ANNUAL REPORT 2020-21
Contents Our First Year....................................................................................................... 1 Our Vision............................................................................................................ 2 Our Mission.......................................................................................................... 3 Our Goals for 2020/2021..................................................................................... 4 Goal 1: Cultivate Connections Across Disciplines........................................... 7 New Faculty Hires................................................................................. 8 Faculty Affiliate Program..................................................................... 9 Doctoral Students & Postdoctoral Scholars....................................... 11 New Stanford Courses.......................................................................... 12 Convenings........................................................................................... 15 Goal 2: Ignite New Research Areas................................................................... 17 Faculty Research Projects.................................................................... 18 Digital Learning Faculty Seed Funding, K-12 ..................................... 19 Learning Differences Faculty Seed Grants ......................................... 20 Early Childhood Learning and Development Faculty Grants ............ 21 Student Digital Learning Design Challenge........................................ 22
STANFORD TRANSFORMING LEARNING ACCELERATOR | 2020-21 ANNUAL REPORT
Goal 3: Meet the Moment................................................................................. 27 COVID-19 Projects................................................................................ 29 COVID-19 Outreach............................................................................... 31 Goal 4: Build a Foundation to Transform Learning.......................................... 33 Designing a Partnership Strategy........................................................ 34 Creating a Shared Services Model....................................................... 36 Stanford’s Vision................................................................................................. 37
Our First Year Dear Friends, In June, we officially launched the Stanford Transforming Learning Accelerator with a Spring Summit showcasing game-changing advancements in neurosciences, data, and technology. We were a year into the pandemic. Our researchers offered that right now, big, positive change is possible in learning if we dare to seize the opportunity.
programming focused on building relationships and allowing for experiential learning experiences — two of the most essential components of high quality learning that were threatened when students went virtual.
The Transforming Learning Accelerator enables Stanford to do just that. We are on the cusp of novel ways of teaching, instructional delivery, system design, and understandings that haven’t been available until now.
In addition to the pandemic, 2020 was notable for a reckoning over racial injustice. This brought heightened awareness to the challenges facing learners and systems of education. But these situations also opened up new dialogues that recognize the urgency with which we must come up with equitable and widespread solutions.
The Accelerator is the first Stanford-wide push to connect researchers across disciplines to improve learning experiences for all and throughout the lifespan. Year one has been devoted to bringing diverse scholars together, developing new initiatives that go after the most urgent challenges and exciting opportunities, and building the infrastructure needed for sustainable change. To that end, we launched a faculty affiliate program to initiate new research partnerships; engaged graduate and undergraduate students in research and design; and funded 25 faculty grants to conduct research in learning differences, digital learning, early childhood development, and K-12. Additionally, we created a student digital design challenge which involved undergraduate and graduate students from Stanford, as well as other universities. These actions helped accomplish one of our main goals for the year: identify our campus community already deeply engaged in the learning sciences and bring them together. Convening community members and industry partners around our work was also a priority. One distinction the Accelerator makes from past efforts to improve learning is that partners must participate at the outset of the research and development process.
The Transforming Learning Accelerator brings the full force of a world class university to one of the most necessary and impactful facets of society. We know that everything from wealth to wellness is influenced by educational attainment. The Accelerator is audacious in its vision to more quickly deliver tested learning solutions to all. It employs a novel approach that addresses challenges facing learners distinctly and demands new collaborations across fields and industries that haven’t worked together before. But I don’t think we can tolerate any longer a society where people have less than full access to well-designed and researched learning opportunities. Helping create positive change is within our reach and our responsibility.
Daniel Schwartz I. James Quillen Dean, Stanford Graduate School of Education Nomellini & Olivier Professor of Education Technology Academic Director, Transforming Learning Accelerator
As you’ll see in these pages, despite the pandemic we were able to host convenings, work with parents and schools, and initiate new online
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Accelerate Solutions to the Most Pressing Challenges Facing Learners We focus on learning challenges most in need of new discoveries, evidence, and solutions, and where we believe Stanford can make the biggest difference. Breakthroughs in these areas have the highest potential for impact beyond these groups, and therefore hold the most promise for expansive gains. Early Childhood Learning and Development
Under-resourced and Marginalized Learners
Launch a trajectory of well-being and high-quality learning during the early years of life.
