Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA)

Rockman et al has served as an external evaluator and research partner for several successful NIH SEPA proposals, including the selected examples below.

Per the NIH solicitation for 2018, the Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) program supports pre-kindergarten to grade 12 (P-12) and informal science education (ISE) activities that: (1) enhance the diversity of the biomedical, behavioral and clinical research workforce and (2) foster a better understanding of NIH-funded biomedical, behavioral and clinical research and its public health implications.

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Selected Projects Include

  • Photo courtesy of Hudson Alpha.

    It’s Complex! Engaging Student Discussions around Complex Genetics and Individualized Medicine

    Rockman et al is studying the impact of Touching Triton, an online space-themed interactive created by the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. The game is designed to increase high school students’ knowledge about and interest in genetic and environmental factors that might influence the likelihood of developing a complex disease. To inform the design, REA conducted student focus groups, teacher interviews, and classroom observations. REA has also provided consulting on quasi-experimental studies to assess summative impacts. Touching Triton was selected as a finalist in the 2015 Serious Games Showcase and Challenge in the Business Category.

  • Photo courtesy of NWABR via CC licensing.

    Coastal Marine Biolabs

    Coastal Marine Biolabs’ NeuroLab 2.0 project has developed a multidisciplinary, storyline-based high school curriculum unit about a complex movement disorder, congenital mirror movement disorder (CMM). Over the ten lesson sequence, students generate questions, analyze and interpret data, and construct and revise explanatory models. The project seeks to expand access to investigative research experiences for students by training teachers on the new curriculum. REA is conducting a small-scale classroom study to evaluate the efficacy of the NeuroLab 2.0 unit on students’ science knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes. Evaluators are also studying teachers’ implementation of the materials.

  • Photo courtesy of GSLC

    Genetic Science Learning Center (GSLC) at University of Utah

    Since 2006, REA has worked with the University of Utah’s Genetic Science Learning Center (GSLC) on evaluation projects for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), conference presentations, and peer-reviewed publications. Our collaborations have included conducting randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the impact of high school curriculum supplements on cell biology and epigenetics, and documenting the process of curriculum and assessment development for a National Science Foundation Discovery Research K-12 project on evolution and common ancestry. REA and the GSLC co-authored a paper on randomized controlled trials and a primer on instrument development. They have co-presented on evaluation and educational research topics, such as mixed-methods designs, program implementation and assessment development, at the National Institutes of Health’s Science Education annual meetings.