CALL FOR PROPOSALS
In October of 1994, Stanford President Gerhard Casper created the Commission on Technology in Teaching and Learning (CTTL) to evaluate the use of technology for teaching at Stanford, and identify strategic opportunities for the University in the coming decade to use technology to strengthen its teaching programs. Last year CTTL decided to address this challenge in one way through a request for proposals for innovative projects from the Stanford community at large. This competitive process for grants is being continued in 1998. CTTL therefore solicits proposals for "startup" projects that advance the goals of the commission, as stated in its mission. Specifically, we would like to identify projects that can leverage CTTL funds to produce infrastructure, technologies or markets for the use of technology in teaching and learning.
Eligibility, Deadlines and Dates
Grants are available to any member of the academic council. The deadline for applications is March 16, 1998. Proposals will be reviewed as rapidly as possible. Awards will be announced May 1, 1998.
Eligible Areas for Funded Projects
Specific projects of interest include (but are not limited to) the following areas:
- information resources to increase faculty productivity in teaching.
- the use of technology to help attract, retain, and engage students.
- methods for enriching students' learning experiences and faculty teaching methods.
- strategies for reaching out to new types of students in the context of continuing education.
- demonstration of leadership in technological innovation for teaching and learning.
Proposals will be judged according to some or all of the following criteria (as appropriate):
- Is the project compatible with the mission of the CTTL?
- Does the project develop innovative approaches to teaching and learning? How is this project novel or ground-breaking in teaching in your field? Does the project alter the student's view of, or approach to, knowledge in your field?
- Will the project enhance or stimulate the wider use of technology in teaching and learning? Are the results of this project generalizable or portable to other fields?
- Is the project integrated in the larger instructional context of the discipline?
- Will the project enhance, interact with, or take advantage of existing CTTL initiatives? Does the project leverage CTTL financial resources with a model for future self-support or income generation?
- Are sufficient additional resources (qualified personnel, equipment, matching funds, etc.) available to ensure the successful completion of the project?
- Is there a plan for evaluating the success of the project and its cognitive impact on student learning and faculty teaching?
- Is the project likely to yield publishable results?
Normal infrastructure upgrades, project continuation funding, and projects which might be more appropriately funded from other sources are not typically appropriate to this competition.
Prior Awards
Abstracts from five proposals which received CTTL support last year are available on the web.
Numbers and Amounts of Awards
The commission hesitates to limit creativity by defining strict funding parameters for proposals. Realistically, however, we expect to fund between two and ten proposals for amounts ranging from $25,000 to approximately $100,000 for one to two years. Followup funding may be available for succeeding years, but proposals should be self contained and stand on their specific aims for the requested years of funding.
Proposal budgets may contain requests for faculty summer salary, staff/student salaries, hardware, software, supplies and travel (no more than $1000 of travel). Normal benefits rates apply.
Proposals will be accepted until March 16, 1998, and will require at least 7 weeks for review. Start dates should be computed accordingly.
Proposal Form and Length
Page 1:
Title of Project, Period of Project
Principal Investigator, Position/Title
Department, Division, Mailing Address, IDMail Code,
Email address, Telephone and Fax.
Page 2:
Abstract, limited to one page, approximately 300 words.
Page 3-7:
Proposal Text. Limit to a total of 5 single spaced pages,
including figures and bibliography.
Times (or similar) 12 point font.
Page 8:
Simple budget and budget justification.
Electronic Submission Process
All documents will be handled electronically. It is important, therefore, that all submissions be prepared in a consistent format, using only a limited set of applications.
- Text portions must be prepared using Microsoft Word or WordPerfect for Macintosh, Windows or DOS. No other applications please.
- Use Times font, size 12.
- Do not use EndNote for bibliography
(which are not always compatible with multiple platforms) - One inch margins.
- Files should be named with 8 characters consisting of first letters of last name of the PI and (if necessary) a numeral to differentiate multiple proposals. For example, Dr. Sketcher could submit two applications "SKETCHE1" and "SKETCHE2".
- Proposals must be submitted via email with attachments, or else on diskette with the files to the address below.
- No routing is required prior to submission of proposals.
PIs may submit directly with no prior approvals.
The Stanford Center for Professional Development and other information technology support services on campus may be able to help in preparing proposals.
Proposals or questions should be submitted to:
Carolyn Ybarra, CTTL
Building 1, Stanford
CA 94305-2070
(ID Mail code: 2070)phone: 723-2062