Create learning opportunities that support and lift students facing adversity and create pathways to lifelong success.
Learning Differences and the Future of Special Education
Workforce Learners
Leverage recent breakthroughs to unlock the potential of people with diverse learning needs.
Open doors to new innovations, careers, and passions by providing workers access to new knowledge and skills.
Digital Learners
OUR VISION
Create vibrant, meaningful, and personalized digital learning opportunities that deepen knowledge and expand access.
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OUR MISSION
The Transforming Learning Accelerator leverages the latest
advancements in technology, data, and brain and learning sciences to bring scalable and equitable solutions to all learners. Three components facilitate our work:
Learner Centered
Science & Design
Pathways to Impact
Recognize and understand the lives, cultures, and experiences of distinct learners
Discover how people learn best, and in what environments, and design tailored learning solutions.
Create systems to move designs and discoveries into society as usable solutions
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Our Goals for 2020/2021 1: Cultivate connections across disciplines 2: Ignite new research areas 3: Meet the moment 4: Develop a foundation for acceleration
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Goal 1: Cultivate Connections Across Disciplines The Transforming Learning Accelerator aims to expand the community of problem-solvers in education by creating new opportunities for faculty across disciplines to bring their creativity and expertise to the challenges of actual learners. In 2020/2021, the Accelerator supported new faculty positions, created an affiliates program to broker relationships, and cultivated emerging expertise by engaging students in research and design projects. Bringing people together from different backgrounds and areas of experience and expertise also translated to those beyond the University. Through convenings, workshops, and courses, the Transforming Learning Accelerator began to extend its reach to share ideas and co-create solutions with stakeholders near and far.
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GOAL 1: CULTIVATE CONNECTIONS ACROSS DISCIPLINES
New Faculty Hires In the 2020/21 academic year, the Transforming Learning Accelerator brought four new faculty to Stanford to lead innovative new research agendas around learning.
Elizabeth Kozleski
Nick Haber
Alfredo Artiles
Shima Salehi
Professor (Research) Graduate School of Education
Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education by courtesy, Computer Science, School of Engineering
Professor, Graduate School of Education
Assistant Professor (Research) Graduate School of Education
Artiles is Lee L. Jacks Professor of Education. His scholarship examines the dual nature of disability as an object of protection and a tool of stratification. He aims to understand how responses to disability intersections with race, social class and language advance or hinder educational opportunities for disparate groups of students.
Salehi is the director of IDEAL research lab, the research component of Stanford IDEAL initiative to promote inclusivity, diversity, equity and access in learning communities. Her research focuses on how to use different instructional practices to teach science and engineering more effectively and inclusively.
Kozleski engages in systems change and research on equity and justice issues in inclusive education in schools, school systems as well as state and national education organizations and agencies. Her research interests include the analysis of systems change in education, how teachers learn and practice in complex, diverse school settings, including how educational practices improve student learning.
Haber earned his PhD in mathematics. He is a cofounder of the Autism Glass Project at Stanford, a research effort that uses wearable technology and computer vision in a tool for children with autism. Additionally, Haber and his research group develop artificial intelligence systems meant to mimic and model the ways people learn early in life, exploring their environments through play, social interaction, and curiosity.
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Faculty Affiliate Program The affiliated faculty of the Transforming Learning Accelerator are a diverse group of scholars who have a central interest in improving learning experiences for all. They share a belief that evidence-based solutions can have real impact in people’s lives. And they are committed to working together to help make transformational change. Affiliates bring a wide range of experiences in research and practice, and help bridge expertise across disciplines. The affiliate program provides a supportive environment for scholars to exchange ideas, build relationships, and partner on research. The research and programs produced and led by affiliates is amplified through Transforming Learning Accelerator events, courses, and outreach materials.
