Informal STEM education institutions seek to engage broader cross sections of their communities to address inequities in STEM participation and remain relevant in a multicultural society. In this chapter, we advance the role that evaluation can play in helping the field adopt more inclusive practices and achieve greater equity than at present through evaluation that addresses sociopolitical contexts and reflects the perspectives and values of non-dominant communities. To do this for specific projects, we argue that evaluation should privilege the voices and lived experiences of non-dominant
This poster shows an overview of the The Designing Our Tomorrow (DOT) project. The project aims to develop a framework for creating exhibit-based engineering design challenges and expand an existing model of facilitation for use in engineering exhibits. DOT seeks to broaden participation in engineering and build capacity within the informal science education (ISE) field while raising public awareness of the importance of sustainable engineering design practices.
This guide describes what took place during NYSCI’s Big Data for Little Kids workshop series, Museum Makers: Designing With Data. In addition to detailed outlines of the activities implemented during the program, this guide includes a glossary of recurrent terms and resources used throughout the workshops.
In 2017, as part of a National Science Foundation funded project, the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI) set out to teach Big Data concepts to children ages 4 – 8 years old. NYSCI developed and piloted an after-school program for families to utilize the data cycle as a method of informed
Although discussions of museums often revolve around exhibits, educators in these spaces have the potential to create in-depth, social learning experiences beyond what is possible at exhibits alone. There is still little empirical research, however, to inform how we understand, approach, and improve museum facilitation practices. In this study, we sought to address this gap by quantifying the impact of facilitation by trained educators working with visitors at interactive museum exhibits and comparing this to visitor engagement and learning outcomes for families without educator support. Using
This poster was presented as part of the 2019 AISL PI Meeting. In this project, the New York Hall of Science, in collaboration with the Amazeum (Bentonville, AR), the Tech (San Jose, CA), and the Creativity Labs (Indiana University), is conducting a design-based research study to develop evidence-based guidance about how museums can use narratives to create more equitable and effective engineering experiences for girls. Through iterative activity development, the project team is exploring ways of using narrative elements (such as characters, settings, and problem frames) to communicate a story
NASA's Universe of Learning provides resources and experiences that enable diverse audiences to explore fundamental questions in astronomy, experience how science is done, and discover the universe for themselves. Using its direct connection to science and science experts, NASA's Universe of Learning creates and delivers timely and authentic resources and experiences for youth, families, and lifelong learners. The goal is to strengthen science learning and literacy, and to enable learners to discover the universe for themselves in innovative, interactive ways that meet today's 21st century needs. The program includes astronomical data tools, multimedia resources, exhibits and community programs, and professional learning experiences for informal educators. It is developed through a unique partnership between the Space Telescope Science Institute, Caltech/IPAC, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and Sonoma State University.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Denise SmithGordon SquiresKathy LestitionAnya BifernoLynn Cominsky
Experiences-including museum experiences- that are packaged as stories are more likely to be remembered by both children and adults. For museum visitors, the simple act of narrating what they've done even no more than ten minutes ago can make their experience more meaningful and memorable. How connections are made between a museum experience and lasting learning, are driving the collaboration between practice and research at the Chicago Children's Museum and Loyola University Chicago.
Mathematics plays a significant role in understanding and participating in science, technology, and engineering (STEM). Research shows that early mathematics experiences in everyday life are critical to the development of children's mathematical knowledge. This project will explore an innovative approach to fostering parent-child math interactions and conversations related to mathematical ideas. The approach will use community-based, exhibit installations called Mathscapes. These are artistic, culturally relevant, easily accessible, physical installations designed to encourage adults and children (ages 3 to 7) to use their immediate environment to playfully explore key early math concepts. The project also addresses a need for research about the cultural experiences and resources that marginalized children and families bring to mathematical conversations. Understanding parent-child interactions about mathematics community settings could result in new knowledge about early math learning among low income children and parents. As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. This includes providing multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences, advancing innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments, and developing understandings of deeper learning by participants.
