IES Blog

The Department of Education’s Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR), administered by IES, provides awards for the research and development of new, commercially viable education technology products. Known as ED/IES SBIR, the program’s goal is to grow a portfolio of scalable, research-based products that address pressing needs across topic areas in education and special education.

From an education technology perspective, 2021 will surely be remembered as the “year after” the onset of the global pandemic—where demand for effective education tools and platforms skyrocketed and developers pivoted to meet the needs of the return to in-person and hybrid learning environments. Dozens of ED/IES SBIR-developers contributed to these efforts, with millions of students and educators using their products to support remote and in-person learning in 2021. This blog shares some highlights from the ED/IES SBIR program in 2021 and provides a preview of its recently released 2022 solicitations.

The ED Games Expo

IES hosted the 8^th annual ED Games Expo virtually in June 2021 to provide resources to the public in response to pandemic-related challenges. As part of the virtual Expo, 170 IES- and government-supported education technology products were available at no cost to educators and students around the country. The Expo also presented 35 virtual events for the public that have been viewed more than 10,000 times on YouTube, highlighted by a Kick Off Show introduced by Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and including master classes for educators and behind-the-sciences “how to” events for students. Dates for the next ED Games Expo will be announced soon.

New ED/IES SBIR Awards

ED/IES SBIR announced 29 new 2021 awards, including 18 for prototype development and 11 for full-scale education technology product development. The awards continue trends from recent years.

One exciting trend is the employment of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing, or algorithms to personalize student learning. Examples include projects by Myriad Sensors (Pocket Lab) to develop an AI engine to assess and provide feedback to students while doing physical science experiments, Analytic Measures Inc. (AMI) to create an natural language processing engine to recommend personalized practice activities based on a student’s level of oral reading fluency, and by KooApps and Kings Peak Technology to use machine learning to provide immediate vocabulary support to English learners.

Another trend in 2021 is the development of new products to scale existing IES-funded research. Projects that build on prior IES research include: Nimble Hiring to develop a platform to improve school district hiring and educator retention, xSEL Labs to create a platform for social and behavioral learning innovations, and Emberex to create a user interface with reporting and recommendation features to meet modern standards for a reading assessment.

ED/IES SBIR also continues to support projects in new areas. For example, three new projects are developing music-based technologies to support learning (Muzology, Edify, and Lyrics to Learn).

Highlights From Individual Projects in the Portfolio

Many ED/IES SBIR-supported companies enjoyed newsworthy successes in 2021.

• Through its ED/IES SBIR-developed platform, Future Engineers administered the TechRise Student Challenge and Lunabotics Junior Challenge for NASA, and an AEOP We Heart Veterans Pin Design Challenge for the Army through which more than 15,000 students participated around the country. 
• Myriad Sensors (PocketLab) hosted a series of “Science is Cool Unconferences” in 2020 and 2021 to present innovative approaches for sciences educators which were attended by more than 65,000 science educators.
• Codespark was acquired by BEGIN to support wide-scale distribution of its coding apps, including ED/IES SBIR-developed Story Mode.
• Cognitive Toybox and research partners received an award from the Gates Foundation to continue development of their early childhood assessment; they also received an investment from Morgan Stanley to grow their business.
• Muzology was recognized as a Top 10 Finisher in the 2021 Elite 200 by GSU-ASV as a top pre-seed start-up in the field of education technology.
• The Education Development Center received an IES research grant to evaluate the efficacy of Electric Funstuff’s Mission US Games, which were developed in part through ED/IES SBIR.
• ECO by Strange Loop Games reached more than 500,000 units sold in 2021.
• Inq-ITS reached the one million mark for its completed virtual labs.

ED/IES SBIR Releases Two 2022 Program Solicitations

On December 1, 2021, ED/IES SBIR released two new solicitations. Phase I solicitation #91990022R0001 is a request for proposals for $250,000 awards for 8 months for the research, development, and evaluation of new prototypes of education and special education technology products. Direct to Phase II solicitation #91990022R0002 is a request for proposals for $1,000,000 for 2 years for R&D and evaluation to develop new technology to prepare existing researcher-developed evidence-based innovations (products, interventions, practices) for use at scale, and to plan for commercialization. The goal is to support the successful transfer of research to practice at scale in education and special education. Proposals for both solicitations are due February 1, 2022.

Stay tuned for updates in 2022 on Twitter and Facebook as IES continues to support innovative forms of technology.

