CRADLE Lab has a long history of applying complex systems approaches for science education with both teachers and students. Our projects have included the creation of cutting-edge professional development programming for teachers, the design of novel high school science curricula and lessons, and the generation of new extracurricular learning experiences for students. A complete list of past projects can be found below.

BioGraph: Graphical Programming for Constructing Complex Systems Understanding in Biology
Our team developed agent-based simulations and a five-lesson high school biology curriculum to support the teaching of complex systems ideas and concepts in high school science classrooms. The simulations and curriculum were developed in strong partnership with high school science teachers, many of whom still collaborate with CRADLE Lab to this day. The simulations and curricular resources can be found on the BioGraph Moodle site. These simulations and curricular resources served as a foundational building block for the DeTECT project, which is currently being run by the CRADLE Lab (see: “Current Projects”).

BioGraph was funded by NSF through its Discovery Research K-12 (DRK12) program from 2010 to 2015. More information about the NSF project can be found here.

BioGraph 2.0–Professional Development for High School Biology Teachers for Teaching and Learning About Complex Systems
Our team designed a large-scale fully online PD program to improve access to BioGraph resources and high-quality pedagogical practices at relatively low cost. This program was hosted on edX and was accessed by hundreds of teachers from across the globe. As a result of this program, the BioGraph curriculum was implemented with thousands of students in a wide range of diverse educational contexts. As with the original BioGraph program, the simulations and curricular resources can be found on the BioGraph Moodle site.

BioGraph 2.0 was funded by NSF through its Discovery Research K-12 (DRK12) program from 2017 to 2021. More information about the NSF project can be found here.

App Inventor for Socioscientific Issues to Build Engagement in STEM
This project supported middle school students as they developed their own app to address or raise awareness about locally-relevant socioscientific issues of their choosing. Over the course of this program, students learned to use the App Inventor programming language before utilizing an iterative process to design, adapt, and revise student-generated apps to challenge the issues that students found most personally relevant.

App Inventor for Socioscientific Issues to Build Engagement in STEM was funded by the University Research Fund and the Milken Foundation from 2016 to 2017.

ARIEL — Augmented Reality for Interpretive and Experiential Learning

This project integrated augmented reality (AR) learning experiences into an exhibit at the Franklin Institute Science Museum. These experiences were targeted primarily towards middle school-aged students and covered topics such as aerodynamics and physics.

ARIEL was funded by NSF through its AISL program from 2008 to 2014. More information about the NSF project can be found here.

SPARK — Igniting Interest and Achievement in STEM through Engineering Design

"SPARK!" was a weekend and summer OST program based around problem-solving and engineering design for grade 4-8 students. The program presented students with design challenges related to zoo habitats, biotechnology, and robotics, with activities taking place at the Philadelphia Zoo, the iPRAXIS Center, and Penn Engineering laboratories.

SPARK was funded by NSF through its AYS program from 2006 to 208. More information about the NSF project can be found here.

Nanotechnology and Bioengineering in Philadelphia Public Schools

This project involved partnering with teachers and guidance counselors from 18 schools across the great Philadelphia area to increase student knowledge of nanotechnology and bioengineering, enhance student skills at using information and educational technologies, and increase student awareness of post-secondary educational opportunities and careers in science, technology, and engineering. Through a series of workshops, online communications and support, field trips, and a community expo, thousands of high school students were impacted by this project.

This project was funded by NSF through its ITEST program from 2008 to 2012. More information about the NSF project can be found here.

Other Projects:

A Penn-West Philadelphia/Philadelphia Public School Partnership to Develop Innovative and Sustainable Ways for Technology to Positively Impact Learning (Lenovo Foundation, 2011-2012)

Headstart to High School Science in West Philadelphia Schools, a summer project focused on socioscientific issues for middle school students (Lindback Foundation, 2006-2008)