EAGER: CSforME AI

National experts warn that the United States faces a critical shortage of Artificial Intelligence (AI) talent unless education and training opportunities expand (National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, 2021). Studies also show that learning basic AI concepts helps people build problem-solving and data skills useful across many careers, not just in computing. Integrating artificial intelligence into core subjects such as social studies, English language arts, math, and science has strong potential to spark interest in AI while building workforce-relevant skills for all students. Because these subjects are required for graduation, embedding AI concepts within them ensures that every student gains exposure — not just those who choose an elective computing course. Cross-disciplinary integration is therefore a practical and valuable pathway to AI learning, especially at rural schools, as they often lack the resources to offer stand-alone computer science classes. The "CS4ME AI" project will design and pilot a short, modular professional learning pathway to support rural high school teachers in Penobscot County, Maine, in integrating AI literacy through computational thinking within three core subjects (e.g., English, social studies, math, science). Teacher professional development activities will be delivered asynchronously with optional virtual coaching sessions to support implementation. Teachers will work in small subject-area groups to co-design one adapted lesson integrating CT and AI concepts. These lessons will be piloted in Fall 2026 and collected as project artifacts. Accordingly, this project contributes to the goals stated in the Dear Colleague Letter NSF 25-035 regarding advancing AI education for the American youth. Research shows that teachers are more likely to adopt new computational or AI-related instructional practices when professional learning is contextualized, collaborative, and aligned to subject-area goals. The project will design and pilot a short, modular professional learning pathway to support 6-8 rural high school teachers in Penobscot County, Maine, in integrating AI literacy through computational thinking within three core subjects. Co-designed with teachers, the professional development will be built on the framework of TeachAI’s draft Empowering Learners for the Age of AI: An AI Literacy Framework for Primary and Secondary Education (AILit Framework), a joint initiative of the European Commission and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The project uses a mixed-methods design with short surveys, artifact analysis, and brief interviews or reflections during the co-design process. Factors to be investigated include teacher self-efficacy, perceived feasibility and usefulness, quality of teacher-created lessons, and intentions for future adoption. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2620539 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Angela Oechslie | Institution: EDUCATE MAINE, PORTLAND, ME | Award Amount: $59,060 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2620539 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2620539.html