RET in Engineering and Computer Science Site: Data Analysis and Mining, Image Processing and Visualization at Appalachian State University

Appalachian State University, Boone NC

Investigators

Abstract

This award establishes a new Research Experiences for Teachers Site at Appalachian State University. High school teachers and community college faculty from a ten county region surrounding the university will work on summer research with their university faculty mentors. The research covers a range of computing disciplines including data analysis and mining, image processing and visualization. The educators will also develop inquiry-based classroom modules and curricular materials related to their research and then implement the models in their classes during the academic year. Workshops will be held to train additional teachers to use the materials. The program hopes to build a community of educators that can work together to integrate computing concepts into STEM education in the participating school districts and to establish partnerships that continue to thrive and provide leadership to ensure quality computing education in the region. The intellectual merit of this project is in the research focus on data mining and visualization, two areas that are current and of importance to the computing disciplines. The university faculty has outstanding expertise and resources to lead the site. The project team has significant related research and experience in educational applications and K-12 school outreach. The projects are compelling and current and of interest to the teachers and their students. The broader impacts of the project include providing a quality research experience to teachers and the infusion of sound instructional models into the K-12 schools and community colleges. The project includes outreach to a large community of teachers in Appalachian region and should impact a student population in a rural area where there are limited opportunities for students. The materials will be broadly disseminated for use by others. The project has the potential to create a sustainable partnership between the university and schools thus benefiting the area for years to come.