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MIT staff and students work on a research project funded by a J-WEL innovation grant
Education Innovation Grants

The MIT Jameel World Education Lab funds innovative research projects from across MIT that connect evidence and ideas in creative ways to improve learning on campus and across the world.

Fueling educational innovation

The MIT Jameel World Education Lab's grants in Education Innovation support innovative research from across the Institute that is designed to improve learning on our campus and across the world.

Our grants enable MIT innovators to connect evidence and ideas in creative ways that will reduce barriers to learning, including lack of access. Grantees explore teaching methods, tools for learning, new approaches to engagement, and new topics. Methods include quantitative and qualitative research into effectiveness and outcomes as well as field tests of new ideas and collaborative development of tools and materials.

Education Innovation grant application information

The MIT Jameel World Education Lab accepts research proposals from MIT faculty members and principal investigators designed to improve learning on our campus and across the world. The application system is now closed. ‍

Priority topics

We encourage proposals that address J-WEL’s priority topics for 2025: sustainability, AI for education, and campus innovation pipelines. Learn more about each priority topic in the full call for applications.

Selection criteria

To evaluate proposals, we assess: 1) alignment with our priority topics; 2) cost-effectiveness; 3) MIT department support; 4) grounding in evidence; and 5) potential to deliver unique contributions to global educational transformation in keeping with J-WEL goals and approaches.

We plan to award grants ranging from $20,000 to $80,000, with funds to be disbursed by late June 2025.

A brief workplan and budget is required. Design the proposed work to be completed within the academic year. J-WEL grants incur no overhead fees.

Timeline and review process

The application portal is currently closed. It will re-open at the end of 2025.

“Our Education Innovation Grants support MIT research that can improve learning everywhere.

We share ideas, disseminate emerging findings, and collaborate with innovators who join us to lead global change in education. Educators in dozens of countries will learn from this year’s inspiring efforts to tackle core challenges in education with innovative new methods and means. Through light-up sneakers, glassblowing, and autonomous vehicles, grantees are enabling learning from curriculum-linked real-world projects, prototyping effective ways to embed evidence-based insights and research into the design of learning experiences, and enabling transitional learners to benefit from high-quality education.”

 – Anjali Sastry, Faculty Director, MIT Jameel World Education Lab

Recent Grants

In 2024, the MIT Jameel World Education Lab awarded Education Innovation grants to 11 research projects that are leveraging artificial intelligence tools for learning, exploring low-tech ways to expand access to STEM education, and developing new materials, approaches, and curriculum to improve equity and quality of learning experiences:

2024

Bridging STEM education gaps: fostering aspirations through learning festivals and deployable learning toolkits in underserved American communities

J. Kim Vandiver
Professor and Director of the Edgerton Center, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Education quality often lags in rural areas and correctional facilities due to funding disparities. For over a decade, MIT Spokes, a student-led team committed to narrowing the educational gap in STEM disciplines among rural, low-income, and underserved communities nationwide, has cycled cross-country, delivering STEM workshops to elevate aspirations and provide resources. They implement hands-on learning kits during one-day festivals, tailored to community needs. By engaging with stakeholders and refining their approach, Spokes aims to maximize impact and open opportunities for students unfamiliar with institutions like MIT.

2024

Empowering global synthetic biology learners using a robotic cloud lab network for enabling collaborative, scalable research projects

David S. Kong
Research Scientist, MIT Media Lab

To enhance bio literacy and engagement with synthetic biology, Kong aims to expand the MIT Media Lab course, How to Grow (Almost) Anything, by creating a global “robotic cloud lab network,” allowing users without regular access to wet labs the opportunity to experiment and create. This network, organized by MIT, Harvard researchers, and supported by global teaching assistants, will provide community labs with programmable robots and supplies and a handbook to guide learning exercises. In Spring 2025, Kong will execute a global research project on protein therapies for antibiotic-resistant bacteria across the robotic cloud lab network.

2024

Games for climate education: developing game-based facilitation of the En-ROADS climate simulator

Lana Cook
Associate Director, MIT Systems Awareness Lab
Eric Klopfer
Director, MIT Scheller Teacher Education Program; Head of MIT Comparative Media Studies / Writing

Climate Interactive’s innovative climate change simulator En-ROADS has been very successful in engaging participants to think about the impact of alternative policies and actions to mitigate and reverse the effects of climate change. Yet, meaningful shifts in understanding, policy, and action require education and understanding at massively greater scales than are currently possible with the En-ROADS facilitation model. Expanding on prior work, Cook and Klopfer seek to explore game-based facilitation and the scaling of such a solution.

2024

SIDAI – Scope, Ideate, and Develop with Artificial Intelligence: developing and evaluating a web-based platform and a chatbot teaching assistant for teaching problem-solving in higher education

Rea Lavi
Digital Education Lecturer and Curriculum Designer, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Organizations are emphasizing creative problem solving, system analysis, and conscientious decision-making to tackle complex, ill-structured problems. Active learning supports these skills but its implementation faces barriers like large class sizes, preparation time, and student resistance. Generative AI integration in education is complex but promising. Through the development of SIDAI, a web-based platform, and its chatbot Sid, Lavi intends to create tools that assist in active learning and provide personalized feedback to students, aiming to enhance teaching and learning experiences.

See More Recent Recipients