Meet Our Inaugural Faculty Affiliates Emma Brunskill, Associate Professor, School of Engineering Rebecca Silverman, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education Victor Lee, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education Janet Carlson, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education Elizabeth Kozleski, Professor, Graduate School of Education Pablo Paredes, Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Medicine Sean Follmer, Assistant Professor, School of Engineering Sakti Srivastava, Professor, School of Medicine Chris Chafe, Professor, School of Humanities and Sciences Nilam Ram, Professor, School of Humanities and Sciences Thomas Robinson, Professor, School of Medicine Byron Reeves, Professor, School of Humanities and Sciences Bruce McCandliss, Professor, Graduate School of Education Anthony Norcia, Professor, School of Humanities and Sciences Dennis Wall, Associate Professor, School of Medicine James Landay, Professor, School of Engineering Gary Darmstadt, Professor, School of Medicine Jason Yeatman, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education Heidi Feldman, Professor, School of Medicine Nick Haber, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education Lisa Chamberlain, Professor, School of Medicine
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SPOTLIGHT
ON STUDENTS
Kristen Jackson, Doctoral Student Creating Inclusive Classrooms A first-year PhD student at Stanford Graduate School of Education, Kristen Jackson is one of four students participating in Leadership for Systemwide Inclusive Education (LSIE), a new doctoral program funded by the U.S. Department of Education and born out of the Transforming Learning Accelerator’s initiative on Learning Differences. Jackson, whose focus is curriculum studies and teacher education, is investigating how race and inequality are addressed in teacher preparation. In her former role as a social studies teacher, she experienced first-hand how Black students are disproportionately represented in special ed. She says all teachers need to be trained to make a safe, inclusive environment for all. "Why aren’t we more equipped to consider equity in our instruction?" she asks. "How do we move from, 'It’s not my job' to 'It’s everyone’s job.'" Learn More >>
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GOAL 1: CULTIVATE CONNECTIONS ACROSS DISCIPLINES
Doctoral Students & Postdoctoral Scholars In the first year, the Transforming Learning Accelerator supported graduate and postdoctoral scholars with student funding, resources, and research mentorship.
Learning Differences Elena Darling-Hammond, Doctoral Student Robert Wachtel Pronovost, Doctoral Student Madison Bunderson, Doctoral Student Kristen Jackson, Doctoral Student
Digital Learning Keith Bowen, Postdoctoral Fellow Emma Kerr, Doctoral Student Anna Popova, Doctoral Student Stephanie Robillard, Doctoral Student Victoria Docherty, Doctoral Student Archana Kannan, Doctoral Student
Workforce Learning Catherine Mullings, Doctoral Student
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GOAL 1: CULTIVATE CONNECTIONS ACROSS DISCIPLINES
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New Stanford Courses Faculty affiliated with the Transforming Learning Accelerator introduced new courses at Stanford that brought students together from several programs to study issues related to learning differences, special education, and underserved learners. Some of these courses had students partnering with outside organizations and collaborating with students and faculty across departments.
Learning Differences and Special Education • Child Development in and Beyond Schools (EDUC 283) • Supporting Students with Special Needs (EDUC 285) • Re-Examining Special Education through Multiple Lenses (EDUC 440) • Computer Vision for Education and Social Science Research (EDUC 463) • Measuring Learning in the Brain (NEPR 464, PSYCH 279, SYMSYS 195M, EDUC 465)
Race, Racism, and Diversity in Education • Race, Ethnicity, and Linguistic Diversity in Classrooms: Sociocultural Theory and Practices (AFRICAAM 106, CSRE 103B, EDUC 103B) • Critical Race Theory in Education (EDUC 439) • Youth Justice Lab: Imagining an Anti-Racist Public Education System (EDUC 441)
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SPOTLIGHT
ON READING
How Children Learn to Read Among the new courses introduced in 2020/2021 by faculty associated with the Transforming Learning Accelerator was, Literacy Development and Instruction (EDUC 258). The course focuses on literacy acquisition as a developmental and educational process. Students examined problems that maybe encountered as children learn to read and look at strategies that allow us to disentangle home, community, and school instruction from development.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON ENGAGEMENT
Inaugural Spring Summit In June 2021, Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne and Transforming Learning Accelerator faculty director Daniel Schwartz, dean of Stanford Graduate School of Education, officially launched the accelerator with a spring summit. The online convening featured three panels on how education is impacted by new discoveries in neuroscience, technology, and data. Nearly 1,000 people registered for the inaugural summit including university researchers, edtech industry affiliates, and teachers. The participating scholars shared their discoveries and later noted how much they welcomed learning from their colleagues – some of whom had met for the first time during their panel together.
