Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education (CADRE)

CADRE is the resource network that supports researchers and developers who participate in DRK-12 projects on teaching and learning in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines. CADRE works with projects to strengthen and share methods, findings, results and products, helping to build collaboration around a strong portfolio of STEM education resources, models and technologies. CADRE raises external audiences’ awareness and understanding of the DRK-12 program, and builds new knowledge.

Project Email
cadre@edc.org
Full Description

This project (Award # 2100823) from the Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education (CADRE) will provide assistance to Discovery Research K-12 (DRK-12) projects in national dissemination of the R&D contributions of the DRK-12 program. This project will strengthen the capacity, advance the research, and amplify the impact of DRK-12 projects and researchers working in the assessment, learning, and teaching strands. Through this effort, CADRE will advance the goals of the DRK-12 program in preK-12 formal STEM education by responding to the continuing need for communication, collaboration, and innovations among DRK-12 awardees and between awardees and the education system. The DRK-12 program seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.

CADRE's goals to strengthen the capacity, advance the research, and amplify the influence of active DRK-12 projects and associated researchers are designed to contribute to improvements in preK-12 STEM education. During this project, CADRE will continue its work in three main areas: (1) supporting the DRK-12 community, (2) connecting awardees in support of knowledge generation, and (3) connecting to the larger community of education research, policy, and practice. In addition, CADRE will bring together communities of practice to synthesize research across DRK-12 projects to identify critical themes in successful projects. CADRE will support early-career researchers and postdoctoral fellows through dedicated mentoring programs. They will also launch a Community Partners program designed to recruit a more diverse set of prospective DRK-12 researchers into the community. CADRE seeks to bring together (virtually and in-person) diverse audiences to contribute to and benefit from the work of DRK-12 projects, thereby further increasing engagement in evidence-based education in the STEM disciplines. CADRE will work to ensure that the knowledge and products produced by and with DRK-12 projects are broadly accessible to a varied group of stakeholders. CADRE will disseminate the research, models, resources, and technologies--both within the program and outside--to the broader education practitioner, research, and policymaking communities through a variety of media, including infographics and podcasts.

CADRE has been funded since 2008 to carry out this work. Learn more about our previous awards:

Award # 1813076 (2018-21)
Staff: Catherine McCulloch,
Principal Investigator; Amy Busey, Co-Principal Investigator; Leana Nordstrom, Project Manager/Director; Jennifer Stiles, Project Coordinator
Program Director: Robert Ochsendorf

This project from the Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education (CADRE) will provide assistance to Discovery Research K-12 (DRK-12) projects in national dissemination of the R&D contributions of the DRK-12 program. This project will strengthen the capacity, advance the research, and amplify the impact of DRK-12 projects and researchers working in the assessment, learning, and teaching strands. Through this effort, CADRE will advance the goals of the DRK-12 program in preK-12 formal STEM education by responding to the continuing need for communication, collaboration, and innovations among DRK-12 awardees and between awardees and the education system. The DRK-12 program seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.

CADRE's goals to strengthen the capacity, advance the research, and amplify the influence of over 300 active DRK-12 projects and associated researchers are designed to contribute to improvements in preK-12 STEM education. During this project, CADRE will continue its work in three main areas: (1) supporting the DRK-12 community, (2) connecting awardees in support of knowledge generation, and (3) connecting to the larger community of education research, policy, and practice. CADRE seeks to bring together (virtually and in-person) diverse audiences to contribute to and benefit from the work of DRK-12 projects, thereby further increasing engagement in evidence-based education in the STEM disciplines. CADRE will work to ensure that the knowledge and products produced by and with DRK-12 projects are broadly accessible to a varied group of stakeholders. CADRE will disseminate the research, models, resources, and technologies--both within the program and outside--to the broader education practitioner, research, and policymaking communities. In addition, the CADRE Fellows program will support next generation of scholars and increase the capacity of a diverse group of researchers to participate in and contribute to improving education in the STEM disciplines.

