Browse short synopses of current peer-reviewed research relevant to informal science education (ISE). Download synthesis papers addressing hot topics in ISE. Share what's interesting to you by putting it on your public bookshelf.
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Making a case for a national credential for youth workersHall, G. & Gannett, E. (2010). Body and soul: Reflections on two professional development credential pilots in Massachusetts. Afterschool Matters, 10, 15-23.
The authors of this paper conducted an evaluation of two pilot credential programs both starting in Massachusetts in 2007, the School-Age Youth Development Credential (SAYD) and the Professional Youth Worker Credential (PYWC). Their reflections on the need for professional development for out-of-school time (OST) staff and youth workers show that the field of youth development at present is at crossroads. Based on the evaluation of these two pilot programs, the researchers advocate the establishment of a nationally recognized credential to professionalize the youth development field. The need to recognize the professional status of practitioners indicates that OST programs are valuable for stakeholders. Furthermore, if OST practitioners are to have credentials, how would this affect ISE practitioners running related programs in museums, science centers, and other educational institutions? This paper introduces ISE practitioners to the leading organizations in the OST field.
afterschool/out-of-school-time, policy, professional development
Teaching and Learning in Informal Settings
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What kind of science and for whom?Eisenhart, M., Finkel, E., & Marion, S. F. (1996). Creating the conditions for scientific literacy: A re-examination. American Educational Research Journal, 33(2), 261–295.
This article was written in the context of the science education reforms of the 1990s, such as the AAAS Project 2061, the NSTA science scope and sequence, and the NRC’s national standards for science education. While the researchers note that this reform movement was broad, progressive, and inclusive, they contend that, at the time of writing, it was being implemented in narrow and conventional ways: focusing on conceptual knowledge as the most important outcome, and opportunities to engage in practices of “real sciences” as the means to this end. This approach, they claimed, failed to appeal to many people, especially for people from non-dominant communities. This critique, while almost 15 years old, may still have relevance today and is important for informal science educators to understand as they design and lead programs intended to make science more inclusive.
equity, identity, non-dominant populations, science in society
Expanding Access to Non-Dominant PopulationsResearch, Method, and Theory