Jason Yeatman
Jo Boaler
Carla Pugh
Nick Haber
Victor Lee
Emma Brunskill
Assistant Professor, Education and Medicine
Nomellini & Olivier Professorship in the Graduate School of Education
Professor, Surgery
Assistant Professor, Education and Computer Science (by courtesy)
Associate Professor, Education
Associate Professor, Computer Science and Education (by courtesy)
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GOAL 1: CULTIVATE CONNECTIONS ACROSS DISCIPLINES
Convenings Despite the limitations of gathering in-person during the pandemic, our scholars, students, and staff found many ways to convene, communicate, and collaborate through virtual workshops, webinars, and professional learning opportunities. Here is a sampling of 2020/2021 engagement opportunities sponsored by the Accelerator.
September 2020 “Tips for Caregivers of K-5 Students on Distance Learning” A webinar to support parents and teachers of elementary students.
October – December 2020 “Build Together, Learn Better” A four part series for San Jose students with learning differences & their families, Silicon Valley technology partners, and education leaders
November 2020 “Supporting Students with Learning Differences During Remote Learning” A webinar for parents and teachers.
May – June 2021 “Normal was Never Good Enough” A three-part series for K-12 school and district leaders on research-based considerations for a restorative restart.
June 2021 Inaugural Transforming Learning Accelerator Spring Summit. Panel discussions and audience Q&A.
July 2021 “An Applied Science to Support Working Learners” A four-session convening with academic and industry leaders to set an agenda for studying issues of working while studying.
August 2021 “Design Your Own Field Trip” A workshop for students.
May 2021 Virtual Field Trips: Increasing Access and Innovating Pathways A webinar conversation on the development of virtual field trip experiences including sharing how a proliferation of tools, technologies, and practices increase accessibility to remote places.
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GOAL 2: IGNITE NEW RESEARCH AREAS
Goal 2: Ignite New Research Areas In the 2020/2021 academic year, the Transforming Learning Accelerator launched research and design projects focused on learning differences, social and emotional development, online learning experiences, and community connection. The Accelerator awarded $1 million in seed funding to multidisciplinary research groups from six Stanford schools. Additionally, the Accelerator brought a unique experiences to students both in and out of Stanford. In a new collaboration with StartX, the Transforming Learning Accelerator hosted workshops on brain and learning sciences, entrepreneurship, and educational technology development. Teams competed for funding to support their projects.
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GOAL 2: IGNITE NEW RESEARCH AREAS
Faculty Research Projects The Transforming Learning Accelerator funded 71 faculty, students, and research staff on 25 interdisciplinary teams to pursue concept-proving research. These teams brought together individuals from across Stanford schools and received a total of $1 million. The following pages include descriptions of the funded projects in Digital Learning, Learning Differences, and Early Childhood Development.