Award # 1743807 (2017-18)
Staff: Catherine McCulloch,
Principal Investigator; Amy Busey, Co-Principal Investigator; Leana Nordstrom, Project Manager/Director; Derek Riley, Evaluator; Jennifer Stiles, Project Coordinator
Program Director: Robert Ochsendorf

This award extended and enhanced the resource center (titled the Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education, or CADRE) for the DRK-12 program. CADRE 2018 strengthened the network's virtual presence in order to (a) generate and disseminate knowledge and products that support research, policy, and practice around key issues in STEM education; (b) foster interaction and collaboration across projects to maximize the individual and collective potential of DRK-12 awards; (c) offer targeted professional development activities and resources that support early career researchers and developers; and (d) provide focused outreach and dissemination efforts to the DRK-12 community, other networks, and broader stakeholder audiences.

CADRE brought together (virtually and in-person) diverse audiences to contribute to and benefit from the work of DRK-12 projects, thereby further increasing engagement in evidence-based STEM education. These efforts included interactive webinars, conference presentations, and the 2018 PI Meeting. CADRE also worked closely with two topical groups to advance DRK-12 work on early learning and broadening participation in STEM education. This award expanded upon previous work to support the professional growth of doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and other early career researchers, with a focus on broadening participation of individuals underrepresented in STEM. In addition, CADRE worked with awardees to disseminate research, models, resources, and technologies to the broader education practitioner, research, and policymaking communities.

Award # 1650648 (2016-17)
Staff:
Catherine McCulloch, Principal Investigator; Amy Busey, Research Associate; Leana Nordstrom, Project Associate; Derek Riley, Evaluator; Jennifer Stiles, Project Coordinator
Program Director: David Campbell

This award extended and enhanced the resource center (titled the Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education, or CADRE) for the DRK-12 program. The multi-faceted approach of CADRE 2017 strengthened the network's virtual presence in order to (a) generate and disseminate knowledge and products that support research, policy, and practice around key issues in STEM education; (b) foster interaction and collaboration across projects to maximize the individual and collective potential of DRK-12 awards; (c) offer targeted professional development activities and resources that support early career researchers and developers; and (d) provide focused outreach and dissemination efforts to the DRK-12 community, other networks, and broader stakeholder audiences. The evaluation supported continuous improvement of the network's design and seeks to identify components that have promise for adaptation in future endeavors and by other networks.

Through a variety of online curated resources and interactive events, the project advanced topics of relevance and importance to the DRK-12 community, the National Science Foundation, and society; supported interaction and collaboration among DRK-12 awardees; and facilitated DRK-12 awardee engagement with policy and practice communities. Informed by their expressed interests and needs, this award expanded upon previous work to support the professional growth of early career researchers and developers, with a focus on broadening participation of individuals underrepresented in STEM. The network supported knowledge generation, synthesis, and dissemination with a lens on DRK-12 resources, materials, and tools within and external to the research and development community. The network also contributed to the knowledge base on the design and implementation of networks intending to support knowledge management and collaboration.

Award # 1449550 (2014-16)
Staff:
Catherine McCulloch, Principal Investigator; Barbara Berns, Former Principal Investigator; Amy Busey, Research Associate; Leana Nordstrom, Project Associate; Derek Riley, Evaluator; Jennifer Stiles, Project Coordinator; Brenda Turnbull, Evaluator
Program Director: Karen King

This award continued and enhanced the resource center (titled the Community for Advancing Discovery Research in Education, or CADRE) for the Discovery Research K-12 program. The project built on the experience and expertise that evolved over six years in the development and implementation of CADRE. With this award, CADRE2 worked to maximize the individual and collective potential of DRK-12 awards by fostering collaboration and cross-sharing, and promoting the generation of new knowledge and products. CADRE2 provided technical support to the awardees through communities of practice, a strong virtual presence, and an annual PI meeting; professional growth opportunities targeted particularly to early career researchers and developers; and aggressive outreach and dissemination to the DRK-12 community and beyond. CADRE2 established connections with other networks to leverage each other's strengths and services. This award also focused on support for early career researchers and developers, looking at interests and needs for professional growth. The network also contributed to the knowledge base on capacity building, and provide a lens on dissemination of DRK-12 resources, materials, and tools within and external to the research and development community. The evaluation focused on components that have promise for adaptation by future endeavors and by other networks.

