A 5 year (2009-2014) grant from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Discovery Research K-12 (DR-K12) (Grant #918618) program that seeks to answer the question: "What effects do robotics, engineering design, and problem-based inquiry science have on student learning and academic engagement in 8th grade physical science classes?"

                                                       What are the goals of SLIDER?

• Design and implement a problem-based robotics curriculum as a context for 8th graders to learn physics and reasoning skills, and as a way to increase student engagement, motivation, aptitude, creativity and STEM interest.
• Conduct research to determine the effectiveness of the program across all curriculum development parameters.
• Determine how students engage the material across ethnic, socio- cultural, gender and geographic (rural, urban, and suburban) lines.
• Measure the “staying power” of the experience as students move from middle to high school.

                                             What are the curriculum components of SLIDER?

• Aligns with NGSS Disciplinary Core Ideas, Cross Cutting Concepts, and Practices
• Uses engineering design scenarios to engage and motivate students 
• Necessitates scientific argumentation to develop ideas and make decisions
• Features LEGO Mindstorm Kits to drive design and engagement
• Emphasizes where science and engineering align during problem solving

There is a large amount of research extolling the benefits of curricula and learning experiences rooted in PjBL. These studies have found that PjBL promotes more active learning of content, the development of problem-solving skills, increased ownership of learning, greater understanding of the nature of science, more flexible thinking, improved collaboration skills, and opportunities for students to become STEM “experts”.  These advantages are also consistent with the science learning goals promoted in the Framework for K-12 Science Education (Framework/NRC 2012). 

SLIDER uses engineering design scenarios as the context for its PjBL challenges.  Engineering design scenarios provide students not only interesting contexts for learning; they also embody the content and skill knowledge of the Next Generation Science Standards. Engineering challenges enable teachers to teach content in engaging ways and provide students with opportunities to innovate, create original solutions and experience what engineers actually do.  Perhaps for the first time they come to see science, technology, and mathematics as something that exists beyond the classroom, as fields that can be integrated together to create a final product, and as areas that they may pursue further in school or as a career.

http://www.nsf.gov

The Discovery Research K-12 (DR K-12) program seeks to enable significant advances in student and teacher learning of the STEM disciplines. Projects funded under this solicitation begin with a research question or hypothesis about how to improve preK-12 STEM learning and teaching and then develop, implement, and study effects of innovative educational resources, models, or technologies.

CETL - Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning
http://www.cetl.gatech.edu

The Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning originated in 1986 as a result of a faculty committee’s deliberations. CETL has primarily served as a faculty development center, assisting faculty in their teaching skills through improved lecturing; and through administering the Institute Course/Instructor Opinion Survey (CIOS). Through generous support of several alumni classes, the Center has been able to run a number of specialized programs for junior faculty and graduate teaching assistants; and was honored with the prestigious TIAA-CREF Hesburgh Award in 1999 in large part due to this alumni support. As we enter a new century, the increased expectation for technology in education is creating new challenges for our faculty. These challenges in turn create opportunities for CETL to help Georgia Tech’s instructional quality stay at the high level that has earned it its world reputation.

Georgia Tech School of Psychology Problem Solving and Educational Technology Lab
http://www.psychology.gatech.edu/probsolvelab/

Located in the School of Psychology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Problem Solving and Educational Technology (PSET) Lab brings together a diverse group of faculty and students interested in an equally diverse range of topics. Students in the PSET Lab, under the direction of Dr. Richard Catrambone, are currently examining a range of problem solving and human-computer interaction issues.

Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University
http://www.bme.gatech.edu/

The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University was created jointly by the Emory University School of Medicine and the Georgia Tech College of Engineering. As such, we offer the best of both internationally renowned institutions. We are united by our dedication to improving the health and wellbeing of all by fostering the next generation of leaders in biomedical engineering worldwide. We are highly collaborative, interdisciplinary innovators in basic and translational research and education. We are far-sighted educators, dedicated to creating biomedical engineers equipped for success today and in the future, across all realms of the burgeoning field.

Georgia Department of Education
http://www.doe.k12.ga.us/

The Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) oversees public education throughout the state. It ensures that laws and regulations pertaining to education are followed and that state and federal money appropriated for education is properly allocated to local school systems. We also provide education-related information to students, parents, teachers, educational staff, government officials, and the media. We hope this information will help answer people’s questions, empower them with resources, and allow them to navigate the state’s educational infrastructure with a minimum of difficulty.