The response to the first request for proposals from Next Generation Learning Challenges was outstanding. We were pleased to receive so many interested applicants and are excited to congratulate our Wave I winners.
The winners demonstrated both a strong history of results and a compelling path to expand the impact of their work.
Thanks to all who applied. Please see below for a complete list of the winners from Wave I of the Next Generation Learning Challenges grants.
Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education
California State University-Northridge
Central Piedmont Community College
Chattanooga State Community College
Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis
Inquus Corporation (OpenStudy)
Iowa Community College Online Consortium
Society for the Teaching of Psychology
State University of New York, SUNY Learning Network
The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education
University of Central Florida and AASCU
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. Scott Hamm
Using Mobility to Enhance Inquiry-Based Learning in STEM Programs
Abilene Christian University's (ACU) mobile-enhanced inquiry-based learning (MEIBL) is a blended learning strategy which creates an active and engaging learning environment, producing increased student engagement, independence, and persistence to course completion. MEIBL addresses the greatest barriers to inquiry-based learning by minimizing the time required to provide differentiated instruction and the fundamental guidance necessary for scientific inquiry. Time saved on information transfer through MEIBL strategies enable faculty to more adeptly mentor learners to engage course content at a deeper level. This project will scale MEIBL to demonstrate effectiveness in STEM programs with diverse and underrepresented student populations. Back to top
Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education
David Gibson, Ed.D.
simSchool: Deeper Learning Modules for Learning to Teach
simSchool, a game-like simulation that develops teaching skills, will be disseminated via an international network of colleges of education and be scaled to reach all future teachers in the U.S. The application dynamically simulates classroom learner behaviors, emulates teaching and learning activities, and has been shown to generate relevant benefits concerning mastery of deeper learning outcomes such as self-efficacy, critical thinking, complex problem solving, & collaboration. The “Leverage” learning analytics engine will supply deeper levels of analysis. The international network includes the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education and the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education. Back to top
Kimberly Cassidy
Using Blended Learning in a Liberal Arts Environment to Improve Developmental and Gatekeeper STEM Course Completion, Persistence, and College Completion
Bryn Mawr will introduce open source courseware modules into traditional science and math courses within a liberal arts college setting to improve course and college completion among our diverse student population. The misconception of online learning being an isolating experience is the primary obstacle to scaling the solution at liberal arts colleges where a high value is placed on student-faculty interaction. Targeted use of this technology will free up classroom time for more in-depth coverage of complex material and use of creative pedagogical strategies. We will promote the solution to 31 partner institutions as a means of enhancing student engagement. Back to top
California State University-Northridge
Katherine F. Stevenson
Hybrid Lab Courses for Core Mathematics Courses
California State University, Northridge (CSUN) seeks funding to expand the application of an innovative technology-enhanced hybrid course model that has significantly improved completion and content mastery outcomes in a general education (GE) Math class where it has been implemented. Funding will be used to adapt the model to other introductory math classes and facilitate the adoption of the model by our partners in the California State University System and the California Community Colleges. Back to top
Steve Ritter
The Mathematics Fluency Data Collaborative
The Mathematics Fluency Data Collaborative (MFDC) brings together leading experts in cognition and game design to build an R&D platform for developing, refining and distributing high-quality mathematics games. Our focus will be on games to build fluency in mathematics as a basis for number sense.
