STEM Learning and Research (STELAR) Center: A Resource Center to Support Research and Development on STEM Careers

该学习与研究中心将推动学生和教师创新技术体验(ITEST)计划的努力，通过为所有ITEST项目提供技术支持，促进ITEST项目成果的全国传播，并进一步发展ITEST研发社区，更好地了解和促进提高学生在科学、技术、工程或数学(STEM)领域追求职业生涯的动机和能力的实践。该中心的主要目标是：a)提高ITEST项目团队和评估员有效综合和传播项目结果的能力；b)提高各国对ITEST项目结果的认识和使用；c)加强和扩大ITEST实践社区；d)进一步吸引目前在ITEST实践社区中代表性不足的个人和机构参与；以及e)加强跨资源网络的协作活动，以利用NSF跨计划举措。中心非常有针对性的外展和传播活动将促进科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)领域青年正规和非正规教育中新的循证创新的广泛实施和审查。教育发展中心将与全国职业技术教育协会合作，主办ITEST学习和资源中心，并与国家公认的职业发展研究人员合作，提高ITEST项目的能力，将合理的职业理论、研究成果和最佳实践纳入其计划的活动。为了满足国家对STEM劳动力的需求，该中心将促进对“中层”STEM职业和通往这些职业的教育途径的更多关注。该中心还将设立一个扩大参与咨询理事会，以协助该中心与少数群体服务组织和社区进行外联和接触。这些努力将通过旨在加强和扩大中心创新网络的各种活动得到支持和加强，包括向选定的首席研究人员提供小额赠款以促进创新实践的传播，实施研究员和指导计划以在国际技术和科技中心研究人员中不断发展专业知识，开发和出版与国际技术和科技中心指导问题相关的研究综述，以及制作各种网络研讨会、视频、数据简报和社交媒体活动，以向国际技术和技术创新中心的实践社区提供信息，并促进正在进行的国际技术和技术创新中心项目之间的积极合作。

This Learning and Research Center will advance efforts of the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program to better understand and promote practices that increase students' motivations and capacities to pursue careers in fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) by providing technical support to all ITEST projects, facilitating national dissemination of ITEST project outcomes, and further developing the ITEST research and development community. The primary goals of the Center are to: a) increase the capacity of ITEST project teams and evaluators to effectively synthesize and disseminate project findings; b) increase national awareness and use of ITEST project findings; c) strengthen and expand the ITEST community of practice; d) further engage individuals and institutions currently underrepresented in the ITEST community of practice; and e) strengthen collaborative activities across resource networks to leverage NSF cross-program initiatives. The Center's highly targeted outreach and dissemination activities will promote widespread implementation and examination of new, evidence-based innovations in formal and informal education for youth in fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). In partnership with the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium, Education Development Center will host the ITEST Learning and Resource Center and work with nationally recognized career development researchers to increase the capacity of ITEST projects to integrate sound career theory, research findings, and best practices into their planned activities. In response to documented national needs in the STEM workforce, the Center will promote increased attention to "middle-level" STEM careers and education pathways to those careers. The Center will also establish a Broadening Participation Advisory Council to assist the Center with outreach and engagement of minority serving organizations and communities. These efforts will be supported and enhanced through a variety of activities intended to strengthen and expand the Center's Innovation Network, including the provision of mini-grants to selected Principal Investigator's to promote dissemination of innovative practices, implementation of a Fellows and mentoring program for ongoing development of expertise among ITEST researchers, development and publication of research syntheses associated with the ITEST guiding questions for research, and production of a variety of Webinars, videos, data briefs, and social media activities to inform the ITEST community of practice and promote active collaboration across active ITEST projects.