[STEM-funding] NSF Improving Undergraduate STEM Education

[Christopher Andersen]

1) NSF has announced a new program: *Improving Undergraduate STEM Education*.
The only information available is the program synopsis--here it is in full:

A well-prepared, innovative science, technology, engineering and
mathematics (STEM) workforce is crucial to the Nation's health and economy.
Indeed, recent policy actions and reports have drawn attention to the
opportunities and challenges inherent in increasing the number of highly
qualified STEM graduates, including STEM teachers. Priorities include
educating students to be leaders and innovators in emerging and rapidly
changing STEM fields as well as educating a scientifically literate
populace; both of these priorities depend on the nature and quality of the
undergraduate education experience. In addressing these STEM challenges and
priorities, the National Science Foundation invests in research-based and
research-generating approaches to understanding STEM learning; to
designing, testing, and studying curricular change; to wide dissemination
and implementation of best practices; and to broadening participation of
individuals and institutions in STEM fields. The goals of these investments
include: increasing student retention in STEM, to prepare students well to
participate in science for tomorrow, and to improve students' STEM learning
outcomes.

Recognizing disciplinary differences and priorities, NSF's investment in
research and development in undergraduate STEM education encompasses a
range of approaches. These approaches include: experiential learning,
assessment/metrics of learning and practice, scholarships, foundational
education research, professional development/institutional change, formal
and informal learning environments, and undergraduate disciplinary
research. Both individually and integrated in a range of combinations,
these approaches can lead to outcomes including: developing the STEM and
STEM-related workforce, advancing science, broadening participation in
STEM, educating a STEM-literate populace, improving K-12 STEM education,
encouraging life-long learning, and building capacity in higher education.

The Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE), in collaboration with other
NSF directorates, continues to support research and development leading to
and propagating interventions that improve both the quality and quantity of
STEM graduates.  A number of recent publications provide guidance.  For
example, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
(PCAST) report, *Engage to Excel*, recommends widespread adoption of
empirically validated teaching practices that engage students in "active
learning," as an important means to enhance retention of STEM majors. Other
recommendations include increased use of discovery-based laboratories and
course-based research. The National Research Council report, *Discipline-based
Education Research: Understanding and Improving Learning in Undergraduate
Science and Engineering*, provides an analysis of effective practices and a
research agenda for continuing to build the knowledge base on how to
improve undergraduate STEM education. The *Common Guidelines for Education
Research and Development* offer guidance on building the evidence base in
STEM learning. Research and development efforts that increase our
understanding of effective undergraduate STEM teaching and learning provide
the foundation for building the STEM workforce of tomorrow and improving
scientific literacy.

Recognizing that the preparation of a globally-competitive workforce,
including future teachers, and a scientifically literate populace requires
excellent STEM education, DUE supports the improvement of the undergraduate
STEM education enterprise through funding research on design, development,
and wide-spread implementation of effective STEM learning and teaching
knowledge and practice, as well as foundational research on student
learning. DUE supports projects that build on both fundamental research in
undergraduate STEM education and prior research and development that
provide theoretical and empirical justification for the proposed efforts.
Proposals should describe projects that build on available evidence and
theory, and that will generate evidence and build knowledge.

NSF accepts unsolicited proposals to support projects that address
immediate challenges and opportunities facing undergraduate STEM education,
as well as those that anticipate new structures and functions of the
undergraduate learning and teaching enterprise. In addition, NSF accepts
unsolicited proposals for developing Ideas Labs in biology, engineering,
and geosciences that will bring together relevant disciplinary and
education research expertise to produce research agendas that address
discipline-specific workforce development needs.
As of last summer, there were plans to fold the three programs below into a
new program to be called Catalyzing Advances in Undergraduate STEM
Education (CAUSE):

   - Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Talent Expansion
   Program <http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5488>  (STEP)
   - Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology,
   Engineering and
Mathematics<http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5741>(TUES)
   - Widening Implementation & Demonstration of Evidence Based
Reforms<http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504889>
   (WIDER)

TUES and WIDER have no published dates for future competitions, and NSF
pulled the December STEP competition yesterday. It sounds as though this
new "Improving Undergraduate STEM Education" is what was planned to be
CAUSE.

Proposals are due February 4, 2014. There are no funding amounts specified.

[image: The Ohio State University]
Christopher Andersen
Director
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Initiatives
186 University Hall, 230 North Oval Mall, Columbus, OH 43210-1335 USA
andersen.18 at osu.edu
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