The Center focuses on four key strategies: action research, innovation and model development, partnership building and dissemination. These strategies reflect the Center's field-building mission, which calls for the creation of new knowledge, the creative application of that knowledge in practice, and the engagement of key decision-makers in making investments to drive innovation and scale up what works.
Cooney Fellows Program
Cooney Fellows assist with high priority research, program development and dissemination activities that examine the potential and challenges associated with digital media applications in promoting children's learning and healthy development. In addition, the Center has established a research fund to help establish priority issues to study.
First Book Literacy Initiative
Partnering with the widely acclaimed literacy distribution network First Book, the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at University of Maryland and Sirius Thinking, Ltd., which co-produces the PBS Kids show Between the Lions, this model development project is studying how to most effectively deliver printed books, digitally formatted books and interactive, literacy-focused educational media through community-based channels to low-income and minority children in the United States.
The Global Schoolhouse Project
Working closely with leaders from internationally-themed schools, principals and curricular experts, the Center is building a model design focusing on reading, writing, second language acquisition and cultural understanding. The project seeks to define how an elementary school or extended learning setting for diverse, low-income children can be transformed for a global age with rich, multimedia content. Our partner in this enterprise is Asia Society.
Prizes for Excellence in Children's Media
Cooney Center staff are assessing existing prize programs and innovation awards to determine whether such recognition would help accelerate the creation and dissemination of new models for children's digital learning.
