Last week I served on a National Science Foundation peer review panel for community college proposals involving Advanced Technology Education (ATE). Twenty-two panels convened for a three days in
At a plenary session ending the meeting, panel leaders discussed ways to improve submissions. Here are the key points mentioned to which anyone writing an NSF grant, especially from community colleges, should attend:
1) Generally, planning grants are necessary (and usually sufficient) for development of a fundable ATE center proposal.
2) Proposals should include and emphasize metrics and objectives on student outcomes- program graduation data, job placement, enrollment, retention, under-represented students served.
3) Investigators should contact existing centers that relate to the field before submitting a proposal and that connection should be documented in the proposal.
4) Authors should conduct a data review to learn about the research on proposed activities.
5) An evaluation plan should link to objectives and provide a measure of accountability.
6) For a regional center that aims to increase the production of technical workers, the investigators should have data about workforce demand locally, not just nationally.
7) For continuation grants, include an evaluation report to document progress.
8) Focus on student learning outcomes, not just workforce needs. Try to find answers to the questions: What are students learning; how do we know?
9) Describe what success would look like. How would we know if project success is achieved?
10) Focus on soft skills, not just technology.
To find out more about NSF opportunities in undergraduate education, visit the website
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/education.jsp?fund_type=1
No comments:
Post a Comment