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2014 Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination & Professional Development for Arts Educators

CALL FOR PEER REVIEWERS

The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII), is seeking individuals to review grant applications for the FY 2014 Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination (AEMDD) and Professional Development for Arts Educators (PDAE) grant competitions. The AEMDD program supports research and evaluation, sustainability, documentation and dissemination of innovative models that demonstrate effectiveness for student improvement and performance in the elementary and middle school curricula. The PDAE program supports the implementation of a high-quality model for professional development of educators and instructional staff working with kindergarten through 12 grade students (K-12) in high-poverty schools. Integration of art disciplines for both programs includes: music, dance, drama, media arts, visual arts, and folk arts.

WHO: We are seeking peer reviewers from various backgrounds and professions including:

• Arts or Arts Education,
• Elementary through High School Education,
• College and University Educators
• Professional Development,
• Special Populations,
• Research and Evaluation,
• Curriculum Development,
• Model Development,
• Educational Partnerships,
• Non-Profit Organizations, and
• School Administration.

Peer reviewers may have expertise in various geographies, including urban, suburban, rural, and tribal communities.

REQUIRED AREAS OF EXPERTISE: The selected peer reviewers should have expertise in at least one of the following areas: professional and/or curriculum development, applied research and evaluation, arts based program management and design. Selected reviewers may choose to review applications for the AEMDD competition, the PDAE competition or both.

• Professional and Curriculum Development: Experience designing, evaluating, or implementing effective lesson plans and methods to learning for K-12, that focuses on teaching strategies and student engagement inside and outside of the classroom
• Experience integrating the arts into other core academic subjects
• Experience developing model in-service professional development programs for arts educators and other instructional staff
• Experience transferring or adapting projects/organizations to new settings
• Fluency in reviewing organizational assessment tools for project effectiveness

Applied Research and Evaluation:

• Extensive knowledge about current research findings in the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) and comprehensive school reform  models, with knowledge of how to apply those strategies in a variety of settings
• Knowledge of arts in education data sources and measures of program implementation and outcomes
• Knowledge and experience in developing logic models
• Expertise with experimental and quasi-experimental art based research designs
• Understanding of and experience with proven research methods successful in integrating effective practices

Arts Program Management and Design:

• Knowledge and understanding of effective operational and organizational/management infrastructures (e.g. people, processes, accountability structures, technology systems, program and grant management)
• Knowledge of or experience with building effective partnerships in a variety of sectors (education, legislative, private sectors, etc.) and successfully engaging diverse groups of stakeholders
• Experience using one or more of the following arts disciplines in program design: music, dance, drama, media arts, visual arts, and/or folk arts
• Experience building capacity and financial sustainability in organizations
• Experience developing policy to support adaptation of organizational change
• Expertise in recognizing and developing effective arts models in program implementation, particularly those for underserved students in high-poverty communities
• Experience reviewing grant applications

PEER REVIEWER EXPECTATIONS:

Application Review: Selected peer reviewers will independently read, score, and provide written comments for approximately 10 grant applications submitted to the U.S. Department of Education under the AEMDD and/or the PDAE grant programs.

Availability: Peer reviewers must generally be available for a 4 week time period and will work remotely and via teleconference. The peer review will devote time reading, scoring, developing comments, and discussing assigned applications. In addition, all reviewers will be required to participate in an online orientation webinar prior to reviewing applications.

AEMDD will require peer reviewers from May 12 until June 20, 2014.

PDAE will require peer reviewers from June 24 until July 31, 2014.

*These dates are estimates and will be confirmed upon peer reviewer selection*

Tools: Each reviewer must have access to the Internet, a phone, a computer, a printer and have the ability to access and navigate the G5 web-based system.

Quality of review: Each reviewer must provide detailed, objective, constructive, and timely written reviews for each assigned application. These reviews will be used to recommend applications for funding. They will also be shared with each applicant and the comments regarding winning applicants will be made available to the general public following the reviews.

Completion of review: Reviewers will receive an honorarium for the satisfactory completion of the above requirements during the grant review schedule.  A satisfactory review requires that each application is read, scored, and discussed.  The final, high-quality comments and corresponding scores will be reviewed and approved by a panel moderator prior to their final submission in the G5 system.

IF INTERESTED: If you would like to be considered as a peer reviewer, please click here and complete the Peer Reviewer Application Form. Even if you applied to be a peer reviewer for either the AEMDD and/or the PDAE grant competitions in the years prior, you must complete the Peer Reviewer Application Form. Please only submit one Peer Reviewer Application Form via the link provided above. Please also send your resume to the email address provided below no later than April 25, 2014.

Please do not exceed the three-page limit for resumes.

If you have any questions about the peer review process, please contact us by email: artspeerreviewcall@ed.gov

PROGRAM INFORMATION:

For more information about the AEMDD program, go to:

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/artsedmodel/index.html

For more information about the PDAE program, go to:

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/artsedprofdev/index.html