2018 Provost’s Learning Innovations Grants

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2018 PROVOST’S LEARNING INNOVATIONS GRANTS

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The Provost’s Learning Innovations Grants (PLIG) program was developed to broaden and enrich the learning experience of RIT students by funding faculty-initiated projects that enhance student learning. 250 RIT faculty projects have received funding since the program was initiated in AY 2000-2001. (Examples of previously funded projects are available in the Previous Awards section of the PLIG website, rit.edu/ili/plig). The launch of the Innovative Learning Institute (ILI) and Teaching and Learning Services (TLS) in 2012, with its charge to assist in the creation of exceptional learning experiences for students, led to an evaluation of PLIG and a revitalization of the program to:

• Better support dissemination of individual faculty learning to the wider faculty population • Integrate funding with Institute priorities • Support the scholarship of teaching and learning

The 2018 Application Form is found on page 3 of this document.

I. ELIGIBILITY

All full-time RIT faculty (tenured, tenure-track, visiting, lecturers) are eligible to apply.

II. PLIG TYPES

There are two types of grants - Exploration and Focus - for PLIG 2018. Full details are available on the Grants Types page of the PLIG website.

III. USE OF GRANT FUNDS

Provost’s Learning Innovations Grants for 2018 may range from $1,000-$5,000.

Examples of the use of PLIG funds include: • Course release (reasonable, actual replacement costs for faculty members removed from teaching)

• Development of new technology-based learning tools and/or environments

• Technologies or equipment required by the project that are not normally provided by the department/college

• Resources for research design and consultation, data collection and aggregation, instrument development and/or purchase, secure data storage, data analysis, and report generation

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• Travel to support research activity and/or meet with potential funding sources

IV. PLIG TIMELINE AND TASKS The grant timeline assumes that most recipients will use the Spring 2018 and/or Summer 2018 term(s) to plan and develop their PLIG-funded project for delivery or implementation during the Fall 2018, Spring 2019, and/or Summer 2019 term(s). The full timeline, including grantee tasks, is available on the PLIG website.

V. SELECTION COMMITTEE AND EVALUTION CRITERIA

Applications for PLIG funds are evaluated by the PLIG selection committee according to the following criteria: • Utility (solves a defined problem; has potential to benefit many courses/faculty)

• Creativity (is a novel approach or application; represents a new paradigm)

• Efficacy (uses an evidence-based approach; impact to student learning and/or the student experience can be demonstrated)

The criteria are further defined, illustrated, and explained in the Proposal Evaluation section of the PLIG website.

VI. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS

Please email plig@rit.edu with any questions or comments.

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2018 PROVOST’S LEARNING INNOVATIONS GRANTS

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

1. Complete this Application Form, in its entirety, and save as “Lastname_Firstname_APP” (using your name).

2. Complete the Budget Worksheet and save as “Lastname_Firstname_BUDGET” (using your name).

3. Ask your Department Head to complete the Department Head Certification, scan and save as, “Lastname_Firstname_SIG” (using your name).

4. Email all documents to plig@rit.edu, no later than 11:59pm EST, January 22, 2018.

If you have any questions about completing this application, please contact Michael Starenko at 585-475-5035 or mssetc@rit.edu.

APPLICANT INFORMATION

This application is for a (please select one type of grant):

Exploration Grant

Focus Grant - Active Learning

Focus Grant - Applied Critical Thinking

Principal Applicant name: Yasmine Elglaly

Faculty title: Lecturer Email: ynevse@rit.edu Phone: 5859936095 (Full-time only)

College: GCCIS Department: Software Engineering

Department Head name: Naveen Sharma Email: nxsvse@rit.edu Others involved in the project (if any):

Project name: Incorporation of Creativity and Active Learning into Freshman Curriculum in Software Engineering Total funds requested (as calculated on the budget worksheet): $5000 (requests of $1,000 to $5,000 will be considered)

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BUDGET

There is a fillable PDF worksheet to calculate your budget. You can download the worksheet at rit.edu/ili/plig.

• The total shown on this worksheet must match the “Total funds requested” in the Applicant Information section of this application form

• If awarded, additional funds will be provided to cover any benefits and ITS expenses associated with the salary budget requested

• Note that any equipment or other materials purchased with grant funds are the property of your department and revert to the department after your project is completed

TIMELINE AND TASKS

Please indicate any variances to the planned PLIG 2018 schedule and your reasons. If you do not intend to deviate from the schedule, you may leave this section blank. Note: the tasks are described in the Dissemination Agreement section.

