Grant Funded Projects | Fabiana Cardetti

TRANSCEND: TRANSdisciplinary Convergence in Educational Neuroscience Doctoral Training Program (NSF, 5 years, $3 Million)

Professor Fabiana Cardetti is one of 9 researchers of an interdisciplinary group from across UConn who have been awarded $3 Million from the NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program for their project. TRANSCEND will bring together transdisciplinary research training in Cognitive Neuroscience, Education, Engineering, Computer Science, and Mathematics to transform doctoral training. This work builds on and extends ongoing efforts that engage our department in interdisciplinary research in the neuroscience of learning that Professors Fabiana Cardetti and Fumiko Hoeft have been involved in over the past year. (TRANSCEND period: March 2022 – February 2027)

Read UConn Today article

Website (coming soon!)

Developing Mathematics Teacher Leaders for Connecticut Alliance School Districts (NSF and additional funds, 5 years, over $2.6 Million)

Professor Fabiana Cardetti has been awarded an NSF DUE/EHR Noyce grant, as well as additional funds, including private donations to support the project Developing Mathematics Teacher Leaders for Connecticut Alliance School Districts. She is Co-PI with Professor Megan Staples at the Neag School of Education, Vice Provost Gladis Kersaint, and Jennifer Michalek from the State Department of Education. The project aims to serve the national interest by developing highly effective mathematics teacher leaders who can address the mathematics-specific instructional needs of high-needs and low-performing school districts in Connecticut. The 5-year mathematics leadership development program is bolstered by, and advances, the growing body of research on teacher leadership and its impact on supporting equitable outcomes in mathematics education. (July 2021 – August 2026)

Visit the Math Teacher Leaders Program Website

Read UConn Today article

The influence of mental health and socio-economic disparities on children with learning disabilities – a math intervention study (CLAS, 12 months)

Professor Fabiana Cardetti with neuroscientist Professor Fumiko Hoeft (Psych) have been awarded a CLAS grant to work collaboratively in this interdisciplinary research study. The funds help support a summer educational opportunity in reading and math for children with disabilities and financial hardship. The investigation will focus on the impact of variations in psycho-social factors, as well as mental health and math achievement changes over time. Beyond the theoretical and clinical significance of the research, this project expands our engagement with the community by applying our scholarship to positively impact the welfare of Connecticut. (June 2021-August 2022)

Visit the Brain Camp Website

Increasing Elementary Teachers’ Capacity for Teaching Mathematical Writing (OVPR, 12 months)

Professor Fabiana Cardetti with Professor Tutita Casa (Curriculum and Instruction, Neag) have been awarded funding to conduct a design-based research study for increasing elementary teacher’s pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) as it relates to engaging their students in mathematical writing. This type of writing fosters students’ mathematical reasoning and communication, which are constructs that have proven to be challenging for elementary teachers. (August 2020-August 2021)

Investigating the opportunities to engage students in intellectually humble discourse and becoming interculturally competent: Implications for research and practice (UCHI, 20 months)

Professor Fabiana Cardetti with Manuela Wagner, Professor of Foreign Language Education at LCL, have been awarded funding to develop and study the implementation of curriculum materials aimed at developing intellectual humility under the framework of intercultural competence and citizenship. Working with K-12 mathematics and language teachers and expert consultants. (November 2017 – September 2019)

Educating for Intellectual Humility: Countering Arrogance and Servility (UCHI, Fall 2018)

Fabiana Cardetti with Manuela Wagner, Professor of Foreign Language Education at LCL, Heather Battaly, Professor of Philosophy, and Sandra Sirota, Human Rights Educator, have been awarded funding to co-organize university-wide events for intellectual humility in education in Fall 2018. The events include a full-day symposium, two public lectures, and working group sessions with national and international expert panelist and presenters. The events are further co-sponsored by the Departments of Mathematics, Literatures, Cultures, and Languages, and Philosophy, as well as the Office of Global Affairs (April 2018 – December 2018)

Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Enhance Science Education via Development of Intercultural Competence on Part of International Teaching Assistants and Undergraduate Students (CLAS Science Education Grant Program, 18 months)

Fabiana Cardetti with Manuela Wagner, Professor of Foreign Language Education at LCL, have been awarded funding to conduct an interdisciplinary project to study the development of Intercultural Competence in international teaching assistants (ITA) and their students, and its impact on teaching and learning of science at the undergraduate level. This study is further supported by the Department of Chemistry, UCONN (May 2017 – Aug 2018)

NSF/DMS REU Site – Math UConn REU ($315,000, 3 yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti is Senior Personnel for the NSF funded REU Site lead by Luke Rogers. The summer program brings together a small group of undergraduates to explore what it is like to do research in pure and applied mathematics. Over the course of 10-weeks, we follow research projects from beginning to end — starting with reading about the project, writing proofs/programs, performing calculations, and ending with writing up results. In the past many of our projects have culminated in published articles and conference talks. Fabiana Cardetti supervises the Mathematics Education projects. (2017-2020)

More details about the projects, presentations, and projects from previous years can be found here.

