that project teams employed by highlighting some of those 25 projects.
Engaging Teachers in Supporting Next Generation STEM Learning
PublicationThis synthesis paper highlights projects funded by the National Science Foundation’s Innovating Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) grant program that are either primarily designed to support teacher learning or that incorporate teacher learning in a significant way.
Authentic Inquiries into Local Issues: Increasing Engagement and Building a Sense of STEM Identity and Agency
PublicationThis paper focuses on ITEST projects that center on authentic inquiries into locally relevant issues.
STEM Learning Games and Game Design in ITEST Projects
PublicationThis synthesis is based on a review of publications from ITEST projects, specifically relating to STEM learning games and game design experiences for students.
Principal Investigator’s Guide: Managing Evaluation in Informal STEM Education Projects
PublicationAn initiative of the Visitor Studies Association, produced in partnership with the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE).This Guide is designed to help principal investigators and other leaders of informal STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education projects integrate evaluation into all phases of project design, development, and implementation. Such projects include exhibits, media projects, websites, community science projects, afterschool programs, festivals, family activities, online games, citizen science projects, and other efforts to help people
Workforce Education Models for K-12 STEM Education Programs: Reflections on, and Implications for, the NSF ITEST Program
PublicationThis article proposes a STEM workforce education logic model, tailored to the particular context of the National Science Foundation’s Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program. This model aims to help program designers and researchers address challenges particular to designing, implementing, and studying education innovations in the ITEST program, considering ongoing needs and challenges in STEM workforce education in the USA. It is grounded in conceptual frameworks developed previously by teams of ITEST constituents, for their part intended to frame STEM