Assessing the Impact of a CSforALL Research-Practice Partnership Using the PROSPER Framework: A Case Study of the Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS)

The Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS) Research Practice Partnership (RPP) has been working for more than a decade towards their mission to engage in research and development that enables Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to ensure that all students in Chicago participate in engaging, relevant, and rigorous computing experiences, increase opportunities for all students to pursue computing pathways and prepare all students for the future of work. The partnership engaged in an iterative design process to develop a framework for understanding the areas of RPP impact on a district. This paper applies the PROSPER framework to the CAFÉCS case study by deductively coding 26 RPP-led publications and 10 grant awards. The results of this analysis suggest that the RPP was able to make significant impact in the areas of Programs, Research, Organizational Structure, and Policy, leading to Equitable Results for students. We present the PROSPER Framework as a practical framework that other education RPPs can use to assess their own impact on their partner districts. We discuss further questions and areas of interest as means to better understand the interconnected nature of these different areas of impact

Assessing the Effectiveness of Computer Science RPPs: The Case of CAFECS

Research Practice Partnerships (RPPs) are a relatively recent development as a potential strategy to address the complex challenges in computer science education. Consequently, there is little guidance available for assessing the effectiveness of RPPs. This paper describes the formative evaluation approach used to assess the progress of the first year of the formalized RPP, Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFE´CS). This paper contributes to the RPP literature by providing a case study of how an RPP effectiveness framework can be adapted and used to inform partnership improvement efforts in computer science education

Chicago Alliance For Equity in Computer Science (CAFECS): Cycles of improvement\u27\u27 poster in Special Session: A discussion of research practice partnerships in CS education

CAFECS builds upon a long-term partnership between Chicago Public Schools (CPS), The Learning Partnership, Depaul University, Loyola University, and the University of Illinois Chicago. It was formed to support CPS in the enactment of it\u27s high school CS grad requirement. This poster will describe the formation of CAFECS, how the partnership has evolved after formalizing as an RPP, its research agenda, and the process of assessing the progress of CAFECS

Research-Practice Partnership Strategies to Conduct and Use Research to Inform Practice

Given the complex challenges inherent in improving the quality of education, research-practice partnerships (RPPs) aim to bring together research and practice educators to conduct and use research to improve outcomes for students. This collaborative approach is challenging, and often requires members to adopt new ways of working (Coburn, Penuel, & Geil, 2013). RPPs have the potential to provide an infrastructure and mechanisms to integrate and unify research, policy, and practice, in contrast to traditional research processes in which research, policy, and practice can be in tension (Desimone, Wolford, Hill, 2016). The RPP literature is still young, and rich descriptions related to what these activities actually look like in practice are just beginning to emerge. This paper describes tools and routines that the CAFÉCS RPP uses to systematically and collaboratively conduct and use research to inform practice

Disease-linked TDP-43 hyperphosphorylation suppresses TDP-43 condensation and aggregation

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) have emerged as key modulators of protein phase separation and have been linked to protein aggregation in neurodegenerative disorders. The major aggregating protein in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia, the RNA-binding protein TAR DNA-binding protein (TDP-43), is hyperphosphorylated in disease on several C-terminal serine residues, a process generally believed to promote TDP-43 aggregation. Here, we however find that Casein kinase 1 delta-mediated TDP-43 hyperphosphorylation or C-terminal phosphomimetic mutations reduce TDP-43 phase separation and aggregation, and instead render TDP-43 condensates more liquid-like and dynamic. Multi-scale molecular dynamics simulations reveal reduced homotypic interactions of TDP-43 low-complexity domains through enhanced solvation of phosphomimetic residues. Cellular experiments show that phosphomimetic substitutions do not affect nuclear import or RNA regulatory functions of TDP-43, but suppress accumulation of TDP-43 in membrane-less organelles and promote its solubility in neurons. We speculate that TDP-43 hyperphosphorylation may be a protective cellular response to counteract TDP-43 aggregation

Designing measures of complex collaborations with participatory, evidence-centered design

An increasingly popular form of collaboration involves forming partnerships among researchers, educators, and community members to improve or transform education systems through research inquiry. However, not all partnerships are successful. The field needs valid, reliable, and useful measures to help with assessing progress toward partnership goals. In this community case study, we present a participatory, mixed-methods approach for creating measures to assess the progress of education research-practice partnerships (RPPs). The case illustrates a novel approach to measurement design, driven by perspectives and feedback of over 300 members of 80 partnerships. As a result, the measures align with the values and practices of the very collaborations the measures were intended to assess

Assessing the Impact of an RPP on a Large Urban School District: The Case of CAFÉCS

This study analyzes the impact of the Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS) Research Practice Partnership (RPP) on the Chicago Public School (CPS) Office of Computer Science (OCS). Using a qualitative analysis drawing on data from leadership team meetings, published articles and presentations, and evaluation reports from 11 years of the partnership, we utilized a framework developed by the CAFÉCS leadership team to document the impact on district (1) Programs, (2) Research, (3) Organizational Structures, and (4) Policies leading to (5) Equitable Results for students, condensed as PROSPER. In particular, we explore the role of the RPP in supporting a 500% increase in graduating students who completed at least one high school computer science (CS) course between 2016 and 2020 in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). This study adds to the existing literature on assessing the impact of RPPs through the development of the PROSPER Framework, which may be a useful tool to help RPPs examine impacts on partner districts

Indicators of Research-Practice Partnership Health and Effectiveness: Updating the Five Dimensions Framework

In education research-practice partnerships (RPPs), people with different perspectives work together to understand, study, and develop solutions for persistent challenges in education. RPPs focus on doing research with and alongside their practice, policy, or community partners, focused on local issues of concern. They are a prime example of how long-term collaborative approaches to research can address persistent challenges and systemic inequities in schools and communities. The field has begun to develop a shared understanding of the broad goals that RPPs share. The RPP Effectiveness Framework developed by Henrick and colleagues in 2017 was a critical starting point, reflecting the perspectives of a wide range of partnerships and RPP leaders of the time. Almost immediately, evaluators, researchers, and RPPs themselves began to use this framework to think about local RPP work. This framework included dimensions of effectiveness and indicators of progress along each dimension, and authors proposed that future work include the development of tools and measures to support the use of the framework. In 2019, a new group came together for a project focused on designing, developing, and testing tools to understand and support RPP effectiveness aligned with the 2017 framework. Through engaging in this work, it became clear that as the field develops and grows over time, so too must our ideas about what is important to attend to when considering RPP effectiveness. As a result, our work expanded, and we not only identified tools to support RPPs’ effectiveness goals but also engaged in an iterative process to revisit the 2017 framework itself. We present an update for each dimension, reflecting insights from engagement with a range of RPP participants over the past five years. For each dimension, we also describe indicators that partnerships might use to more deeply understand that dimension within their context and how those indicators could guide progress towards increased RPP effectiveness and health. We conclude by discussing uses of the framework

Assessing the impact of a CSforALL research-practice partnership using the PROSPER framework: A case study of the Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS)

No description supplie