Task Date Proposed Variance and Reason

Full project plan submitted to TLS August 24, 2018

Preliminary findings submitted to TLS January 11, 2019

Summary of final findings submitted to TLS August 23, 2019

Final budget accounting submitted TLS August 23, 2019

Participation in ILI/TLS PLIG dissemination event (e.g., PLIG Showcase)

November 2019

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STATEMENT OF UTILITY (two pages maximum)

Using the evaluation criteria outlined in the Proposal Evaluation section of the PLIG website, please provide an overview of the project you are proposing, including: • Project objectives

• An explanation of the teaching/learning problem(s) it is designed to address

• An explanation of the significance of the project to student outcomes and/or the student experience.

• A brief description of how the project integrates with activity already underway at RIT in a priority area and/or how this approach has been successfully used at RIT already.

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Summary

The goal of this proposal is to design and create in-class activities that promote active learning and creativity in an introductory software engineering course. The activities will guide the students in building a project from inception to deployment, providing the students to develop problem solving and analytical skills through engaging approach and teamwork.

Project Objectives

1-To provide an active learning experience in software engineering for first year students in the software engineering and exploration programs. The outcomes of this project will be integrated into the software engineering introductory course to enhance classroom engagement.

2- To impart knowledge and understanding of the course content: (1) ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, ethical, health and safety, and sustainability; (2) ability to understand professional and ethical responsibility of software engineers

Teaching and Learning Problem Software engineering and exploration students come to the program without fully understanding the differences between software engineering and other computing fields. The fundamental goal of an introductory course in software engineering (SWEN-101) is to clearly define the field of software engineering, however per students’ feedback through course evaluations and surveys, this goal was not fully achieved. The field of software engineering is defined by four pillars: process, design, communication, and teamwork. The course introduces these concepts using independent isolated classes.

In this project, I propose to employ a semester-long team-based project to drive students understanding of the fundamentals of software engineering. We will create activities to support project building, and create tutorials to support students in learning various technologies such as modeling, prototyping, and development environment. Students will be guided in identifying a project idea that matters to them. Then, they will pitch their idea to other students. Teams will be formed and each team will agree on one project idea and work on transforming this project vision to actual product by the end of the semester. The target platform will be unified as a requirement for all teams. All projects will be implemented using Android Studio. Students will define the features of the mobile app using modeling approaches such as use cases. All teams will employ SCRUM, a software engineering process, to manage the project. Students will evaluate their project using formal testing methods. Students will also be engaged in cross team activities to further enrich their learning experience.

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STATEMENT OF UTILITY (continued)

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Impact on Students

Students will be engaged in active learning:

- To introduce the students to the field of software engineering, the course will engage the students in a term-long team-based project.

- The course will revolve around self-identified projects. The students will begin with the construction of various models and end with a functional prototype for the system of interest. The successful completion of a project culminates in a demo and final presentation where each team communicates the project’s idea, motivation, model, process, and its implementation.

A student who is immersed in a creative learning environment will develop more positive attitudes towards the subject (i.e., software engineering). Specifically, they will show more confidence or self-efficacy in software engineering, perceive software engineering as more useful in their own lives and in the real world, express more motivation to succeed, feel a sense of identity and belonging, and be able to engage in expressive, creative thinking skills [1]. Gains in these areas will drive the student to persist towards additional education and/or a career in software engineering.

Priority Area

This proposal aligns with RIT educational vision of promoting experiential learning. With the proposed project, students will have first-hand experience of the learning activities and will be more engaged. Redesigning course content to include project-based activities will engage students with different learning styles, and students from underrepresented groups such as women students.

References [1] Wiebe, E., Williams, L., Yang, K., and Miller, C. 2003. Computer science attitude survey. Comput. Scie. 14.

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STATEMENT OF CREATIVITY (three paragraphs maximum)

Provide a brief description of how this is a novel approach, or a new application of an existing mode or model of teaching and learning, and/or research about how teaching and learning represents a new paradigm. (Please note that special consideration will be given to proposals that demonstrate a new use/application of a model, system, or technology already in use at RIT.)

Traditional STEM teaching often involves little opportunity for creativity and self-expression. In recent years, active learning methods have been widely employed in STEM education. Previous research has shown the effectiveness of active learning methods in leveraging students engagement [1]. There are different teaching approaches that are designed to promote creativity among students. One constructionist theory asserts that learning is most effective when students are actively engaged in their learning environment [3]. In this project, students will build something of their own design, as opposed to following predefined steps as in a lab experiment. When students are interested in a project, they tend to work harder on it because they are enjoying the process. The importance of personal expression and creativity has been found to play an important role in student engagement [2]. Shaffer and Resnick [4] showed that learning material that is personally relevant and situated in the real world promotes engagement.

