Federal Grant Award Summary

The National Science Foundation's Division of Computing and Communication Foundations awarded $552,200 to the University of Maine through its Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) program (CFDA 47.070) under a CAREER Project Grant effective June 1, 2026 through May 31, 2031. This award supports the development and evaluation of scalable teaching methods designed to equip computing students with professional skills essential for workforce readiness in an artificial intelligence (AI)-integrated economy. The project addresses identified skill gaps by developing two complementary pedagogical approaches: structured peer reflection groups where students collaborate to share progress and set improvement goals, and a novel video-assisted reflection method enabling students to record and analyze their own programming processes as they experiment with generative AI-based tools.

The award will produce adoptable course materials and faculty training workshops that can be scaled across computing education programs to strengthen the computing workforce pipeline. The project incorporates longitudinal mixed-methods evaluation through design-based research to iteratively refine both the peer reflection group methodology and video-assisted reflection techniques, with emphasis on developing students' capacity for critical and reflective use of AI tools, iterative improvement, lifelong learning habits, and psychological safety. The deliverables will advance computing education research and human-computer interaction while preparing American computing graduates for leadership roles in AI-integrated global markets.