SRI International TRAILS Project Expands Its Network of Universities Preparing the Next Generation of Educational Software Designers

Awarded to Penn State and Drexel Universities, Grants Will Significantly Increase the Number of Students Reached

MENLO PARK, California – May 24, 2004 – TRAILS (Training and Resources for Assembling Interactive Learning Systems), a project led by SRI International's Center for Technology in Learning, is awarding seed grants to two U.S. universities for developing interdisciplinary, project-based courses on designing software for K-12 education. The courses will bring together education and information technology students to create powerful educational tools such as simulations, online tutorials, interactive exhibits, and educational games.

The new courses will be developed and taught during the 2004-5 school year at Pennsylvania State University and Drexel University. Since 2003, TRAILS has sponsored four courses at Stanford University and the University of Colorado at Boulder, reaching a total of 68 students. The additional courses at Penn State and Drexel are expected to substantially increase the total number of students reached by TRAILS in 2004-05.

At Penn State, Christopher Hoadley, Ph.D., an assistant professor with a dual appointment in the College of Education and the School of Information Sciences and Technology, will link two courses: “Design Methods for Emerging Technology-Based Learning Environments" (a graduate seminar in Instructional Systems) and “Organization and Design of Information Systems: User and System Principles" (an undergraduate course in Information Sciences and Technology).

In Dr. Hoadley's course, students will work in multidisciplinary teams. Each team will be tasked with building educational technologies while exploring the relationships between teaching, user interface design, and product design. The students will learn about design methods, reflect on their design style, and develop skills relevant to creating technology-enhanced learning environments.

At Drexel University , Frank Lee, Ph.D., assistant professor of Computer Science in the College of Engineering with a courtesy appointment in the Psychology department, will develop a course titled “Educational Game Design” with a focus on educational games. Dr. Lee's goals include teaching students the critical role of the “ psychology of play” in designing educational games and the importance of multidisciplinary teams. His students will work in teams composed of students studying computer science, media art and design, psychology, and education. Throughout the course, they will learn about research results and practices in cognitive science, human-computer interaction, and computer science, and will be expected to apply those learnings in their game designs.

About TRAILS

Funded by the National Science Foundation, TRAILS was launched in 2002 at SRI International's Center for Technology in Learning. The project supports courses in which university students from computer science, information science, education, and the arts work together in teams to develop educational tools, often pilot-testing them in local K-12 classrooms. The development process starts by building the university students' understanding of the teachers' and learners' educational needs. The teams then select projects which can feasibly be finished in a semester, and undertake them by creating interface designs, building prototypes, and field-testing them with teachers and learners when feasible.

Stanford University and the University of Colorado at Boulder offered the first TRAILS-affiliated courses in Spring 2003. The Math Forum at Drexel University , one of the world's largest online math resources for K-12 students and teachers, is publishing selected software created by TRAILS students and providing mentoring on pedagogical issues. SRI coordinates the network of TRAILS courses, provides centralized tools for designing and prototyping educational software, and facilitates access to pedagogical and technical experts.

More information on TRAILS can be found at http://www.trails-project.org.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under grant number 0205625.

About SRI's Center for Technology in Learning

The mission of SRI International's Center for Technology in Learning (http://ctl.sri.com) is to improve learning and teaching through innovation and inquiry in computing and communications. Its research and development priorities are to advance theory and research on effective learning and teaching, and to embody these insights in the innovative design, use, and assessment of interactive learning environments. Much of the Center's work is conducted in real educational settings, such as classrooms and teacher education programs.

About SRI International

Silicon Valley-based SRI International (http://www.sri.com) is one of the world's leading independent research and technology development organizations. Founded as Stanford Research Institute in 1946, SRI has been meeting the strategic needs of clients for more than 55 years. The nonprofit research institute performs contract research and development for government agencies, commercial businesses and private foundations. In addition to conducting contract R&D, SRI licenses its technologies, forms strategic partnerships and creates spin-off companies.

About Penn State's Colleges of Education and Information Sciences and Technology

Penn State (http://www.psu.edu) is a multi-campus, public, land-grant university seeking to improve the lives of the people of Pennsylvania , the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality programs in teaching, research, and service. Penn State 's College of Education is committed to maintaining national and international distinction through the preparation of leaders for education and related fields, the faculty's cutting edge research, and outreach activities. The mission of the School of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) is to deliver critical knowledge to organizations challenged by technology issues and to inspire innovative, workable solutions through education, research, partnerships and community.

About Drexel University

Founded in 1891, Drexel (http://www.drexel.edu) is widely recognized for its focus on technology and experiential learning. The first major university to operate a fully wireless campus, Drexel is a leader in integrating emerging technologies into all aspects of its academic enterprise, which includes the nation's largest private medical college.

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