Edward Metz is a research scientist and the program manager for the Small Business Innovation Research Program at the US Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences. Please contact Edward.Metz@ed.gov with questions or for more information.

A Free All-Virtual Showcase of Game-Changing Innovations in EdTech developed through ED and Programs Across Government

The ED Games Expo is an annual showcase of game-changing innovations in education technology (EdTech) developed through programs at the Department of Education (ED) and across the federal government. Since 2013, the Expo has been an in-person event at venues across Washington, D.C. Because of the COVID-19 national emergency, the 2021 ED Games Expo is moving online, from June 1 – 5, for an entirely virtual experience. Hosting virtually provides the unique opportunity to engage a national audience and to present content mindful of the pandemic and useful for educational programming in the summer and going forward.  

ED Games Expo: Featured Resources

A new set of YouTube playlists and an accompanying PDF guide will be released on June 1 to present video trailers for more than 150 participating government-supported learning games and technologies. These learning games and technologies are appropriate for children and students in early childhood to post-secondary education and special education, and cover a range of topics across STEM, reading, social studies, civics, healthy development, and others. Nearly all the resources are research-based – meaning studies demonstrate the usability, feasibility, and promise of leading to the intended outcomes. Many of the education technologies at ED Games Expo will be available to students and educators who are learning in-person or remotely at no cost during June 2021. Attendees will also have the opportunity to engage in virtual Q&A with developers during and after the Expo to learn more.

ED Games Expo: A Range of Online Events

The 2021 ED Games Expo Agenda presents the lineup for 35 online events to be broadcast during the weeklong Expo. The events are designed for a wide audience across the education technology ecosystem, including educators, students, parents and caregivers, developers, researchers, and other stakeholders.

Events include:

• Master Classes for Educators: Eight Expo developers present use-case examples and guidance for implementing innovative education technology interventions to support in-person or remote learning across many different topics.
• How the Learning Game was Made: Five teams of learning game developers inspire and prompt students to think about the many skills and careers involved in creating a learning game.
• Showcase Events: More than 20 government agencies and offices that invest in education technology are broadcasting events to showcase their projects and initiatives. Just a few highlights from the week include events on: innovations in early learning and special education, learning games to combat disinformation, models to support remote tutoring, a live kick-off for a new NASA national student challenge, an esports competition with students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and forums where government leaders, experts, and practitioners reflect on the role of education technology during the era of COVID-19.
• A Unique Kick Off Show: This year’s Expo will kick off on June 1, 2021 at 8pm ET with a unique virtual event featuring a few of our favorite children’s TV characters and puppet friends created through ED funded projects.

All Expo events are free and accessible to the public to watch online. Content from all events will be archived and available to watch on demand via YouTube after the event. Follow the ED Games Expo on social media @USEdGov and by using the #EDGamesExpo hashtag.

We hope you will join us in June!

This Inside IES Blog is crossed-posted on Homeroom, the official blog of the U.S. Department of Education.

Edward Metz is the Program Manager for the Small Business Innovation Research Program at the Institute of Education Sciences in the US Department of Education. Contact Edward.Metz@ed.gov for more information or with questions.

It goes without saying the COVID19 pandemic has and continues to have a profound effect on education. Students are adjusting to hybrid or fully remote learning, and educators are continuing to make complex decisions about how best to support students in the new normal.

On October 28, 2020, InnovateEDU and the Educating All Learners Alliance hosted a webinar focused on education technology resources for special education. More than 1,100 practitioners joined the event in real-time.

The webinar featured video demonstrations of five special education technology tools that were developed through the IES Small Business Innovation Research Program and ED’s Office of Special Education Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities Program. The event also included conversations with special education practitioners and researchers who provided perspectives on the role of special education and technology to meet the needs of all students. The webinar involved a variety of resources and opportunities, including:

• A new Guide to Special Education Resources which presents information on 20 research-based tools
• A video replay of a May 2020 “Virtual Unconference in Special Education” featuring a full day of presentations and panels for remote teaching and learning
• The Educating All Learners Alliance website, which provides curated tools, strategies, and best practices for supporting students with disabilities remotely during COVID-19
• The CAST website, including: Accessible Education Materials for COVID-19; Framing the Future of Learning with Technology, Clusive, a universally designed reader for students with learning needs, and Learning Designed, a professional development and micro-credentialing platform for practitioners
• An announcement of an upcoming funding opportunity through ED/IES SBIR, which releases around December 1 and calls for proposals from small businesses for up to $200,000 for R&D of new and innovative special education technology products

During the webinar, practitioners participated by adding comments in the chat box with a “wish list” of education technology they would like to have now to support teaching and learning. Participants entered dozens of responses, many calling for increased connectivity and access to hardware and software, especially in rural areas. Other responses focused on education technologies for teachers, students with or at-risk for disabilities, and parents and caregivers.

