Here is a sampling of some of the projects and labs that Faculty and Graduate Students are engaged in currently. Funded research includes support from various agencies including the Department of Education, the Institute for Educational Sciences, and the National Science Foundation.
Led by Dr. Emma Mercier, the Collaborative Learning Lab was established to study collaborative learning and technology in classroom settings. We focus on both the students’ and teachers’ experiences during collaborative learning, seeking to understand more about how this form of pedagogy can be more effectively implemented in classrooms for all students.
The EmIT Research Lab is led by Dr. Robb Lindgren and is focused on the design, study, and evaluation of immersive and physically interactive learning environments such as augmented reality and virtual reality. The lab group has projects examining these technologies across multiple content areas, for young children to adults, and in both formal and informal contexts.
Led by Dr. Catherine Dornfeld Tissenbaum, the FIELD Trip Lab works with community partners, including museums and nature preserves, to design and implement scaffolded learning experiences. Lab-associated projects focus on amplifying marginalized voices in museums, promoting learner-centered pedagogies, and supporting adults who teach children in any setting (e.g., teachers, parents, caregivers).
The Immersive Data Lab's work is led by Dr. Jina Kang and centers on three interrelated areas: data science, data-driven design, and STEM education. They explore the potential for immersive technologies to help learners understand complex and abstract scientific concepts and to advance our understanding of learner behavior with unstructured and massive data out of immersive technologies.
Led by Dr. Luc Paquette, the Human-centered Educational Data Science Lab investigates the importance of human insights when designing and utilizing data-driven models of student behaviors. The lab’s projects include work on developing methods to develop human-interpretable models, conduct research using data-driven interviews and utilize data-driven models to support students and instructors.
The Theory-based Computational Analysis of Classroom Audiovisual Data is a three-year National Science Foundation-funded project led by Dr. Stina Krist, Dr. Cynthia D’Angelo, and Dr. Nigel Bosch, which focuses on advancing methodologies that combine grounded theory based approaches with computational analyses of classroom video data.
Led by Dr. H Chad Lane, the goal of WHIMC is to develop computer simulations that engage, excite, and generate interest and engagement in STEM. WHIMC leverages Minecraft Java Edition as a learning environment for learners to interactively explore the scientific consequences of alternative versions of Earth.
Pixel Playgrounds Lab, led by Dr. Mike Tissenbaum, focuses on the intersection of physical spaces, information, technology, and people to support collaborative learning. Our projects span immersive classroom simulations and games, culturally relevant computing and engineering, educational data mining, and classroom orchestration.
The Krist Lab is led by Dr. Stina Krist. Our research examines how to support students' meaningful engagement in science practices; the ideas and values that undergird science teaching and learning; and how to design and support K-12 science learning environments that center values of care and justice. We also work on developing research methods that center these values.