UCONN Humanities Institute Fellowship (UCHI Fellow, Spring 2017)

Fabiana Cardetti with Manuela Wagner, Professor of Foreign Language Education at LCL, have been awarded a fellowship from the UCHI through the Humility and Conviction in Public Life project. They will investigate interconnections between theories of intellectual humility and intercultural competence and citizenship, specifically as applied to education. (Spring 2017)

Read more details about the project here.

Prototype of P-20 and Interdisciplinary Collaboration and P-20 Articulation ($137,000; 3 yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti with Manuela Wagner, Professor of Foreign Language Education at LCL, have been awarded funding to conduct a study at the intersections of mathematics and foreign languages education under the framework of Intercultural Competence. (May 2014 – Aug 2017)

Read more about the project’s current and future on the interview published in the Neag School of Education Spotlight, or in the CLAS Newsletter.

Mathematical Writing in Elementary School Task Force ($99,000; 2 yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti is member of the Writing Task Force funded by the NSF Discovery Research K-12 program lead by Tutita Casa from the Neag School of Education. The project involves collaborative work among faculty from education, mathematics, and school teachers focused on investigating the types and purposes for mathematical writing at the K-12 level. (2015-2017)

Further information, publications, and other members of the Task Force can be found at the project’s website.

Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators (Continuation + Ext.) ($100,000; 1 yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti with colleague Megan Staples from the Neag School of Education have been awarded a Math and Science Partnership grant from the State Department of Education to carry out Phase III and the culmination of the project Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators. As part of the project, math teachers from three Connecticut school districts are working with UConn faculty members and graduate students to develop skills and resources to enable them to meet new teaching and assessment standards and improve their students’ learning in math. (Sep 2015 – Sep 2016)

Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators (Continuation) ($178,592; 1 yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti with colleagues Megan Staples, Tutita Casa, and Dorothea Anagnostopoulous from the Neag School of Education have been awarded a Math and Science Partnership grant from the State Department of Education to carry out Phase II of the project Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators. As part of the project, math teachers from three Connecticut school districts are working with UConn faculty members and graduate students to develop skills and resources to enable them to meet new teaching and assessment standards and improve their students’ learning in math. (Aug 2014 – Sep 2015)

Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators ($150,000; 7 months )

Fabiana Cardetti with colleagues Megan Staples, Tutita Casa, and Dorothea Anagnostopoulous from the Neag School of Education have been awarded a Math and Science Partnership grant from the State Department of Education to carry out Phase I of the project Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators. As part of the project, math teachers from three Connecticut school districts are working with UConn faculty members and graduate students to develop skills and resources to enable them to meet new teaching and assessment standards and improve their students’ learning in math. (Feb – Aug 2014)

NSF Robert Noyce Scholarship Program ($899,819; 5yrs.)

Math professors Tom DeFranco, Fabiana Cardetti, and Chuck Vinsonhaler are the recipients of a $899,819 NSF grant jointly with Mike Alfano from the Neag School of Education and Juliet Lee from the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology (MCB). The 5-year grant is the from the NSF Robert Noyce Scholarship Program. The purpose of the grant is to encourage math and science majors to go into teaching. (2010-2014)

The proposal’s abstract can be found at NSF official link.

Read this article about the program and this article about recent graduates published in the NEAG Spotlight newsletter.

See the pictures from the 2011 Noyce Professional Development day.

NSF/DMS REU Site – Math UConn REU ($340,000, 3 yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti is Senior Personnel on the NSF funded REU Site lead by Luke Rogers. The summer program brings together a small group of undergraduates to explore what it is like to do research in pure and applied mathematics. Over the course of 10-weeks, we follow research projects from beginning to end — starting with reading about the project, writing proofs/programs, performing calculations, and ending with writing up results. In the past many of our projects have culminated in published articles and conference talks. Fabiana Cardetti supervises the Mathematics Education projects. (2013-2017)

More details about the projects, presentations, and projects from previous years can be found here.

