Resources
The Forum for Youth Investment’s Transforming Government, Transforming Communities examines cross-sector “place-based initiatives” of the Obama Administration. Place-based initiatives concentrate funding, flexibility, technical assistance and other support to help selected sites forge integrated approaches to community transformation that cut across individual programs, departments and sectors.
A new report released by Techbridge identifies promising strategies – and calls for funders to adopt new approaches to ensure all girls – and particularly low-income girls of color – have access to high quality STEM learning opportunities that engage and interest them to pursue STEM education and careers.
Boston After School & Beyond – lead for BoSTEM – releases a brief summarizing lessons from its 2015-2016 Badge Pilot (supported by the Noyce Foundation) in which seven long-time partners of Boston Beyond with experience measuring program quality and skill outcomes for youth piloted a new digital badging system. These programs predominantly served students in grades 6 through 8. The […]
When it comes to the use of data in afterschool systems, people and processes are as important as technology, a new study commissioned from Chapin Hall by The Wallace Foundation finds. This interim report examines afterschool data systems in nine cities that are part of The Wallace Foundation’s Next Generation Afterschool System-Building initiative, a multi-year effort to strengthen systems that […]
A recent blog post at informalscience.org focused on the progress made thus far through Equity Pathways in Informal STEM Learning a Science Learning+ Phase 1 project exploring equity issues for 11-14 year olds from underserved, non-dominant backgrounds in informal STEM learning. So far the project has found that equity concerns represent an urgent and significant challenge for informal STEM learning […]
This summer, the National Research Council (NRC) released Identifying and Supporting Productive STEM Programs in Out-of-School Settings, identifying three criteria for programs to result in strong outcomes for students: 1) engage young people intellectually, academically, socially and emotionally, 2) respond to young people’s interests, experiences and cultural practices, and 3) connect STEM learning in out-of-school, school, home and other settings. The report, authored […]
The National Center on Time & Learning (NCTL) released a new report about its work with five expanded-time schools, each paired with a science-focused community-based organization, to embed new, imaginative STEM programming in a redesigned and expanded school day. Each of the schools, which received a modest planning grant and technical assistance coaching from NCTL, have created their own program […]
Allen Grossman and Ann Lombard of the Harvard Business School have released a new report: Business Aligning for Students: The Promise of Collective Impact, which is rich with lessons and ideas for STEM learning ecosystems seeking to expand business involvement. The report contains data from a survey of business leaders and collective impact initiatives and details the roles that business […]
A new National Academies report, Science Teachers’ Learning asserts that “an evolving understanding of how best to teach science, including the NGSS, represents a significant transition in the way science is currently taught in most classrooms and will require most science teachers to alter the way they teach.” The report provides guidance for schools and districts on how best to […]
