Science Learning+ STEM Teens: Examining the role of youth educators as learners and teachers in informal STEM learning sites. (360G-Wellcome-206259_Z_17_Z)

This proposal is for a Science Learning+ Partnership Grant to examine STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) engagement outcomes for youth educators and the visitors with whom they interact in informal STEM learning sites (ISLS). The proposed research targets the following priority areas: A) Understanding learning: we will examine how experiences as youth educators in ISLS provide opportunities for adolescents to increase their STEM knowledge as well as how they provide informal STEM education to visitors to these centers; B) STEM Engagement: we will longitudinally track youth educators’ STEM interest, engagement, stereotypes and motivation, educational aspirations, course-taking and eventual choice of major or profession; C) Equity, diversity and access to informal learning settings: we will examine underrepresented minority youth educator and visitor evaluations of their experiences and inclusion in ISLS and visitor engagement after interacting with youth educators; D) Measurement of outcomes: we will measure outcomes related to educational achievement and STEM interest and engagement using quantitative and qualitative methods to forward knowledge of how to assess informal STEM learning. The goal of the proposed research is to examine outcomes of youth educator experiences related to STEM identity, educational aspirations and motivation of the youth educators as well as to identify outcomes that the youth educators have on the visitors to ISLS in terms of knowledge, interest and engagement in STEM, and to evaluate how these relate to participant demographics and across different informal educational environments. The specific aims are: 1) Outcomes for Teens - To measure the longitudinal impact of participation in an extended youth educator experience in an ISLS; 2) Outcomes for Visitors - To compare visitor engagement with and learning from exhibits in ISLS when they interact with a youth educator, relative to outcomes of interacting with an adult educator or no educator; and 3) Outcomes Across Demographics and STEM Sites - To examine differences in visitor engagement based on participant characteristics such as SES, age, gender, and ethnicity and to compare outcomes of youth educator experiences across different types of ISLS as represented by: The Riverbanks Zoo and Garden (US), The Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center (US), EdVenture Children’s Museum (US), the Florence Nightingale Museum (UK), the ThinkTank (UK), and Centre of the Cell (UK).