2020/2021 Transforming Learning Grant Recipients School Affiliation of 71 Awardees on 25 Teams Humanities & Sciences Business Medicine Education Engineering Earth Hass Center External 0
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4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
No. of Awardees (faculty, students, other)
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Digital Learning Faculty Seed Funding, K-12 Remote Hands-on Skills Lab for High School STEM courses using Virtual Reality
Dogbot: A robotic companion for emotion regulation and stress management for K-12 students during remote learning
• Sakti Srivastava, Professor, Surgery; Division Chief, Clinical Anatomy, School of Medicine
• Pablo Paredes, Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine
• Miguel Angeles, MD, MPH, Lecturer, Clinical Anatomy, School of Medicine
• Sean Follmer, Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering and by courtesy Computer Science, School of Engineering
• Beth Habelow, DPT, Lecturer, Clinical Anatomy, School of Medicine • Patricia Youngblood, PhD, retired adjunct faculty, Clinical Anatomy, School of Medicine • Matt Hasel, Founder and CEO, TriPoint Labs • Joel Sadler, Founder, Piper
Creating Possibilities: Online learning through Minecraft communities • Elizabeth Kozleski, Professor, Graduate School of Education • Nick Haber, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education and by courtesy, Computer Science • Kathryn Ringland, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, UC Santa Cruz
Strengthening Child Literacy Through a Literacy Support Network • Emma Brunskill, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, School of Engineering • Rebecca Silverman, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
• Lawrence Kim, Postdoctoral Scholar, School of Medicine
Leveraging social media approaches to capture, share, and inspire maker pedagogy • Victor Lee, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education • Janet Carlson, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education • Christine Bywater, Professional Development Associate, Graduate School of Education
Creative Practices for Online Teaching and Learning of Music and Digital Arts • Chris Chafe, Professor, Music, School of Humanities & Science • Alex Chechile, Postdoctoral Scholar, Computer Research in Music and Acoustics, School of Humanities & Science
• Renee Scott, Director of Early Education, Haas Center
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GOAL 2: IGNITE NEW RESEARCH AREAS
Learning Differences Faculty Seed Grants Personalized Support for Individuals’ Development of SelfRegulation Using Boolean Network-based Methods and Metrics: Dynamic Learning Maps & Boolean Network Methods to Study Self-Regulation Development
“If a child is struggling with reading, there are many questions about why, what to do and when. The hope is that by understanding the root of that struggle in the brain, we’ll know the particular intervention for that child that will work best.” Jason Yeatman, Asst. Professor
• Nilam Ram, Professor, Psychology, School of Humanities and Sciences • Thomas Robinson, Professor, Child Health, School of Medicine • Byron Reeves, Professor, Communication, School of Humanities and Sciences
Automated Online Assessment of Learning Differences for Personalized Education: Automated Online Assessment of Reading Ability to Enable Personalized Education
• Xiao Yang, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Psychology, School of Humanities and Sciences
• Jason Yeatman, Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, School of Medicine; Asst. Professor, Graduate School of Education
Defining Taxonomies of Early Child Learning Through AI on Mobile Games Using AI Analysis of Mobile Games to both Track and Treat a Continuum of Early Childhood Learning • Dennis Wall, Associate Professor, Pediatrics, Biomedical Data Science, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine • James A Landay, Professor, Computer Science, School of Engineering • Gary Darmstadt, Professor, Pediatrics, Neonatal and Developmental Medicine, School of Medicine • Nick Haber, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education
Learning Difference Taxonomy Through Simulation of Early Childhood Learning: Developing a computationally precise description of early interactive learning and its impact on later development
• Heidi Feldman, Professor, Division Chief, Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics, School of Medicine • Klint Kanopka, Graduate Student, Graduate School of Education
Toward New Taxonomies of Student by Treatment Interactions in Special Education: Validating Neural Metrics of Engagement with Naturalistic Stimuli using Mobile EEG • Bruce McCandliss, Professor, Graduate School of Education • Blair Kaneshiro, Adjunct Professor, Music, School of Humanities and Sciences • Anthony Norcia, Professor, Psychology, School of Humanities and Sciences
• Nick Haber, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education
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Early Childhood Learning and Development Faculty Grants Integrating early childhood, health, and K-12 data to eliminate educational disparities • Lisa Chamberlain, MD, Professor, Pediatrics, School of Medicine • Ryan Padrez, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, School of Medicine
Understanding the role of socio-emotional classroom supports in school readiness • Jelena Obradović
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GOAL 2: IGNITE NEW RESEARCH AREAS
Student Digital Learning Design Challenge In collaboration with StartX, the Transforming Learning Accelerator launched a pilot student digital design challenge to help students create effective learning tools and scale them. Students teams built apps to create rewarding environments that go beyond lectures and worksheets to support learning communities where students persist and thrive. The challenge included the following elements:
Workshops Students participated in a series 12 of workshops to grow their knowledge and network. Workshops focused on learner-centered design processes, learning science and design, technical implementation, team building, and entrepreneurship. Featured guest speakers included Dylan Arena of Kidaptive, Amit Patel of Owl Ventures, Piya Sorcar of TeachAids, and Anthony Bloome of mEducation Alliance.
