,,ii #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #cdga ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #ah1 #bjah,mr4 ,schatz introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,national ,science ,foundation to support ,,stem education research focused on early childhood4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,building ,blocks of ,,stem ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,the ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,national ,science ,foundation has made the largest financial investment in ,,stem education of all ,federal agencies1 and plays a very powerful role in helping to set research and policy agendas4 7#b7 ,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 on4 7#c7 ,however1 the majority of current research focuses on increasing ,,stem opportunities for students in middle school and older4 7#d7 ,women remain widely underrepresented in the ,,stem workforce and this gender disparity extends down through all levels of education4 ,strategic funding of programs is needed in order to understand and address the root cause of this gap4 #c4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,director ,the term ,director means the ,director of the ,national ,science ,foundation4 7#b7 ,early ,childhood ,the term early childhood applies to children from birth through the age of #aj4 7#c7 ,institution of higher education ,the term institution of higher education has the meaning given the term in section #aja7;a7 of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajja7;a774 7#d7 ,local educational agency ,the term local educational agency has the meaning given the term in section #haja of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ghja71 except that such term also includes preschools1 after-school programs1 and summer programs4 7#e7 ,,stem ,the term ,,stem has the meaning given the term in section #b of the ,america ,,competes ,reauthorization ,act of #bjaj 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #ffba note74 7#f7 ,young girls ,the term young girls means female individuals who have not attained the age of #aa4 #d4 ,supporting ,,stem research on early childhood ,in awarding grants under the ,discovery ,research ,pre,k-#ab program1 the ,director shall consider age distribution in order to more equitably allocate funding for research studies with a focus on early childhood4 #e4 ,supporting girls in ,,stem education and computer science 7a7 ,research grants 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,director shall award grants1 on a competitive basis1 to institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations 7or consortia of such institutions or organizations71 to accelerate research efforts to increase understanding of the factors that contribute to the participation of young girls in ,,stem activities4 7#b7 ,research areas ,research areas funded by a grant under this subsection may include-- 7,a7 the role of teacher training and professional development1 including effective incentive structures to encourage teachers to participate in such training and professional development1 in encouraging or discouraging young girls from participating in ,,stem activities2 7,b7 the role of teachers in shaping young girls' perceptions of ,,stem and discouraging such girls from participating in ,,stem activities2 7,c7 the role of other facets of the learning environment on the willingness of young girls to participate in ,,stem activities1 including learning materials and textbooks1 classroom decorations1 seating arrangements1 use of media and technology1 classroom culture1 and gender composition of students during group work2 7,d7 the role of parents and other caregivers in encouraging or discouraging young girls from participating in ,,stem activities2 7,e7 the types of ,,stem activities that elicit greater participation by young girls2 7,f7 the role of mentorship and best practices in finding and utilizing mentors2 7,g7 the role of informal and out-of-school ,,stem learning opportunities on girls' perception of and participation in ,,stem activities2 and 7,h7 any other activity the ,director determines will accomplish the goals of this subsection4 7#c7 ,grant recipient report ,an entity awarded a grant under this subsection shall report to the ,director1 at such time and in such manner as the ,director may require1 on the activities carried out and materials developed using such grant funds4 7b7 ,development and testing of scalable models for increased engagement 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,director shall award grants1 on a competitive basis1 to institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations 7or consortia of such institutions or organizations71 to develop and evaluate interventions in pre-,k and elementary school classrooms that increase participation of young girls in computer science activities4 7#b7 ,partnerships ,in order to be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection1 an institution of higher education1 nonprofit organization1 or consortium1 shall enter into a partnership with one or more local educational agency or ,state in carrying out the activities funded by such grant4 7#c7 ,uses of funds ,grants awarded under this subsection shall be used for activities that draw upon the expertise of the partner entities described in paragraph 7#b7 to increase participation of young girls in computer science activities1 including-- 7,a7 offering training and professional development programs1 including summer or academic year institutes or workshops1 designed to strengthen the capabilities of pre-,k and elementary school teachers and to familiarize such teachers with the role of gender bias in the classroom2 7,b7 offering innovative preservice and in-service programs that instruct teachers on gender-inclusive practices for teaching computing concepts2 7,c7 developing distance learning programs for teachers or students1 including developing curricular materials1 play-based computing activities1 and other resources for the in-service professional development of teachers that are made available to teachers through the ,internet2 7,d7 developing a cadre of master teachers who will promote reform and the adoption of gender-inclusive practices in teaching computer science concepts in early childhood education2 7,e7 developing tools to evaluate activities conducted under this subsection2 7,f7 developing or adapting pre-,k and elementary school computer science curricular materials that incorporate contemporary research on the science of learning1 particularly with respect to gender inclusion2 7,g7 developing and offering gender-inclusive computer science enrichment programs for students1 including after-school and summer programs2 7,h7 providing mentors for girls in person and through the ,internet to support such girls in participating in computer science activities2 7,i7 engaging parents of girls about the difficulties faced by girls to maintain an interest and desire to participate in computer science activities1 and enlisting the help of parents in overcoming these difficulties2 7,j7 acquainting girls with careers in computer science and encouraging girls to consider careers in such field2 and 7,k7 any other activities the ,director determines will accomplish the goals of this subsection4 7#d7 ,grant recipient report ,an entity awarded a grant under this subsection shall report to the ,director1 at such time and in such manner as the ,director may require1 on the activities carried out1 materials developed using such grant funds1 and the outcomes for students served by such grant4 7#e7 ,evaluation required ,not later than #d years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,director shall evaluate the grant program under this subsection4 ,at a minimum1 such evaluation shall-- 7,a7 use a common set of benchmarks and assessment tools to identify best practices and materials developed and demonstrated by the partnerships described in paragraph 7#b72 and 7,b7 to the extent practicable1 compare the effectiveness of practices and materials developed and demonstrated by such partnerships with those of partnerships funded by other local or ,state government or ,federal ,government programs4 7#f7 ,dissemination of results 7,a7 ,evaluation results ,the ,director shall make publicly available free of charge on an ,internet website and shall submit to ,congress the results of the evaluation required under paragraph 7#e74 7,b7 ,materials ,the ,director shall ensure that materials developed under a program funded by a grant under this subsection1 that are demonstrated to be effective in achieving the goals of this subsection 7as determined by the ,director71 are made publicly available free of charge on an ,internet website1 including through an arrangement with an outside entity4 7#g7 ,annual meeting ,the ,director may convene an annual meeting of the partnerships participating in a program funded by a grant under this subsection1 for the purpose of fostering greater national collaboration4 7#h7 ,technical assistance ,at the request of a partnership seeking a grant under this subsection1 the ,director shall provide the partnership with technical assistance in meeting any requirement of this subsection4 #f4 ,computer science in the ,robert ,noyce ,teacher ,scholarship ,program ,section #aj of the ,national ,science ,foundation ,authorization ,act of #bjjb 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #ahfbn-#a7 is amended-- 7#a7 by striking and mathematics each place it appears and inserting mathematics1 informatics1 and computer science2 7#b7 in subsection 7a77#c77;,b71 by striking or mathematics and inserting mathematics1 informatics1 and computer science2 and 7#c7 in subsections 7b77#a77;,d77i71 7c77#a77;,a71 and 7d77#a71 by striking or mathematics each place it appears and inserting mathematics1 informatics1 or computer science4