Following are just a few of the entries:

For Teachers

• “More coaching tools to use with children who are learning remotely to provide instantaneous feedback”
• “Descriptions that allow teachers to at-a-glance identify the features a program offers to match to the features that their students need”
• “Using data to support teachers and students with decisions that move learning forward.”
• “Resources that I can use to assist with non-compliant behaviors and keeping their attention in person and virtually.”
• “Making it possible for students to show their work for math so that we can see that rather than just their answers.”
• “Common share place for all teachers.”
• “I am looking for a way to deliver instructions to the home distantly”

For Students with Disabilities

• “Teaching students how to be self-determined learners.”
• “Build this skill set from kindergarten.”
• “Develop and implement collaborative activities”
• “My nonverbal students need hands on.”
• “Engagement and motivation; remote resources.”
• “Student choice and voice.”

For Parents

• “Make it a family affair / Zoom with family member supporting on other side.”
• “A resource that we can use to incorporate the parent or group home worker that have to navigate these different learning apps for the student.”
• “Easy-to-follow videos that we can use to show parents and students how to use these resources when they aren’t in front of us.”

Lastly, one of the teachers provided a comment: “We need more of these events.”  From everyone involved in the October 28 webinar, thanks for attending. We are planning for more events like this one soon.

Edward Metz (Edward.Metz@ed.gov) is a research scientist at the Institute of Education Sciences in the US Department of Education.

Tara Courchaine (Tara.Courchaine@ed.gov) is a program officer at the Office of Special Education Programs in the US Department of Education.

Many programs across the Federal government, such as the ED/IES Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the IES Research Grants programs, fund projects to develop and evaluate new forms of education technology and interventions that can be implemented to support instruction and learning at schools and for remote learning. More than 150 of these technologies were demoed in January 2020 at the ED Games Expo, a showcase for learning games and technologies developed with support from IES and more than 30 other Federal programs.

Since the global outbreak of COVID19 and the closure of schools across the United States and the world, a group of government-supported developers and researchers responded to provide resources to educators, students, and families to facilitate remote learning. More than 50 developers and researchers offered 88 learning games and technologies at no cost through the end of the school year for use in distance learning settings with internet access (see this blog for the list). In addition, many of the developers and researchers provided technical assistance directly to individual teachers to support implementation at a distance, and many created new materials and worked to refine and adapt their products to optimize usability and feasibility for fully remote use. More than a million students and thousands of educators used these learning technologies during the spring.

In April and May 2020, more than 70 developers and researchers partnered to produce and participate in a series of free day-long virtual events, which were called “unconferences.” The events featured presentations on innovative models and approaches to teaching and learning remotely and provided an in-depth look at the learning games and technologies created by the presenters. More than 25,000 educators attended these virtual events in real-time, hundreds asked questions and made comments through chats during the events, and many thousands more have accessed these videos after the events. See this blog for the list of archived videos.

A New Resource: Guides to Education Technologies that are Ready Now

As schools begin re-opening for the new school year, a group of 70 developers and researchers have collaborated to produce a new series of Guides to Education Technologies. The guides present information on government-supported education technology products that are ready now for in-class and remote learning. All the resources are web-based and can be used on either computers, tablets, or personal devices. The resources in the guides include a mix of no-cost products as well as ones that are fee-based.  

With awards from government programs, all of the resources were developed through an iterative process with feedback from teachers and students, and most were evaluated through small pilot studies to measure the promise of the technologies to support improvements in student learning and relevant educational outcomes. All the products were used and demonstrated to be feasible for use in remote settings in the spring after the onset of the pandemic.

The guides present resources appropriate for young children through postsecondary students in education and special education, for English learners, and for teachers in education and special education across a wide range of educational topics. Many of the technologies personalize learning by adjusting content to students as they go and present information to educators to inform instruction.

The Guides focus on the following areas and can be accessed below:

• Early Learning
• Mathematics
• Science and Engineering
• Social Studies
• Special Education

Stay tuned to the Inside IES Blog for more information and resources about the response to the COVID-19 in education.