Mentorship Awardees gained access to mentors who provided support throughout later-stage research, design, and development phases of their projects. Mentors include faculty experts, industry experts, and peers with recent experience in developing digital learning experiences.
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Student Digital Learning Design Challenge 12 Teams, 34 Participating Students
School Affiliation of Awardees Humanities & Sciences Doctoral (18%)
Earth
Masters (35%) Undergraduate (44%)
Business
Unknown (3%)
Education Engineering Non Stanford Student 0
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3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Funding Students had the opportunity to apply for two rounds of funding. In the first round, grants of $1,500 were awarded to the top 12 teams for earlystage prototype development and user testing. In the second round, after two consecutive Design Sprints with these 12 teams, larger grants of up to $9,000 were awarded to the top seven teams for advanced prototype development and user testing
Connections Awardees will be introduced to community of entrepreneurs, faculty experts, and industry gatekeepers interested in producing more effective learning solutions.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON DESIGN
Working Together PeerTeach, a project of the Transforming Learning Accelerator’s Student Digital Learning Design Challenge, facilitates peer tutoring in math classrooms. It trains all students to be effective peer tutors, optimizing matches based on compatibility, and leveraging student mastery to help fill peer learning gaps. It was designed by a team of students including a high schooler, undergraduates and PhD.
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GOAL 2: IGNITE NEW RESEARCH AREAS
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Student Digital Learning Design Challenge Stapoo Education Equips low-income students in India with digital
Youth-Designed Social Learning Platform We are working with 60
e-learning literacy skills to empower them to take control of their education despite any barrier that comes their way.
all-female sixth-grade computer science students to design a social media platform for schools, center learning over advertising, connection over isolation, and empowerment over argument.
Darsel A text-based EdTech platform that enables interactive AI-driven personalized learning for K-12 schools in internet/device-constrained environments (mostly developing countries).
Little Tingz Uses artificial intelligence to help kids transform abstract emotions into tangible objects.
EpicConnect A productivity platform for fellowship programs that serve community college instructors, building connection, enhancing belonging, and helping participants collaborate on their fellowship projects.
Virtual Community Board Consolidates enriching, crowdsourced virtual events, facilitating participation of high school students in workshops, social gatherings, and more.
Health U Leverages microlearning, gamification, and rewards to deliver diabetes prevention programs in bite-sized, digestible lessons.
ELF Expressive Low-Budget Filmmaking (ELF) is a collaborative project where people with various skills and backgrounds come together to learn filmmaking, create amazing videos, and share them with friends.
Sonder A nonprofit web search platform that dynamically assesses and reduces bias in web search results. Koffeeshop A virtual space for students to replicate the experience of working with friends in a shared space like a lounge or coffee shop while on campus.
Whale Watchers Teaches underserved elementary school students about well-being (social, physical, relationships, mindsets) and how to maintain it by playing with a lovable family of well-being whales.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
Can We Virtually Immerse Students in Hands-On Field Experiences to Develop Observational, Spatial, and Problem-Solving Skills? Interest in virtual field trips spiked when COVID-19 sent students home in March 2020. Traditional field experiences provide students with opportunities to bond over a shared experience and develop learning activities in a more informal learning environment. Ryan Petterson of the School of Earth and Bryan Brown at the Graduate School of Education worked with support from the Transforming Learning Accelerator’s Digital Learning Initiative to create new field studies opportunities that marry learning and social-emotional goals with advances in technology. One aim is that students themselves eventually create — and teach — their own virtual trips. Although the virtual resources were jump-started to address the current needs for online learning, these resources can also augment in-person field experiences later on.
