Kalman Mannis is the Project Director of the Rural Activation and Innovation Network (RAIN), as well as the Chief Education Officer of Bisbee Science and Research Center in Bisbee, Arizona. According to recent research conducted by a U.S. interagency federal task force, rural communities across the country have a dearth of STEM resources. As they … Read more
Monica Arkin and Isai Garcia-Baza, both senior research assistants at Child Trends, co-wrote this blog. Individuals with higher levels of formal education are likely to be more knowledgeable about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). They are also more likely to hold favorable attitudes toward STEM research, such as believing that it benefits society and having confidence in the scientific community. … Read more
Since 1992, the Wayne State University Math Corps, a combined mathematics and mentoring program for Detroit public school students, has worked to provide Detroit’s children with the kinds of educational and lifetime opportunities that all kids deserve. In a city where the obstacles to success are so daunting, where children struggle every day to navigate the … Read more
Karen Peterman, president of Karen Peterman Consulting, Co., co-wrote this blog. Along with Todd Boyette, Katherine and Karen lead EvalFest, a community of practice that develops, tests, and shares evaluation approaches for science festivals. In the mid-2000s, just a handful of American science festivals were in existence. Since then, the number of festivals has grown significantly. … Read more
This blog was co-written with Joanna Laursen Brucker, Chief Operating Officer at the New Knowledge Organization, Ltd. and Mary Ann Wojton, Project Manager at Center of Science and Industry’s (COSI) Center for Research and Evaluation. Why Zoos and Aquariums Matter 3 (WZAM3) is a national, collaborative study led by the New Knowledge Organization, Ltd. (New … Read more
This blog was co-written by Marjorie Bequette, Director of Evaluation and Research in Learning at the Science Museum of Minnesota, and Gina Navoa Svarovsky, Assistant Professor of Practice at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for STEM Education. Making Connections began in 2013 with a vision of a more diverse and inclusive Science Museum of Minnesota (SMM), where families … Read more
It was a busy month for resource submissions from the InformalScience.org community. See what’s new in our round-up of new additions in October. Did your project publish any resources recently? Share them with the informal STEM education field, by submitting them here. And for regular updates on what we’ve added to the repository, make sure … Read more
By Lesley Markham, Margaret Glass, Kris Morrissey, Dennis Schatz, Joe Heimlich, Martin Storksdieck, Nancy Staus, and Cat Stylinski We’ve all seen amazing people who got into the science center and museum field through many different routes and then grow to love and thrive in their work. But they may struggle to move forward because they … Read more
This is a guest post written by Kelly Sheehan, Alexis Lauricella, and Ellen Wartella from the Center on Media and Human Development at Northwestern University. More than 40 years of research suggests preschool-age children can learn from high-quality, educational television programs, such as Sesame Street and Blues Clues. But the rise in children’s use of newer forms of media, … Read more
Informal learning institutions often have goals of reaching underserved and underrepresented audiences, as well as soliciting user feedback about their venues and programs. Unfortunately, sometimes community members do not feel welcome in certain institutions or may not even know they exist. Working closely with public libraries across the country, the STAR Library Network (STAR Net) … Read more