UConn MLA: Math Leadership Academy ($381,130; 1yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti jointly with Mary Truxaw and Megan Staples (Neag School of Education) have been awarded $381,130 by the State Department of Higher Education under the 2011 Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program. This grant will support the yearlong project entitled: “UConn MLA: Mathematics Leadership Academy” to provide professional development in mathematics content and pedagogy for middle and high school mathematics teachers from accros four public school districts in Connecticut. The program includes 12 credits of graduate coursework for participating teachers, as well as extensive school-based support for collaborative leadership activities related to mathematics education. (2011-2012)
Further information can be found at the U.S. Department of Education: Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program.

The Hartford Courant featured the following article about the MLA program (link might no longer be active). The press release was submitted by Shawn Kornegay, the Neag School of Education Director of Marketing and Communications. In addition, an article about the MLA program appeared on UConn Today paper and another one was posted on the Tolland “Patch” online news.

A brief summary of the program and pictures of the summer work have been posted on the Neag School of Education official facebook page.

2012 Provost’s Office General Education Course Development Grant Competition ($10,000; 2yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti and Amit Savkar are the recipients of the 2012 Provost’s General Education and Course Enhancement Competition grant for their proposal: “Technology for Pedagogy in Large Lectures.” The focus of this project is on developing, implementing, and assesing new technological tools to improve the teaching and learning of Calculus II classes offered in large lecture format. (2012-2014)
Further information can be found at Gen Ed Provost Competition Winners 2012.

Teachers for a New Era Research Grant Competition: Project IMPACT ($5,000; 1yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti jointly with Mary Truxaw (Neag School of Education) have been awarded $5,000 through the TNE Research Grant Competition for their proposal entitled “Project IMPACT”. A central focus of this project is to study the impact of the mathematics content courses designed specifically for future elementary teachers. This project builds on ongoing collaborative work by the researchers. (2011-2012)
Further information can be found at UConn TNE Competition Announcement (working link).

Teachers for a New Era Research Grant Competition: Professional Noticing of Mathematical Discourse-Related Practices by a Pre-service and an In-service Teachers ($4,898; 1yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti jointly with Tutita Casa (Neag School of Education) have been awarded $4,898 through the TNE Research Grant Competition. Their research will focus on the study of the “Coordinated Experiences Model” that aims to enhance connections between university and clinic experiences. It includes the modeling and experiencing of discourse-related practices across mathematics-for-teaching and elementary mathematics methods courses as well as the clinical site. (2011-2012)
Further information can be found at UConn TNE Competition Announcement (see RFP under March 2015 heading).

2010 Provost’s Office General Education Course Development Grant Competition ($10,000; 2yrs.)

Fabiana Cardetti and Amit Savkar are the recipients of the 2010 Provost’s General Education and Course Enhancement Competition grant for their proposal: “Pedagogy in Large Lectures.” Their research will focus on technological enhancements that improve the teaching and learning in large-lecture Calculus classes. (2010-2012)
Further information can be found at Gen Ed Provost Competition Winners 2010.

Teacher Quality Partnership Grant ($110,000; 1yr.)

Fabiana Cardetti and Tom Roby won a grant through the Connecticut Department of Higher Education’s “Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program,” which is funded through the federal No Child Left Behind act. The RFP reads:
“The purpose of the program is to raise student achievement by strengthening the effectiveness of teachers and other school personnel through rigorous and relevant professional development. The intent is to forge meaningful collaborations among a number of different partners to generate strong content knowledge and teaching skills to help all children learn.”
Their grant is entitled “Math Quality Education for Students and Teachers (MathQuEST)”. They will work with 7-10th grade teachers of algebra and pre-algebra to improve their subject matter knowledge and ability to teach mathematics to diverse learners, particularly those who are struggling. The main components of the grant are (1) a two-week (60 hours) intensive summer institute on campus, (2) school year support for collaborative lesson planning and classroom support from master teachers, and (3) a followup workshop in Summer 2007.

Partners include the Consolidated School District of New Britain, the Neag School of Education, Teachers for a New Era (providing assessment support), the Q Center (providing logistical support), and of course the Math Department. Fabiana Cardetti will be the Primary Project Director. She and Tom Roby will plan and present in the summer institutes, and will take the lead in developing the school year followup. Tom DeFranco will help plan the project, and advise doctoral students in math education to work with teachers during the summer and school year. (2006-2007)

Only two grants were awarded in Mathematics within this program.
More information at MathQuEST: Math Quality Education for Students and Teachers