Grant Details

The ITEST program is funded by H-1B visa revenues in direct response to the need to ensure a high-quality future STEM and ICT workforce that can meet U.S. technology needs. The goals of the ITEST program are as follows:

1. To develop, implement, study, and evaluate interventions that encourage K-12 students to develop interest in and to be prepared for careers in the STEM and ICT workforce of the future.
2. To produce research findings that build knowledge about approaches, models, and interventions involving K-12-aged children and teachers that are most likely to increase the nation's capacity and innovation in the STEM and ICT workforce of the future.
3. To equip teachers with the resources to ensure that their students consider choosing and are prepared to enter the STEM and ICT workforce of the future.

ITEST proposals may focus on any STEM or ICT-intensive content area supported by NSF, provided the project addresses specific needs of K-12-aged students or teachers preparing for the future U.S. workforce. NSF is especially interested in supporting investigators to identify established or emerging STEM or ICT areas of focus and create new strategies, scale-ups, or research projects within those areas that may yield
further development of innovation or capacity within the STEM workforce of the future. In addition to technical and STEM content, projects may also provide the opportunity for students to learn and practice essential skills (e.g., conflict management, leadership, knowledge of workplace ethics, negotiation, or self-direction) (http://www.p21.org).

ITEST invests in four types of projects:

1. ITEST strategies projects: The goal of ITEST Strategies projects is to design, implement, and evaluate interventions that support K-12 students' engagement in authentic, relevant experiences that reflect the skills, knowledge, and  practices represented in the STEM and ICT workforce and motivate students to pursue STEM and ICT career trajectories. ITEST strategies may also devise ways to equip teachers with the appropriate resources to ensure that their students consider and are prepared for choosing to enter the STEM and ICT workforce of the future.
2. ITEST Research projects: The goal of ITEST Research projects is to produce empirical findings and research tools that contribute to knowledge about which approaches, models, and interventions with K-12 students and teachers are most likely to
   increase capacity in the STEM and ICT-intensive workforce of the future.
3. ITEST Scale-up projects: The goal of ITEST Scale-up projects is to apply strategies to enhance student or teacher knowledge of, or disposition toward, STEM and ICT careers that have evidence of effectiveness under routine conditions to a
   broader audience for the purpose of learning effective steps in expanding the adoption of successful innovations in school and out-of-school settings. Scale-up projects can include expanding existing designs, implementations, and tests of research and theory-based models or models based in best practice and professional expertise, to
   engage, motivate, and prepare students to be participants in the STEM and ICT workforce of the future.
4. ITEST Resource Center: One Resource Center will be funded to provide technical support for all ITEST projects and have responsibility for national dissemination of program models, materials, and best practices.