NSF CONVERGENCE ACCELERATOR: Improving Online Education Through Technology, Research, And Data

Georgia State University Research Foundation, Inc., Atlanta GA

Investigators

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has exponentially accelerated the growth of online educational technology. Digital platforms are seeing a 10 fold increase in users. Still, many current educational technologies have weak approaches to instruction, and they do not leverage basic research on learning, have a culture of continuous improvement, meet the needs of diverse learners, or leverage the growing power of computers. This conference will provide ideas for deliverables around potential use-cases and prototypes as well as lay the groundwork for future collaborations across a variety of disciplines to research, develop, and refine effective and equitable remote educational technologies. This project will bring together experts in industry and fields such as education, cognitive science, and technology to identify barriers and solutions to delivering high-quality online education. These collaborations will inform best practices in educational technology design and generate future development and testing. Topics such leveraging AI/ML or new modes of platform design will be key components of the discussions that take place at this conference, along with a look at what types deliverables can be derived from applying these new approaches to online learning. 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.