Deployable Concepts for Discovery of Web Based STEM Education Content and Resources

There is no reasonable way for science education portal developers, or teachers and students, to search on the Web for federally funded science education content, especially Department of Energy content. There are hundreds of small Web collections scattered throughout DOE, and thousands in the federal government. Many more are found in .org and .edu domains. The overall objective is to develop a Findability Toolkit for science education content, based on a combination of proven strategies. Both (a) finding content and (b) making content findable are addressed. Phase I demonstrated the feasibility of combining four distinct strategies to maximize findability. These viable strategies are (a) semantic, (b) grade level stratification (c) organizational and (d) domain bounded. The goal of Phase II is to produce a complete Findability Toolkit for science education content. The findability methods tested in Phase I will be perfected and combined, both for content collection and for content/Website development. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: This project has the potential to dramatically improve Web-based science education. Commercial applications include new Web portals and specific content development