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2201253

Project Grant

Overview

Grant Description
Collaborative Research: Learning in Places: PK-5+ Field Based Science Education Across Schools, Families, and Communities

There is an immense need for elementary school students to have meaningful and high-quality science learning experiences. This project aims to meet this need by developing PreK-5, equity-oriented, field-based, interdisciplinary curricular materials that support students' socioecological reasoning and sustainable decision making. The science learning experiences will be integrated across disciplines from literacy to civic and social studies lessons.

The curricular materials will be part of a science education model that facilitates family engagement in ways that transform relations between educators, families, and students' science learning. The curricular activities will be co-designed with teachers while using local nature and culture as a resource.

The project is structured to engage a leadership cohort of teachers (68 teachers, who reach 5600 students) pulling from three locations (Eastern Washington, Michigan, and Louisiana) to co-design, refine, and study the model over four years. The project team will engage in a seasonal series of hybrid (online and in-person) co-design summits to develop the model. Leadership teachers will then fully implement the model and support two additional cohorts (150 teachers, who reach 3300 students) to adopt and implement the model.

During these implementations, the project team will utilize ethnographic and cross-comparative analysis methods to study educators' adaptations and the affordances and constraints of geographic diversity for instruction. In addition, the research design includes investigating the impact on students' socioecological reasoning.

The project has the potential to broaden participation in deep science learning at the elementary level with an accompanying professional development that would support and cultivate field-based pedagogies in and around schools across K-12 curricula.

The Discovery Research PreK-12 Program (DRK-12) seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by PreK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models, and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
Funding Goals
THE GOAL OF THIS FUNDING OPPORTUNITY, "DISCOVERY RESEARCH PREK-12", IS IDENTIFIED IN THE LINK: HTTPS://WWW.NSF.GOV/PUBLICATIONS/PUB_SUMM.JSP?ODS_KEY=NSF20572
Place of Performance
Evanston, Illinois 60208-0890 United States
Geographic Scope
Single Zip Code
Analysis Notes
Amendment Since initial award the total obligations have increased 118% from $1,636,068 to $3,564,888.
Northwestern University was awarded Field-Based Science Education PK-5 Students: A Collaborative Approach Project Grant 2201253 worth $3,564,888 from the Division of Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings in July 2022 with work to be completed primarily in Evanston Illinois United States. The grant has a duration of 5 years and was awarded through assistance program 47.076 Education and Human Resources. The Project Grant was awarded through grant opportunity Discovery Research PreK-12.

Status
(Ongoing)

Last Modified 8/21/25

Period of Performance
7/1/22
Start Date
6/30/27
End Date
66.0% Complete

Funding Split
$3.6M
Federal Obligation
$0.0
Non-Federal Obligation
$3.6M
Total Obligated
100.0% Federal Funding
0.0% Non-Federal Funding

Activity Timeline

Interactive chart of timeline of amendments to 2201253

Subgrant Awards

Disclosed subgrants for 2201253

Transaction History

Modifications to 2201253

Additional Detail

Award ID FAIN
2201253
SAI Number
None
Award ID URI
SAI EXEMPT
Awardee Classifications
Private Institution Of Higher Education
Awarding Office
491109 DIV OF RESEARCH ON LEARNING IN
Funding Office
491109 DIV OF RESEARCH ON LEARNING IN
Awardee UEI
EXZVPWZBLUE8
Awardee CAGE
39GV5
Performance District
IL-09
Senators
Richard Durbin
Tammy Duckworth

Budget Funding

Federal Account Budget Subfunction Object Class Total Percentage
STEM Education, National Science Foundation (049-0106) General science and basic research Grants, subsidies, and contributions (41.0) $1,636,068 100%
Modified: 8/21/25