SBIR Phase II: Helping Students Acquire 21st Century Skills Through Immersive Group STEM Simulations

这个小企业创新研究第二阶段项目将有助于将一种独特设计的产品引入教育市场，帮助教育工作者为今天的学生准备好迎接未来劳动力的挑战。批判性和创造性思考的能力，有效沟通的能力，以及在协作和技术丰富的环境中解决问题的能力，这些能力以前被定义为21世纪技能。新的研究表明，除了需要识字、计算和这些高级认知技能外，学生还必须具备社交和情感技能。这些社会情感技能的范围从自我意识到同情他人，从自我管理到领导力。对高阶技能的需求使得学校管理者和教师比以往任何时候都更重要的是为那些不感兴趣和难以激励的学生找到答案，特别是在科学和数学领域。学生们抱怨说，他们感到无聊，也不明白所教的东西有什么意义；他们渴望有意义的应用他们所学的知识和指导自己学习的能力。为了满足这些需求，拟议的课程为学生提供了截然不同的学习体验。沉浸式平台为学生提供了行使自主权的能力，并提供了互动和合作的新机会。当学生们开始理解一个人在社会、道德和文化上适当的方式与他人谈判互动的能力是实现个人目标的关键时，重要的生活技能就会出现在最前面。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project will contribute to the introduction into the educational market of a product uniquely designed to help educators prepare today's students for the challenges of tomorrow's workforce. The ability to think critically and creatively, to communicate effectively, and to solve problems in a collaborative, technology rich environment previously defined 21st Century Skills. New research indicates that in addition to the need for literacy, numeracy, and these advanced cognitive skills, students must also be equipped with social and emotional skills. These social-emotional skills range from self-awareness to empathy for others and from self-management to leadership. The demand for higher order skills makes it more important than ever for school administrators and teachers to find the answer for students who are disinterested and difficult to motivate, especially in the areas of science and math. Students complain that they are bored and do not see the purpose for what they are being taught; they desire meaningful application for what they learn and the ability to direct their own learning. Designed to address these needs, the proposed program offers students a distinctly different learning experience. The immersive platform gives students the ability to exercise autonomy and a new opportunity to interact and work together. Important life skills come to the forefront as students begin to understand how one's ability to negotiate interactions with others in socially, ethically, and culturally appropriate ways is key to achieving one's goals.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.