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Ryan Petterson
Bryan Brown
Director of Field Education School of Earth
Associate Professor Graduate School of Education
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Goal 3: Meet the Moment The global pandemic impacted all aspects of society and had acute effects on education – sending students and teachers home, upending parents’ schedules, and amplifying persistent inequalities in education. At the same time, disinformation campaigns on the web challenged educators to teach students how to be critical consumers of information, and the nation’s reckoning on racial injustice spotlighted again how racism has impacted learning. The Transforming Learning Accelerator pivoted to focus on opportunities where Stanford’s talent, intellect, and resources could help meet the moment. These included providing guidance and tools for teachers and students, and investing in research and design projects that would strengthen community and allow for hands-on learning in a virtual environment.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON COMMUNITY
There’s nothing remote about this virtual Ramadan at Stanford Tamr is the Arabic word for date, a fruit Muslims traditionally use to begin or end their fasting during Ramadan. It’s also a key component of the Virtual Ramadan experience designed by Stanford’s Markaz Resource Center; the Muslim Student Union; and the Office for Religious and Spiritual Life. Created in collaboration with the Transforming Learning Accelerator, the Virtual Ramadan website is a gathering space for Stanford’s Muslim community during the month-long holy holiday. After adjusting on the fly to a pandemic-disrupted Ramadan in 2020, the goal was to more meaningfully recreate online Ramadan’s important themes, including spiritual reflection, community service, and togetherness for 2021. “We were looking for something a little bit more intentional, inclusive, and accessible,” says Cassie Garcia, Markaz’ associate director Keith Bowen, a lecturer and postdoctoral research fellow at Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE), says the Virtual Ramadan project was a perfect fit for the Transforming Learning Accelerator. “We think about how digital technologies can be used to promote learning at its largest sense,” he says. “Learning at Stanford is about more than just attending classes. This richness of community is every bit as important.”
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GOAL 3: MEET THE MOMENT
COVID-19 Projects Three areas in education emerged as highly disrupted by the pandemic yet receptive to fashioning novel digital alternatives. This year’s COVID-19 projects focused on: field-based study, clinical learning experiences, and community center life.
Remote Observation of Teaching – Teacher Preparation By viewing classroom videos and guided debriefing, STEP students gained insights into the context, complexity, and nuanced decision-making of teaching. • Sarah Levine, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education
Clinical Experiences – Teacher Preparation Connected teacher candidates with rich resources to support learning about in-person teaching while studying remotely. • Sarah Levine, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education • Karin Forssell, Senior Lecturer, Graduate School of Education • Heidi Chang, Director of Professional Learning, Graduate School of Education
Reading Intervention Research A new parent-implemented home reading intervention study. • Christopher Lemons, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
Distance Learning and Para-professionals Researchers conducted interviews with paraprofessionals concerning supports and barriers in their jobs during COVID-19. • Christopher Lemons, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
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SPOTLIGHT
ON VIRTUAL LEARNING
Tips for Teaching Virtually Two new websites supported educators and students during COVID-19. One, designed for the Stanford community, explores common challenges in digital classrooms, shares experiences from professors and students, and provides strategies, research and materials that augment the online experience. The other, for educators and parents, delved into the latest research and ideas; provided tools for supporting students; and shared policy recommendations.
