98-06933 Geppert Project Description This conference grant requests NSF support for a two-day Curriculum Showcase Conference, targeted to the Mid-Atlantic States, focused on recent NSF K-12 curriculum development programs in matheamtics and science. The target audience is approximately 500 local district math and science teachers, preservice and inservice professional developers, teacher educators, district and state curriculum supervisors, district and state education policymakers, and professional organizations such as NSTA, NCTM and AFT. Conference participants will be able to attend workshops that provide direct, hands-on experience with the materials, and receive information about additional resources that facilitate implementation of these materials at the school level. Conference proceedings will be distributed to attendees and placed on the web. Review Process The proposal was mail reviewed by three reviewers with expertise in science, science education and mathematics. Two were outside independent reviewers. The third was a program officer from the Division of Education System Reform. One reviewer gave the proposal a rating of Excellent, and two gave it a rating of Very Good. Program Officer Review Analysis and Recommendation Reviewers found several strengths in this proposal. It responds to a pressing need by local districts and states to evaluate and select high quality, standards-based materials in matheamtics and science. The PIs have excellent qualifications to carry out the work. The conference appears to be well organized and will appeal to both newcomers and experienced reformers. The project appears to have strong commitment and support from those in the region. Reviewers also offered some suggestions to strengthen the proposal. These include: * Invite representatives from the Implementation Centers so participants can learn about their services in the implementation process. * Provide a variety of structures for discussion, such as exhibit s for informal discussion, and breakout sessions by level of schooling and/or subject areas so that focused discussions about best practice and barriers to implementation are discussed. * Provide additional detail on the follow-up state conferences. * Have developers include research evidence (e.g., student achievement data), if available. * Explore providing more support for developers to attend. Reviewers agreed that this is needed and potentially helpful project to the participants. The project is well conceived and shows evidence of thoughtful planning and support. The Program Officer requested a revised budget that reflected attention to reviewer concern that developers be provided with sufficient funds to participate in the conference. The Program Officer recommends that the project be funded for $80,000. The cost share is $80,029.
