FAST-TRACK AWARD:
Phase I Amount: $149,700
Phase I Period: 6 months

Phase II Amount: $895,750
Phase II Period: 2 years

Product Video Demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7DEs4CcsyY

Purpose: The need for all students to be well prepared in science has been well documented. The purpose of this project is to develop a solar learning lab platform to apply learning in the area of energy science.

Project Activities: The researchers will design curricula materials, multi-media video clips, lesson plans, student activities, assessments, and a back-end system to house data generated by the activities. The team will modify a commercially available solar panel so that data can be provided in real-time to the back-end system. Throughout the project, the research team will solicit feedback from teachers and students regarding how the prototypes could better function. To assess implementation feasibility, the usability of the product by middle school students, and the promise of the platform to improve learning, researchers will use a mixed-method study to test students in 10 treatment (platform) and control (regular energy curriculum) classrooms. Observations of students' use of the platform and semi-structured interviews with students and teachers will also be utilized. Key outcomes will include ease of use, engagement, and scores on chapter tests.

Product: The STEM Solar Explorations platform will be a multidisciplinary solar energy field laboratory to supplement middle school standards. The hardware component will include physical solar equipment to capture real-time data to be wirelessly transmitted to classrooms. The web-based component will host the STEM curriculum focusing on energy concepts, a dashboard to present data, and materials to facilitate teacher training and implementation. The platform will allow students to apply knowledge to daily changes in the position of the sun and to solar energy production, and to conduct hands-on investigations to address curricular content.