SCC-PG: Cultivating a Smart Equity-Driven Policymaking Infrastructure to Improve Youth Learning Opportunities

在解决高质量学习机会不平等问题的承诺日益增加的背景下，这项智能和互联社区规划拨款支持创建一个由芝加哥市政机构、社区校外时间（OST）项目提供商、学校、资助组织、家庭和芝加哥青年组成的协作工作组，以创建一个智能、公平的校外学习基础设施，更有效地分配学习资源，如空间、导师、技术、和资金，以消除芝加哥的校外学习沙漠。该项目响应了建立和加强利益相关者之间联系的迫切需求，这些利益相关者包括城市机构、非正式教育工作者、校外项目负责人、学区负责人、家长和青年，并以证据为基础了解OST产品。关于项目和提供者组织的丰富性和多样性、项目的位置、项目的能力、青年兴趣和青年人口的信息可以用来有效地改善芝加哥OST学习生态系统的健康。该项目将提供一个可操作的框架，包括政策、实践、融资模式和协作结构，支持以数据驱动的智能方法创造公平的校外学习机会。在现有的OST学习生态系统中，该项目采用社区驱动的方法，通过将主要利益相关者聚集在一起，并使用交互式智能工具（如数据可视化和GIS地图）促进对话，从而评估当前的OST学习景观，这些工具是基于社区的OST项目、城市和人口数据。这些信息可以帮助利益攸关方讨论、扩大和多样化资源受限社区青年的OST学习机会和参与。结果将是一个社会技术框架，与芝加哥的主要学习利益相关者共同创建，其中将包括一套智能，数据驱动的技术，能够根据社区青少年的需求定制一个强大的校外学习生态系统。这个可操作的框架将包括城市和社区层面的政策、实践和结构，这些政策、实践和结构来源于定义社会技术基础设施和共享语言，确定抑制或支持学习型利益相关者之间合作的政策和实践，以及共同创造以社区为基础的合作实践，以转变和激活新的OST生态系统。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。

Amid growing commitment to address inequities of access to quality learning, this Smart and Connected Communities Planning Grant supports the creation of a collaborative working group consisting of Chicago city agencies, community-based out-of-school time (OST) program providers, schools, funding organizations, families, and youth in Chicago to create a smart, equitable out-of-school learning infrastructure that more effectively allocates learning resources, such as spaces, mentors, technology, and funding, in order to eradicate out-of-school learning deserts in Chicago. This project responds to the critical need to build and strengthen connections among stakeholders, including city agencies, informal educators, out-of-school program leaders, school district leaders, parents, and youth, with an evidence-based understanding of OST offerings. Information about the abundance and diversity of programs and provider organizations, location of programs, capacity of programs, youth interest, and youth population can be used to effectively improve the health of Chicago’s OST learning ecosystem. This project will contribute an actionable framework consisting of policies, practices, funding models, and collaboration structures that support a smart, data-driven method to create equitable out-of-school learning opportunities.Working in an existing OST learning ecosystem, this project takes a community-driven approach to evaluating the current OST learning landscape by bringing together key stakeholders and facilitating the conversation using interactive smart tools such as data visualizations and GIS maps, that layer community-based OST program, city, and demographic data. This information can help stakeholders discuss and expand and diversify OST learning opportunities and participation among youth in resource-constrained communities. The outcome will be a socio-technical framework, co-created with key learning stakeholders in Chicago, that will include a suite of smart, data-driven technologies that enable a robust, out-of-school learning ecosystem customized to the needs of neighborhood youth. This actionable framework will consist of policies, practices, and structures at both the city and community levels derived from defining a socio-technical infrastructure and shared language, identifying policies and practices that inhibit or support collaboration among learning stakeholders, and co-creating practices for community-based collaboration to transform and activate a new OST ecosystem.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.