MFDC will establish a community of practice that values iterative testing and refinement based on careful examination of student data. We will provide data to the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center so that researchers can mine the data to better understand the parameters that lead to success. Back to top
Central Piedmont Community College
Clint McElroy
Online Student Profile Learning System: A Learner Analytics Model for Student Success
Central Piedmont Community College will lead a consortium of community colleges from across the nation in the adoption of the Online Student Profile Learning System (OSPLS), a technology-enabled solution that has a proven track record of improving the academic success of young adult learners enrolled in developmental education courses. The OSPLS technology platform and four integrated OSPLS components include an orientation course, student assessment tools, online student profile, and staff professional development. The partner colleges will implement the OSPLS on their campuses and will support the goal of scaling up across the nation beyond the NGLC project period. Back to top
M.L. Bettino
Open General Education Curriculum at Multi-Institutional Scale
The project will create and scale a comprehensive, first-year, general-education curriculum that uses existing OER and technologies. The project will not develop new OER, but will invest to identify and improve the best of the existing stock. We bring together senior leaders from institutions that are seeking to adopt OER with OER experts, in order to create effective, sustainable, institutionalizable collaborative models to support the academic success of underserved populations. Back to top
Chattanooga State Community College
John Squires
Do the Math! Increasing Student Engagement and Success in Math through Blended Learning
Do the Math! Increasing Student Engagement and Success will aim to increase student success in developmental math by utilizing software, disrupting the traditional math class, and introducing a new approach where students work in the math classroom and teachers spend their time assisting students individually. Chattanooga State Community College (Tennessee) , Jefferson Community and Technical College (Kentucky), University of Hawaii Maui (Hawaii), and Education Trust will join forces in this project which promises to increase both student engagement and success in the area of developmental math. Back to top
Johnathan Gueverra
Learner Web/Portland State University/Community College of the District of Columbia/ South Texas College/St. Paul College Open Source Blended Learning Solutions Partnership for Retaining and Graduating Gatekeeper Course and Developmental Learners by Eliminating Traditional Developmental Writing Courses
The goal of this project is to scale alternative methods of avoiding placement of students in developmental non-credit courses by supporting them in blended learning environments at four colleges led by the CC of the District of Columbia (CCDC) and Learner Web. The strategy for disruptively implementing this project will include the evaluation of different blended strategies. This analytic approach to implementation will let the principal investigators led by the CEO of CCDC see which online blended interventions are the most effective in supporting students toward the goals of improved completion, persistence, content mastery, and mastery of deeper learning outcomes. Back to top
William F. Junkin
In-class Polling for All Learners
Our project will allow students to use a mixture of clickers and web-enabled devices to respond to in-class polling through a Moodle module. Research shows that the greater student involvement obtained through polling increases student learning and provides immediate feed-back to instructors, allowing for better response to student needs. An analysis of the response data will help identify patterns that may indicate a student is in danger of dropping the class or quitting school. This will provide an opportunity for early intervention to increase course completion and retention rates. Back to top
Inquus Corporation (OpenStudy)
Chris Sprague
Combining open courseware with a social learning network for scalable and effective blended learning
We propose a unique approach to learning outside the classroom: enhancing high-quality OCW materials with an interactive social community that enables students to connect, collaborate, mentor, and study together. We will use OpenStudy, the first large-scale open social learning network, to create a scalable blended learning platform that engages students around the world in peer-to-peer learning and support study groups. OpenStudy provides students with a critical resource missing in online learning: Access to other students studying the same things at the same time. Research attests to the benefits of collaboration in learning communities, including improved engagement and academic achievement. OpenStudy's partners on this project include Georgia Tech (Ashwin Ram), Emory (Preetha Ram), OCW Consortium (Steve Carson), and eduCommons (Brent Lambert). Back to top
Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis
Pratibha Varma-Nelson
Cyber Peer-Led Team Learning: Using communications technologies to support learning and persistence
Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), Purdue University (PU) at West Lafayette in Indiana, and Florida International University (FIU) will participate as a consortium to test the transportability of Cyber Peer-Led Team Learning (cPLTL) developed at IUPUI. CPLTL was developed with funding from Academic Affairs and the National Science foundation. The model has been studied at IUPUI and is showing positive impact on student learning in introductory chemistry. Purdue and Florida International Universities were selected as replication sites because they have the infrastructure and the interest necessary for introducing cPLTL into their introductory biology courses. Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL), the face-to-face predecessor to cPLTL, has proven to be a high-impact pedagogy in the Science Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. PLTL is a model of teaching that preserves the lecture and replaces recitation in science courses with a weekly two-hour session. During these interactive sessions (workshops), six to eight students work as a team to solve carefully constructed problems under the guidance of a peer leader. Back to top
Iowa Community College Online Consortium
Tracy Sleep
eAnalytics -- ICCOC Best Practices in Using Learner Analytics to Enhance Student Success