This exploratory study will design and investigate an innovative approach to encouraging math talk and math-related interactions between parents and children (ages 3-7) through the creation of MathScapes. These are temporary physical installations designed to use the immediate environment to playfully explore mathematical concepts. This study will be conducted in two Boston neighborhoods that are populated by low-income, non-dominant minority and immigrant families. Adopting a case study approach, the project will use observational methods, discourse analysis of parent/child talk, and interviews to study the interactions of 200 families at two neighborhood Mathscape installations. LENA devices will be used to capture parent/child talk at the Mathscapes while researchers use observational methods to document participant interactions, talk, and gestures. Data sources will include audio recordings of family talk, field notes of family interactions at Mathscape installations, surveys, and interviews. A qualitative approach will be used to produce research findings at multiple levels. The focus of the analysis will be to understand if this approach enhances the quality and quantity of math talk between parents and children. The project will be carried out by a research-practice-community partnership in Boston, Massachusetts that includes community mathematics educators, education researchers, and participating children and families. The design of community installations could promote engagement with math through adult/child conversations in culturally-relevant contexts situated in the local environment. By addressing the cultural experiences and resources of young people, the project could greatly enhance our understanding of how to leverage the resources that children and families bring to engaging with mathematics.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Omowale MosesDanny MartinCatherine O'ConnorNermeen Darshoush
With funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ (IMLS) Museums for America program, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (Zoo) undertook a process of improving the interpretive experience of its Wings of the World exhibit, which concluded in summer 2018. The updated exhibition sought to enhance families’ connections to nature and inspire them to become better bird neighbors, in direct alignment with the Zoo’s strategic planning.
In collaboration with the Zoo, the Lifelong Learning Group (LLG) conducted formative and summative evaluation in spring and summer 2018. The
With funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ (IMLS) Museums for America program, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (Zoo) undertook a process of improving the interpretive experience of its Wings of the World exhibit. This effort seeks to enhance families’ connections to nature and inspire them to become better bird neighbors, which is in direct alignment with the Zoo’s strategic planning.
In collaboration with the Zoo, the Lifelong Learning Group (LLG) conducted a formative evaluation. Formative evaluation was framed by an overarching question: does Wings of the World
The Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden has placed a strategic focus on becoming more guest-focused, which includes tailoring interpretive exhibits to engage families, our primary audience. The Wings of the World exhibit building was reinterpreted to create meaningful experiences that connect families to nature through birds and inspire them to become better bird neighbors. As guests navigate the building, which reopened in April 2018, they observe more than 50 bird species from across the globe while making connections to local birds.
Over three years, Zoo guests participated in development and design through focus groups, prototyping, observations, interviews, and exit questionnaires to shape and assess the final interpretive design. Innovative opportunities to promote family interaction include an immersive, interpretive space where guests role play as a flock of migratory birds facing challenges along their journey, such as avoiding collisions with glass and finding suitable habitat. Each challenge teaches guests how they can make this journey easier for birds by addressing that particular issue in their own home. Guests can also practice their local bird identification skills by playing “Guess Who? Name that Cincinnati Bird.” And they are invited to pledge to take action on behalf of birds.
Results from evaluation conducted by Lifelong Learning Group suggest that Wings of the World successfully engages family groups. Guests took away a strong understanding of the general messages of the exhibit space, with enough specificity to articulate key conservation actions they could take to become better bird neighbors. The strongest successes in messaging were those that were cross-cutting and visible throughout the whole space: improving awareness related to bird diversity, encouraging visitors to pay closer attention to birds around them, and inspiring a connection to nature.
Exploration Place, with funding from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), contracted RK&A to conduct a summative evaluation of Design Build Fly, an exhibition and program series that explores what happens behind-the-scenes in Wichita’s aircraft plants. The goals of the study were to identify how visitors use the exhibition, explore what meaning visitors make from Design Build Fly, and understand to what extent visitors’ meaning-making aligns with intended outcomes.
How did we approach this study? RK&A conducted timing and tracking observations of visitors to the