NSF GRADUATE STEM FELLOWS IN K-12 EDUCATION (GK-12)

This program provides funding for graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines to bring their leading research practice and findings into K-12 learning settings. Through collaborations with other graduate fellows and faculty from STEM disciplines, teachers and students in K-12 environments, and community partners, graduate students can gain a deeper understanding of their own research and place it within a societal and global context. The GK-12 program provides an opportunity for graduate students to acquire value-added skills, such as communicating STEM subjects to technical and non-technical audiences, leadership, team building, and teaching while enriching STEM learning and instruction in K-12 settings. This unique experience will add value to the training of U.S. graduate students and will energize and prepare the students for a broad range of STEM careers in a competitive globalized marketplace. Furthermore, the GK-12 program provides institutions of higher education with an opportunity to transform the conventional graduate education by infusing and sustaining GK-12 like activities in their graduate programs.

Expected outcomes include:

1)  For graduate fellows

Enhanced understanding of their own research subject area, and its societal and global contexts; improved communication skills of STEM subjects with technical and non-technical audiences, leadership, team building, and teaching capabilities.

2)  For K-12 education

Professional development opportunities for teachers in both STEM content and pedagogy; and enhanced learning and STEM career interest for students.

3) For institutions of higher education

Transformation of graduate programs; strengthened and sustained partnerships with local school districts, industry, non-profit sector, etc.; and enhanced institutional impact of graduate education to society.