The seven community colleges of the Iowa Community College Online Consortium (ICCOC) use commonly available learner analytics to improve instruction and student learning outcomes. This grant will give the ICCOC the opportunity to share what we do and how we do it with others who wish to start implementing processes of their own. In addition, the ICCOC will look at how improving communication between student services and instructors can be used to improve student retention and success. Back to top
Mr. Joshua Baron
Open Academic Analytics Initiative (OAAI)
The Open Academic Analytics Initiative (OAAI) will engage in a combination of technical work, pilot activities, and exploratory research to provide institutions of higher education with a scalable, open academic-analytics solution along with initial insights into how to successfully apply this solution in diverse educational environments. To accomplish this, the OAAI, will build on an existing prototype to develop an open “student effort data” API for the open-source Sakai Collaborative Learning Environment—currently in use in over 300 institutions—and employ it to pilot the application of academic analytics in a range of academic settings. Back to top
John Magill
Ohio's Scaffold to the Stars: OER for Math and Applied Engineering
Ohio’s Scaffold to the Stars will help students succeed in developmental and credit bearing mathematics, the coursework most related to lack of persistence and retention in Ohio’s community colleges, and in applied engineering courses. The core elements are: (1) a rich, multimedia open educational resource set (2) used within concept mastery courses (math) and usable in linked applied learning courses (engineering), and (3) delivered with continuous feedback and community support as modeled in the Open Learning Initiative (http://oli.web.cmu.edu/openlearning/). A principal goal is to further enrich this multimedia resource, assure its accessibility, and increase its adoption in other colleges and universities. Back to top
Russ Little, MIS
Scale-up and Sustainability of the Student Success Plan Software
The project will open source the award-winning Student Success Plan system developed at Sinclair Community College. The system consists of (1) preventive measures, early alerts, assertive intervention, holistic counseling techniques, student self assessment; and (2) web-based software for tracking students and data analytics. The software is designed to increase the success and persistence rates of students with an emphasis on first-time, degree- or certificate-seeking students with key risk factors. Each college determines risk factors to target such as low income, or academically unprepared students. The software will be transitioned to a sustainable open source model, including a community management organization. Back to top
Mike Davis
Math On-Demand + Early Warning System
Student success in developmental math courses is one of the greatest challenges facing community colleges. CCC’s project actively addresses this issue by adapting and scaling Math-On-Demand (MOD), a successful program at Wright College, to the District’s six other colleges. Fully implemented, this project will have two main components – Math On-Demand (MOD) and Early Alert System (EAS) – and will be renamed MOD+. Through the creation of a blended learning environment using computerized, modularized developmental courses, MOD+ effectively addresses the objectives of improving content mastery, course completion and persistence and ultimately increases college completion rates for low-income, under represented young adults in Chicago. Back to top
Dr Patrick McAndrew
"Open Learning: Bridge to Success" (B2S)
Open Learning: Bridge to Success (OL:B2S) offers open, free content to cross the barrier to gaining the skills to learn. Starting with the challenge to meet core developmental mathematics requirements, "bridging" content will be offered in arithmetic fundamentals, pre-algebra concepts, and learning to learn. The bridging approach has been shown to increase learner capability and confidence, encourage participation, and contribute to progression and completion. OL:B2S places complete bridging modules in the open, pilots them in the US College system, and uses an approach that scales with the intended outcome of student success and achievement in formal gatekeeper courses. Back to top
Alexandra M. Pickett
The SUNY SLN "Catch-up and Complete" Enhanced Blended Learning Initiative
We know that education can disrupt the cycle of poverty and the intergenerational transmission of poverty. We know that 40%-70% of incoming college students need remedial education. We also know that more than half that try, fail and drop out, and that billions are spent on activity that NEVER leads to a credential for the student. To address this “Bermuda Triangle” of developmental education - where most go in and never come out, the State University of New York’s Catch-up and Complete Enhanced Blended Learning Initiative will help students Catch-up, so that they can then Complete their education. The SUNY Learning Network will work with SUNY campuses to “blend” and enhance selected degree and certificate programs for this project specifically targeting young adult single parents from under served populations with educational options that focus on student success to begin to break the cycle of poverty in the state of New York. Back to top
The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education
Patricia Shea
The North American Network of Science Labs Online
The North American Network of Science Labs Online (NANSLO) builds on the success of the open educational science courseware and the Remote Web-based Science Laboratory (RWSL) developed by members of BCcampus, a consortium of 25 postsecondary institutions, located in British Columbia, Canada. This work will be replicated by the Colorado Community College System (CCCS) in partnership with BCcampus, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), and other two- and four-year institutions from Colorado, Montana and Wyoming. NANSLO will support integration of RWSL technology and open science courseware in three gatekeeper courses required for science majors: biology, physics and chemistry. Back to top
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Carnegie Mellon University
Nancy Kaplan
A Socially Centric Blended Learning Model for at risk Youths at an Urban University
This project will design a blended learning model and integrate a new social learning tool, Classroom Salon (CLS), developed at Carnegie Mellon University, to enhance student interactions, motivation and support networks. Using a flexible blended learning model and CLS, we propose to integrate "communities of practice" -- defined as groups who share a concern, a set of problems, or a passion about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge and expertise by interacting on an ongoing basis (Wenger, 2007) -- that extend beyond classroom walls. CLS motivates students to learn in a familiar social network of classmates, trusted friends, family, teachers and mentors. Back to top