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GOAL 3: MEET THE MOMENT
COVID-19 Outreach Transforming Learning Accelerator Faculty Affiliates responded to the coronavirus pandemic by producing policy recommendations, op-eds, and professional learning. These included:
Pain AND Gain: Knitting Stronger California Family/School Special Education Partnerships in the Aftermath of COVID-19 This policy briefing outlines pathways forward for improvements to California’s support systems for students with disabilities as schools rebuild from the pandemic • Elizabeth Kozleski, Graduate School of Education
7 Research-Based Recommendations for What Schools Should Do Next Published in Education Week • Elizabeth Kozleski, Graduate School of Education
Mobilizing for Successful Change A two-part professional learning workshop for the New York City Department of Education. • Glenn Kleiman, Graduate School of Education
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Goal 4: Build a Foundation to Transform Learning Research, innovation, and translation depend on access to technical expertise and support. In 2020/2021, the Transforming Learning Accelerator laid the groundwork to provide centralized resources for scholars and designers, create new pathways for scaling solutions, and integrate a new methodology for pursuing the greatest challenges facing learners. Through new faculty and edtech affiliate programs, initiative seed funding and design teams, the design of a partnership strategy, the creation of a shared services model, and incentivized research and design teams, the Transforming Learning Accelerator model for impact began to take shape.
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GOAL 4: BUILD A FOUNDATION TO TRANSFORM LEARNING
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Designing a Partnership Strategy The Transforming Learning Accelerator is building a new network of relationships and affiliations across all education sectors to help innovations achieve scale and impact. In 2020/2021, we met with potential partners and stakeholders to design a sustainable strategy to create pathways to impact. We are building programs and infrastructure in four broad areas with goals are to engage practitioners, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and policy makers in the research and design of new solutions and to provide greater opportunities for the translation of discovery to application.
Research/Practice Partnerships with Education Providers RPPs work by engaging teachers, school leaders and policy makers in identifying areas of research based on real-world problems of practice.
EdTech Affiliates EdTech Affiliates will engage with companies creating new technologies and services in education. EdTech Affiliate companies will work with Stanford researchers to explore emerging technologies and bring market perspective to the design of solutions.
Global Challenges Education is a key to improving lives around the world, and is a major focus of governments, the international development community, NGOs, philanthropists, and entrepreneurs. The Accelerator will create new forums for sharing discoveries and encouraging innovation around the world.
Long-Term Visioning Education should focus on what that future world will look like. The Accelerator will engage business leaders, policy makers, philanthropists, and others to help envision the educational needs of future generations.
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SPOTLIGHT
ON COLLABORATION
Build Together, Learn Better: A Virtual Convening We set out to create a bilingual space for meaningful discussion between people who have different positions or roles in the community. Spaces like that just don’t exist. In school board meetings, parents can join and listen in to a translated line, but they can’t interact. The experience we created was unusual. — Joanna French, MA ’19
Associate Director of Research and Policy, Innovate Public Schools
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GOAL 4: BUILD A FOUNDATION TO TRANSFORM LEARNING
Creating a Shared Services Model The Transforming Learning Accelerator took the first steps this year to create a core of experts who can quickly support research, design, and acceleration. Under a Shared Services Model, faculty, students, and others affiliated with the Accelerator will be able to connect with:
Technical and learning design support Storyboarding, prototyping, user research, instructional design, web/mobile app development, cloud computing resource architecture, software testing and debugging, and media production.
Research support Conceptualization and measure design, execution of quantitative and/or qualitative research in the lab or field, data use agreements and storage, guidance for working with Stanford’s Institutional Review Board.
Professional development support Designing and executing in-person and virtual professional development for teachers, entrepreneurs, and other educational leaders.
Partnership support Finding and helping to broker prospective participants and partner organizations outside of Stanford.
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Stanford’s Vision Fueled by optimism and a sense of responsibility, we seek to accelerate our purposeful impact in the world. The scale and urgency of challenges facing us today require that Stanford reach farther and move faster to accelerate purposeful impact in the world. We need a new way of working that enables us to tackle long-standing issues facing our society and our planet and allows us to be nimble when faced with unexpected threats. The vision amplifies contributions through a new model for research universities: accelerating the creation and application of knowledge to tackle the world’s great problems, anchoring research and education in ethics and civic responsibility, and promoting access and inclusion.
We'd love to hear from you: transforminglearning@stanford.edu STANFORD TRANSFORMING LEARNING ACCELERATOR | 2020-21 ANNUAL REPORT
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transforminglearning.stanford.edu