Award # 0822241 (2008-16)
Staff: Barbara Berns, Principal Investigator; Amy Busey, Research Associate; E. Paul Goldenberg, Co-Principal Investigator; Lisa Marco-Bujosa, Research Associate; Alina Martinez, Co-Principal Investigator; Catherine McCulloch, Co-Principal Investigator;Jacqueline Miller, Co-Principal Investigator; Hadley Moore, Evaluator;Leana Nordstrom, Project Associate; Andrea Palmiter, Support Staff; Derek Riley, Discipline Specialist;Greta Shultz, Evaluator; Brenda Turnbull; Discipline Specialist
Program Director: Elizabeth Vanderputten

CADRE carried out the following activities: (a) portfolio assessment to define the projects in terms of composition and major characteristics and identify project needs; (b) synthesis studies to capture a comprehensive view of the portfolio in order to understand the role that the program plays in advancing K-12 student and teacher learning; (c) individual technical support services to project leadership to enhance the rigor of projects; (d) multiple strategies for in-person and virtual technical support and group consultation to PIs based on the principles of commuties of practice; (e) Principal Investigators (PI) meetings, and (f) assistance in disseminating the DRK-12 projects' results and products within the program and throughout the STEM education community.

 
Our resources can be found across the website. Learn about our Early Career work, browse CADRE products, view our Spotlights and Toolkits, and join us for upcoming events.
 

Project Videos

2019 STEM for All Video Showcase

Title: Broadening Participation in PreK-12 STEM Education

Presenter(s): Catherine McCulloch, Malcolm Butler, Cory Buxton, Salvador Huitzilopochtli, Leanne Ketterlin Geller, & Arthur Powell

2018 STEM for All Video Showcase

Title: The Impact of Education Research

Presenter(s): Catherine McCulloch, Hilda Borko, Amy Busey, & Christine Cunningham


PROJECT KEYWORDS

Project Materials

Title Type Post date Sort ascending
Learning Progressions and Trajectories Project Spotlight 11/08/2023 - 12:48pm
Webinar Resources: Informational Webinars on DRK-12 Solicitation (23-596) Resource 07/21/2023 - 02:39pm
CADRE Learning Series Resource 10/24/2022 - 06:51pm
Tips for Designing and Implementing Exploratory DRK-12 Projects Blog 07/21/2022 - 06:29pm
Research Toolkit Resource 02/04/2022 - 04:55pm
Preparing and Justifying a Proposal Budget Resource 07/19/2021 - 09:25am
Slides & Recording from the 2021 DRK-12 Solicitation Webinar Resource 07/07/2021 - 09:26pm
NSF Grants Management: Office Hours with DRK-12 Program Officers Event 01/25/2021 - 03:11pm
A Collection of COVID-19 Information for Researchers, Parents, and Teachers Resource 06/16/2020 - 05:07pm
Webinar Resources: Managing Your NSF Grant Resource 05/27/2020 - 04:39pm
Insight from DRK-12 CAREER Awardees Resource 05/25/2020 - 06:55pm
Webinar Resources: Informational Webinar on DRK-12 Solicitation (20-572) Resource 05/20/2020 - 03:25pm
Webinar Resources: Adapting Your DRK-12 Research Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic Resource 05/20/2020 - 10:56am
DRK-12 Project Evaluators Resource 07/23/2019 - 01:03pm
Navigating the Academic Job: Developing Your Identity as an Early Career Scholar Resource 03/27/2019 - 10:41pm
Creating Inclusive PreK–12 STEM Learning Environments Resource 10/29/2018 - 01:05pm
Research Says Early Learning in Science and Mathematics Matters Page 09/21/2018 - 01:39pm
The Use of Theory in Research on Broadening Participation in PreK–12 STEM Education: Information and guidance for prospective DRK–12 grantees Resource 08/29/2018 - 09:50am
Considerations for STEM Education from PreK through Grade 3 Resource 07/31/2018 - 04:16pm
Findings from the 2017 DRK-12 Program Survey Resource 07/27/2018 - 02:05pm