Building Blocks of STEM Act

To direct the National Science Foundation to support STEM education research focused on early childhood. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Building Blocks of STEM Act 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) The National Science Foundation is a large investor in STEM education and plays a key role in setting research and policy agendas. (2) While studies have found that children who engage in scientific activities from an early age develop positive attitudes toward science and are more likely to pursue STEM expertise and careers later on, the majority of current research focuses on increasing STEM opportunities for middle-school-aged children and older. (3) Women remain widely underrepresented in the STEM workforce, and this gender disparity extends down through all levels of education. 3. Supporting early childhood STEM education research In awarding grants under the Discovery Research PreK–12 program, the Director of the National Science Foundation shall consider the age distribution of a STEM education research and development project to improve the focus of research and development on early childhood education. 4. Supporting female students in prekindergarten through elementary school in STEM education Section 305(d) of the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1862s–5(d) (3) Research As a component of improving participation of women in STEM fields, research funded by a grant under this subsection may include research on— (A) the role of teacher training and professional development, including effective incentive structures to encourage teachers to participate in such training and professional development, in encouraging or discouraging female students in prekindergarten through elementary school from participating in STEM activities; (B) the role of teachers in shaping perceptions of STEM in female students in prekindergarten through elementary school and discouraging such students from participating in STEM activities; (C) the role of other facets of the learning environment on the willingness of female students in prekindergarten through elementary school to participate in STEM activities, including learning materials and textbooks, classroom decorations, seating arrangements, use of media and technology, classroom culture, and gender composition of students during group work; (D) the role of parents and other caregivers in encouraging or discouraging female students in prekindergarten through elementary school from participating in STEM activities; (E) the types of STEM activities that encourage greater participation by female students in prekindergarten through elementary school; (F) the role of mentorship and best practices in finding and utilizing mentors; (G) the role of informal and out-of-school STEM learning opportunities on the perception of and participation in STEM activities of female students in prekindergarten through elementary school; and (H) any other area the Director determines will carry out the goal described in paragraph (1). . 5. Supporting female students in prekindergarten through elementary school in computer science education Section 310(b) of the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1862s–7(b) (3) Uses of funds The tools and models described in paragraph (2)(C) may include— (A) offering training and professional development programs, including summer or academic year institutes or workshops, designed to strengthen the capabilities of prekindergarten and elementary school teachers and to familiarize such teachers with the role of gender bias in the classroom; (B) offering innovative pre-service and in-service programs that instruct teachers on gender-inclusive practices for teaching computing concepts; (C) developing distance learning programs for teachers or students, including developing curricular materials, play-based computing activities, and other resources for the in-service professional development of teachers that are made available to teachers through the Internet; (D) developing or adapting prekindergarten and elementary school computer science curricular materials that incorporate contemporary research on the science of learning, particularly with respect to gender inclusion; (E) developing and offering gender-inclusive computer science enrichment programs for students, including after-school and summer programs; (F) providing mentors for female students in prekindergarten through elementary school in person and through the Internet to support such students in participating in computer science activities; (G) engaging female students in prekindergarten through elementary school and their guardians about the difficulties faced by such students to maintain an interest in participating in computer science activities; (H) acquainting female students in prekindergarten through elementary school with careers in computer science and encouraging such students to consider careers in such field; (I) developing tools to evaluate activities conducted under this subsection; and (J) any other tools or models the Director determines will accomplish the aim described in paragraph (2)(C). . August 16, 2019 Reported without amendment

Summary: Building Blocks of STEM Act This bill modifies National Science Foundation (NSF) grant programs that support STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, including computer science) education. (Sec. 3) The bill instructs the NSF, when awarding grants under the Discovery Research PreK-12 program, to improve the focus of research and development on elementary and prekindergarten education. (Sec. 4) The bill specifies that NSF grants to increase the participation of underrepresented populations in STEM fields may be used for research into various subjects regarding female students in prekindergarten through elementary school, including the role of teachers and caregivers in encouraging or discouraging participation by such students in STEM activities, and the types of STEM activities that encourage greater participation by such students. (Sec. 5) The bill specifies that NSF grants to research computer science education and computational thinking may be used to support development and implementation of various tools and models for teaching and learning, including developing and offering female-inclusive computer science enrichment programs, and acquainting female students in prekindergarten through elementary school with careers in computer science.