Lynch School faculty member receives $1.5M NSF grant
Lynch School of Education and Human Development Assistant Professor Ido Davidesco has received a $1.5-million grant from the National Science Foundation to lead a three-year collaborative project focused on advancing computational thinking and microelectronics education through the integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and engineering design.
The initiative, titled “Advancing Computational Thinking and Microelectronics Education through Generative AI within an Engineering Design Framework,” will investigate how AI can be utilized as a creative learning tool to support student engagement, design thinking, and algorithmic reasoning in high school classrooms.
The team aims to identify effective strategies for helping students become not only more computationally fluent but also more innovative, adaptable, and prepared for the rapidly evolving technological landscape, Davidesco said. (Caitlin Cunningham)
Along with Davidesco, co-principal investigators include Aaron Kyle, a professor of the practice at Duke University Biomedical Engineering Department; Bianca Montrosse-Moorhead, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Connecticut Neag School of Education; and Leslie Bondaryk, chief technology officer at the Concord (Mass.) Consortium, a nonprofit educational research and development organization.
During the grant’s term, the team will design and pilot generative AI-enhanced instructional tools that align with both microelectronics and computational thinking learning objectives. In collaboration with high school teachers, the researchers will implement these lessons in classrooms, guiding students through activities such as programming microcontrollers, developing electronic prototypes, and using AI systems to support idea generation and troubleshooting.
According to Davidesco, the team aims to identify effective strategies for helping students become not only more computationally fluent but also more innovative, adaptable, and prepared for the rapidly evolving technological landscape by combining the strengths of generative AI and engineering design.
“Our goal is to use generative AI tools to help students develop their computational thinking without doing the thinking for them,” said Davidesco, a member of the Lynch School’s Counseling, Developmental & Educational Psychology department, and director of the Boston College Lab-to-Classroom Research Group. “Identifying the right level and form of AI support is a challenge but also an exciting opportunity for our interdisciplinary team of researchers and educators.”
Davidesco explained that computational thinking involves formulating problems in ways that can be effectively executed by a computer, deconstructing complex challenges into smaller, logical steps, designing algorithms, and recognizing patterns.
“As recent advances in AI open new possibilities for interactive and adaptive learning, this project will examine how AI-driven tools can help students practice and refine these skills through authentic, hands-on design experiences,” he said.
Using a mixed-methods research design, the project will investigate how these experiences influence students’ computational thinking, creativity, and understanding of engineering principles. The study will also explore how professional development for teachers can enable effective integration of AI into existing STEM curricula.
“Ido’s new NSF grant is particularly exciting because it marks the reopening of the federal research funding pipeline,” said Stanton E.F. Wortham, the Charles F. Donovan, S.J., Dean of the Lynch School. “This project will continue his robust research program in STEM education, including his innovative use of technology to facilitate learning in schools. It also includes work on AI, helping educators use this technology in productive ways and cutting through the hype and confusion.”