This paper examines the approach of urban debate leagues, and specifically the New York Urban Debate League, to democracy skill building and civic engagement. In the face of concerns about lack of civic engagement and knowledge among young people, such out-of-school-time programs can often reach youth bypassed by traditional sources of civic and democracy development, providing a vision of what “democracy in action” for underserved youth might look like. Such democracy skill-building experience can empower youth to become engaged learners and participating citizens.
In stories about democratic society that take place in a democratically structured environment, Youth Radio walks the fine line between professional journalism and youth development in ways that question the automatic equation between "youth voice" and freedom of expression.
In the juvenile justice reform movement, the principles of youth organizing can help bridge the gap between the goals of social justice and individual youth development.
Annual trips to the state capital to advocate for afterschool funding not only allow young people to participate in the democratic process but also foster youth development by focusing on educational goals.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Susan BlankLucy FriedmanKathleen Carlson
Pairing age-appropriate novels with thematic units on the civil rights movement and the presidential election allows one afterschool practitioner to bring democracy to life for inner-city middle school students.
The McLean Hospital, working with the Exploratorium and Reginald Clark and Associates, proposes an intensive study of "typical" afterschool programs (those lacking specialized training, funding or partnerships). This study will build basic knowledge and data about how effective informal science activities can be developed for and presented by these after-school programs. It will consist of a sample size of at least 300 informal science after-school programs and include a variety of data collection methods such as surveys, phone interviews, and in-depth case studies. The project relies upon 50 leaders of youth organizations (CSAS - Coalition for Science After School) building upon the work of two NSF-funded conferences in 2003 and 2004. Afterschool leaders will be able to use this knowledge to increase and improve informal science in localized after-school settings as well as to set up demonstration projects. The study takes a holistic approach, connecting (a) features of strong informal science to (b) student outcomes/benefits to (c) core program components (curriculum, staffing, and support structures). The research will serve as a baseline for future studies in informal learning, as well as for policy recommendations. Strategic impact will be realized as this comprehensive study contributes important knowledge, documentation and tools for the rapidly developing after-school field, while expanding opportunities for informal learning in after-school programs. Additionally, this work will address sensitive measures that take into account the particular contexts of the after-school environment, youth development (particularly underserved youth) and powerful informal science learning. The results will be widely disseminated to after-school youth development and informal science education leaders, policymakers and funders through a program assessment tool, a Research-to-Practice Symposium and a policy recommendation paper.