Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted summative evaluation of Origins of the Universe, the 4-part NOVA miniseries. The Origins series chronicled the history of the earth's formation, how the universe evolved to permit the emergence of life on earth, the likelihood that there is life beyond earth, and the tools and techniques scientists use to study the universe. In June 2007, Thomas Levenson, MIT professor and Executive Producer of the series, won the inaugural Walter P. Kistler Science Documentary Film Award for his work on Origins. An extensive outreach campaign accompanied the series
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Jennifer BeckJennie MurackUnicorn Projects, Inc.Irene F Goodman
Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted a summative evaluation of the 2007 Cambridge Science Festival. The festival was the first of its kind in the United States and was held for nine days, offering a wide range of science- and technology-related activities throughout Cambridge, Massachusetts. Patterned after science festivals in Europe, it was a public celebration that sought to make science accessible, interactive and FUN, and highlight the excitement of discovery and the impact of science in all our lives. Families and school-aged youth in the community were target audiences for the
Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted a comprehensive multi-method external evaluation of the Design Squad PBS television series and its outreach initiative. Design Squad is a live-action reality television series for 9-12 years-olds that aims to provide hands-on experiences and positive images of engineering through design competitions. The broad evaluation goals were to: 1) assess the extent to which children's knowledge, interest, and awareness of engineering increased as a result of watching the Design Squad series, 2) document the implementation of the community events resulting
This report is the third annual report summarizing data collected about the overall impact of the Saint Louis Science Center's educational programs on participants.
The 2010 Cyberchase Summer Challenge Outreach initiative was designed to allow local public television stations to develop community-appropriate outreach plans as part of a unique summer launch of a new season of shows for a PBS children's television program. The Cyberchase Summer Challenge was a national initiative; eight stations were selected for a pilot study of best practices related to summer programming. Grantee stations were provided modest funding and material support. RMC's evaluation focused on understanding how public television stations and their outreach partners can build
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Alice ApleyWendy GrahamElizabeth GoldmanThirteen/WNET New York
The Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium (MMS) received funding from the National Science Foundation in 2004 to develop and implement After-school Programs Exploring (APEX Science). APEX Science is a three-year project designed to enhance the capacity of community-based organizations (CBOs) to deliver quality science after-school programming for children ages 5-10. This report provides the results of the summative evaluation which focused on the extent to which: 1) APEX Science curriculum increases CBO activity leaders' interest, awareness, and appreciation of science and level of comfort
The Westside Science Club (WSSC) is an out-of-school time opportunity that brings participant-directed STEM activities to under-resourced late-elementary and middle school students in low-income housing units in Los Angeles. WSSC and CCI Solar began a collaboration in 2012 with funding from the NSF to connect research scientists from Caltech with the underserved youth in the club. Another community partner, Wildwood School, provided high school students to act as near-peer mentors for the club members. CCI Solar's research on the efficient and economical conversion of solar energy into stored chemical fuel provides an entry point for informal science education activities designed to introduce pre-high school participants to basic chemistry and related STEM concepts such as physics and plant biology. Activities were largely student driven, though lessons were developed by the team of facilitators including the club's founder Ben Dickow, Wildwood teacher Levi Simons, and students, post-docs, and staff from Caltech. Each lesson was tied to CCI Solar's research through a mind-map of related chemistry concepts. The activities were mostly intended to be "maker-type" experiences that allowed the club members to follow their own interests and questions. Caltech students and postdocs from CCI Solar helped deliver activities while honing their science communication skills with the young WSSC audience. The team is currently adapting the model of this successful collaboration to develop another science club in a different Los Angeles community. Two-years of lessons developed from this project, an evaluation of the project by Kimberly Burtnyk of Science for Society, and a model on how to replicate such a program are available in the project final report below. This was a two-year pilot program that was completed in July 2014.
What motivates kids to take multiple programs at the Minnesota Zoo? What makes Minnesota Zoo programs so comfortable and engaging that some kids just keep coming back? How do these experiences support kids’ interest in animals and wildlife conservation? The Minnesota Zoo (MN Zoo) offers over a dozen educational programs for youth tailored to encourage exploration of “what makes the MN Zoo tick.” After 10 years of programming for hundreds of youth, a cluster of youth return again and again to learn more about animal care, wild wildlife conservation, zoo work, and volunteer opportunities
This paper describes a Saturday science program for K-2 students designed to enhance their understanding of the nature of science. Teaching strategies were used to explicitly address all the elements of NOS—the role of empirical data, the distinction between observation and inference, the creative processes of science, the subjective (theory-laden) nature of research, and the tentative (though robust) NOS knowledge.
In October 2009, the Tennessee Aquarium began an ambitious program, Connecting Tennessee to the World Ocean (CTWO), funded by a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. CTWO consists of several individual projects, all intended to increase the ocean literacy of Aquarium audiences and to promote their adoption of an ocean stewardship ethic. This evaluation report summarizes the extent to which the Aquarium accomplished these goals over the 3-year project period. The five project components and their key associated evaluation findings follow. 1. Classroom-based activities
In spring 2009, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (Museum) contracted with JVA Consulting, LLC (JVA) to conduct a comprehensive process and outcome evaluation of the Passport to Health (P2H) program. The Museum designed P2H, originally a three-year program funded by the Colorado Health Foundation (the Foundation), to improve health outcomes for fifth-grade students as well as their families and teachers throughout the Denver metro area. Passport to Health has seven components, designed to complement each other and help the Museum achieve its stated program goals. The seven components
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TEAM MEMBERS:
JVA Consulting, LLCDenver Museum of Nature & Science