Christopher Edley, Jr
Next Generation Online Instruction: Quality, Tradition, Innovation
UC will develop 50 courses appropriate for any selective university, incorporating “high-touch” web-based interactivity along with predominantly asynchronous content. Our focus is gateway offerings: high-enrollments, grounding for popular B.A. majors, and satisfying requirements for community college transfer or an A.A. degree. We build on substantial capacity – 1100 online courses and 55,000 enrollments annually, but with greater ambitions in quality, scale and institutionalization across nine comprehensive campuses, including Berkeley and UCLA. The faculty assures quality: committees review and approve every UC course and instructor, and also define course requirements for admission from community college or high school. Back to top
University of Central Florida and AASCU
Thomas Cavanagh
Expanding Blended Learning Through Tools and Campus Programs: A UCF/AASCU Project
We propose to prepare a “Blended Learning Toolkit” based upon the proven best practices that have been successfully implemented by the University of Central Florida. Included in the toolkit will be strategies for blended course design and delivery, two open blended course models in Composition and Algebra, assessment and data collection protocols, and “train-the-trainer” materials and workshops. The American Association of State Colleges and Universities will leverage its membership to widely distribute the toolkit and course models to reach specifically targeted constituents. Back to top
Linda Johnsrud
STAR: Using Technology to Enhance the Academic Journey
The University of Hawaii is committed to student success through the Hawaii Graduation Initiative, which aims to increase student persistence and reduce time and credits to degree. One strategy to achieve this is STAR, an intelligent Web application that alerts students when they are veering off their academic path and enables them to plan their educational goals. This project will increase student usage of the course planning aspect of STAR and the intelligent scholarships matching tool, enabling all students to access course information, plan course schedules, transfer credits, find scholarship information, communicate with advisors and other students, and follow a clear path to academic success. Back to top
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
Beverly Woolf
Math Fundamentals Tutor to Improve College Readiness and Completion
The primary focus of this project is on scaling deeper learning in mathematics through the use of Wayang, an intelligent tutor that has been used with thousands of students. The software provides multimedia advice, animated characters, and new strategies for tackling challenging problems. The system will be used in high-enrollment, low success, entry-level Developmental Mathematics courses in both community college and public 4 year schools to improve course and college completion and persistence. The secondary focus of the project is on the use of real-time outcome data for students, instructors, and advisors, to improve student success. Back to top
Timothy A. McKay
Making the Course Fit: Customizing Introductory Science Courses with the Michigan Tailoring System
The Michigan Tailoring System is an open source software solution developed to customize public health communications. We propose to adapt MTS to optimize the learning experience in large gateway science courses. It will provide each student with an individualized interface to their class, one that will dynamically recognize their strengths and weaknesses, understand their motivations, and coach them through the course. All students will be better served when we more thoroughly tailor the approach each takes to achieving their learning goals, both high-risk students and those who most easily master the material.s. Back to top
Paul Wagner
The Missouri Learning Commons: Redesigning Gateway Courses at Scale
A consortium of all thirteen public four-year universities in Missouri will engage in a unique state-wide course redesign initiative that applies blended learning pedagogy to a large scale of students and diverse course content, involves unprecedented cross-institutional collaboration, and is designed for eventual dissemination to other institutional systems. Each institution will take the lead in redesigning a high-enrollment gateway undergraduate course to improve student learning, persistence, and program completion as well as to reduce the costs of instruction. The redesign initiative will be guided by the principles and practices of the National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT). Back to top
Society for the Teaching of Psychology
Regan Gerung
Bringing the Success of U-Pace to Scale
The Society for the Teaching of Psychology (Society for Teaching of Psychology--Division 2 of the American Psychological Association) is partnering with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to disseminate a highly effective, technology-enabled instructional approach known as U-Pace. Developed at UW-Milwaukee by Professor Diane Reddy, the U-Pace online instructional approach is self-paced, mastery-based and provides amplified assistance to students (directed timely and tailored feedback on performance and constructive support and encouragement grounded in positive psychology). This project seeks to scale the success of U-Pace by 1) bringing nationwide attention to U-Pace as a highly effective technology-enabled instructional approach that can be widely implemented without many resources and 2) seeding U-Pace in five large post-secondary institutions committed to providing educational opportunities for all students, including those who are underprepared, low income or underrepresented. Back to top
Allen Daniel Johnson
Scaleable cloud-based, shared authoring and assessment manager that outperforms traditional textbooks with a more robust learning format and lower cost
Students learn & understand more when they have specific learning goals for reading, can frequently test their understanding in meaningful ways, can anchor new information to what they already know, and can choose their learning path. BioBook is the first eText that helps students do all of this. BioBook is cloud-based, and accessible from any device with an HTML5-compliant browser. Its node-based framework lets teachers choose and update what content, multimedia, and self-assessments their students experience. We are evaluating BioBook’s impact at a 4-year private university, small women’s college, historical black state university, and community college. Back to top