Edward Metz (Edward.Metz@ed.gov) is a research scientist and the program manager for the Small Business Innovation Research Program at the US Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences.

Editor’s Note: This Inside IES Blog is crossed-posted on Homeroom, the official blog of the U.S. Department of Education.

On July 30, 2020, NASA launched a rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on a journey to Mars. The rocket is carrying a rover named Perseverance and a helicopter named Ingenuity, both of which will land inside Mars's Jezero Crater on February 18, 2021. While on Mars, Perseverance and Ingenuity will collect the first Martian soil and rock samples for future return to Earth, search for signs of extinct or extant life, characterize the planet’s climate and geology, and pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet with the help of new technologies and scientific instruments.

Perseverance and Ingenuity were named by students through a national Kindergarten to Grade 12 student competition run by NASA in partnership with Future Engineers and Battelle Education.

The student whose entry won the prize to name the rover is Alexander Mather, a seventh grader from Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia. Alexander submitted the name Perseverance and included the following in his essay:

“Curiosity. Insight. Spirit. Opportunity. If you think about it, all of these names of past Mars rovers are qualities we possess as humans. We are always curious, and seek opportunity. We have the spirit and insight to explore the Moon, Mars, and beyond. But, if rovers are to be the qualities of us as a race, we missed the most important thing. Perseverance.”

Watch the March 5 program where the winning name was revealed here:

The student whose entry won the prize to name the helicopter is Vaneeza Rupani, a junior at Tuscaloosa County High School in Northport, Alabama. Vanessa submitted the name Ingenuity and included the following in her essay:

"The ingenuity and brilliance of people working hard to overcome the challenges of interplanetary travel are what allow us all to experience the wonders of space exploration. Ingenuity is what allows people to accomplish amazing things, and it allows us to expand our horizons to the edges of the universe."

Watch the video trailer featuring the naming of the Mars helicopter: 

About the “Name the Rover” Contest

Not only did the contest help NASA pick a new name for the rover, it also engaged U.S. students in the engineering and scientific work that makes Mars exploration possible, stimulated interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and inspired the next generation of STEM leaders.

After launching the competition in August 2019, students from 50 states, U.S. territories, and military bases submitted over 28,000 essays. More than 4,500 volunteer judges narrowed the pool to 155 semifinalists. From these, NASA chose nine finalists—Clarity, Courage, Endurance, Fortitude, Ingenuity, Perseverance, Promise, Tenacity, and Vision—and opened a public poll in which anyone could vote. After considering these poll results, NASA officials chose the two names.

To manage the competition, NASA used a web-based platform developed by Burbank, California-based Future Engineers.  This platform was created with the support of a 2017 award from the U.S. Department of Education and Institute of Education Sciences’ Small Business Innovation Research program (ED/IES SBIR).  Future Engineers built this platform to be an online hub for classrooms and educators to access free, project-based STEM activities and to provide a portal where students submit and compete in different kinds of maker and innovation challenges across the country. The Mars 2020 “Name the Rover” contest was the first naming challenge issued on the platform. We look forward to more student challenges to come!

Edward Metz (Edward.Metz@ed.gov) is a research scientist at the Institute of Education Sciences in the US Department of Education.

Bob Collom is an integration lead in the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters.

About ED/IES SBIR

The U.S. Department of Education’s Small Business Innovation Research program, administered by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), funds projects to develop education technology products designed to support students, teachers, or administrators in general or special education. The program emphasizes rigorous and relevant research to inform iterative development and to evaluate whether fully developed products show promise for leading to the intended outcomes. The program also focuses on commercialization once the award period ends so that products can reach students and teachers and be sustained over time. ED/IES SBIR-supported products are currently used by millions of students in thousands of schools around the country.

About NASA’s Mars Exploration Program (MEP)

NASA’s Mars Exploration Program (MEP) in the Planetary Science Division is a science-driven program that seeks to understand whether Mars was, is, or can be, a habitable world. To find out, we need to understand how geologic, climatic, and other processes have worked to shape Mars and its environment over time, as well as how they interact today. To that end, all of our future missions will be driven by rigorous scientific questions that will continuously evolve as we make new discoveries. MEP continues to explore Mars and to provide a continuous flow of scientific information and discovery through a carefully selected series of robotic orbiters, landers and mobile laboratories interconnected by a high-bandwidth Mars/Earth communications network. The Mars 2020 Project at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages rover development for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is responsible for launch management.