We plan to redesign the current syllabus of an introductory course in software engineering (SWEN-101), and create an authentically creative learning environment that fosters students’ creativity and internal positive attitudes. We will achieve this goal by creating in-class activities that empower the students to explore and express their own self-identity through software engineering. This approach of creating course activities that are relevant to students can then be applied to other computing courses.

[1] Freeman, S., Eddy, S. L., McDonough, M., Smith, M. K., Okoroafor, N., Jordt, H., & Wenderoth, M. P. (2014). Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,111(23), 8410-8415.

[2] Freeman, J., Magerko, B., McKlin, T., Reily, M., Permar, J. Summers, C., and Fruchter, E. 2014. Engaging underrepresented groups in high school introductory computing through computational remixing with EarSketch. In Proceedings of the 45th ACM technical symposium on computer science education (Atlanta, Georgia, March 05 – 08, 2014). SIGCSE’14. ACM, New York, NY, 85-90. DOI = http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/2538862.2538906

[3] Harel, I. and Papert, S. 1991. Constructionism. Ablex Publishing Corporation, New York, NY.

[4] Shaffer, D.W., and Resnick, M. 1999. Thick Authenticity: New media and authentic learning. Journal of Interact. Learn. Res. 10, 2, 195-215.

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STATEMENT OF EFFICACY (two pages maximum)

Provide a brief description of the experiment/research design, methodology, and methods of data collection you will use to gauge efficacy.

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Students will be required to submit a set of deliverables related to the project. Each deliverable will have defined rubrics to assess students’ understanding of a specific software engineering concept, and how well they applied it to the project. Additionally, as part of the project artifacts, students will create a demo and a presentation for their project. These deliverables in addition to the demo and a final presentation will serve as a gauge of efficacy.

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STATEMENT OF EFFICACY (continued)

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DISSEMINATION PLAN (optional)

Provide details about the journals, conferences, shows, or other external vehicles with strong potential for dissemination of your results. Include supporting documentation, such as preliminary interest or acceptance, with your application, if available. (Please note that special consideration will be given to proposals that have a defined opportunity for external dissemination, such as an academic journal or professional conference.)

ILI/TLS will assist with arranging channels for disseminating results within RIT (e.g., annual PLIG Showcase).

In addition to PLIG Showcase, a report on this project and its results can be disseminated to journals and conferences such as ACM InRoads, and SIGCSE.

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ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS Please address these questions, if needed.

Will your project require assistance for extensive or unusual media, multimedia, simulation, and/or software development? If so, please explain?

All courses offered by RIT must be accessible to students with disabilities, according to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (rit.edu/studentaffairs/disabilityservices/info). Is your proposed teaching approach accessible to all students, with reasonable accommodation? If not, please explain.

RIT abides by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), which prohibits instructors from making students' identities, course work, and educational records public without their consent (rit.edu/xVzNE). Will any data gathering or sharing for your project raise any FERPA issues? If so, please explain.

Not applicable.

Yes, the proposed approach combines various domains of learning, and as a result, is accessible to students with disabilities.

No.

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DISSEMINATION AGREEMENT

By completing this grant application, I agree to provide the materials described here, in support of disseminating what is learned from this project to other faculty at RIT.

I also agree to return all/a portion of the funds that I receive for this project to RIT if I fail to complete or provide the materials described here. • Full project plan (including roles and responsibilities, milestone dates, and pertinent project details) • Overview of preliminary findings (may include experiment/study design, lessons learned, initial data

collection, and/or literature review summary)

• Final summary of findings (including data collection, lessons learned, implications for further study, and which may be in the form of an article abstract, conference presentation outline, or short report)

• Final budget accounting (reconciliation of budget provided with your application and the actual project expenses)

• Participation in an ILI/TLS dissemination event (e.g., present a poster or other display at the PLIG Showcase)

By submitting this application, I accept this agreement. _Y.E.____ (applicant, please initial here)

PLIG Budget WorksheetApplicant's Name:

Personnel Purpose/Justification AmountFull-Time Faculty/Staff

123

Adjuncts, Part-Time Faculty/Staff, Summer Salary123

Student Workers, Graduate Assistants123

T Personnel Total

Equipment Purpose/Justification Amount123

T Equipment Total

Travel Purpose/Justification Amount123

T Travel Total

Other (Specify) Purpose/Justification Amount123456

T Other Expenses Total

Total Award Request