Background

In the past several years, the School of Arts & Sciences has funded a variety of creative grant proposals supporting the use of technology for instructional purposes.  Faculty often inquire about past grants that have been successful, so we are happy to describe a few projects here to help spark ideas for new proposals.  For more information about submitting a proposal for a new grant, please see http://www.sas.upenn.edu/computing/instructional/grants/ or contact instructional_grants@sas.  To see a list of Instructional Technology & Pedagogy Support Services that may also give you ideas for grant proposals, please see our list of instructional and pedagogy support services.

Although we welcome any proposal for innovative ways to use technology in support of instruction, many past grants have often fallen into one of the following categories.  Here are a few examples

Getting students actively involved with the modern practices in an academic field

Dr. Asif Agha and Dr. Janet Monge in the Anthropology Department recently received a grant to make a database of CT scans of the skeletal human and primate collection available to undergraduates for use in research based projects. By setting up 2 computer stations where the database and specialized statistical and forensic analysis software is available and designing assignments and research projects to take advantage of these tools, students have the opportunity to become involved with real data and projects similar to those that professionals encounter.

Providing tools to allow students to develop creative projects to fulfill course requirements 

Occasionally grants provide equipment such as digital recorders or cameras to be loaned to undergraduates to gather materials and create multi-media projects in a specific course, and which will also be available to loan to students in future courses for a variety of projects. Herman Beavers in the English Department has been the recipient of one such grant. Another grant, to Louise Krasniewicz in Anthropology, provided ComicLife software in a few labs across campus so that her students could produce graphic novels. This software has been used by faculty teaching courses in other departments, too, which has created a lot of impact from a single "Small" Instructional Technology Grant.

Digitizing materials for undergrads to use in research over multiple courses and multiple years

Professors from several departments have received grants over the years to assist in digitizing various types of materials. Although the Fine Arts Library usually performs the scans and posts the materials on the Library's image collection, the SAS Instructional Technology Grants have been used to organize the materials to be scanned and collect the metadata that makes the scans the most useful for undergraduates to use in a variety of ways and in a variety of courses. Specific examples include Dr. Heather Sharkey in the Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations Department, who received a grant to scan Judeo-Arabic manuscripts from the collections of the CAJS and post these materials on the "Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Relations in the Middle East" website (http://www.library.upenn.edu/research/prrucs/). Similarly, Dr. David Silverman in the same department received a grant to organize the metadata for a library of slides, negatives and prints depicting Penn's Egyptian excavations and related Egyptian art and artifacts housed in museums throughout the world. As these images are scanned, they are added to the Fine Arts Library's image collection, where they will be a resource for undergraduates in a variety of courses for years to come.

Conclusion

These examples are just a few of many grants that have been awarded over the years.  For more details about any of them, contact the faculty member mentioned or Elizabeth Scheyder (scheydec@sas).  If something here sparks your interest, or if you'd like to discuss an idea that we may be able to help you implement, please see the details about applying for a grant at http://www.sas.upenn.edu/computing/instructional/grants/ and let us know how we can help you.