About this Research Topic
Children in Western countries spend only about 20% of their waking time in school (Meltzoff et al., 2009). Leveraging the 80% of time that they spend outside of school can provide children with opportunities to engage in meaningful, authentic STEM learning experiences with family members, other caregivers, and children. STEM learning and readiness go beyond acquiring content knowledge to include interest, engagement, and motivation for STEM learning as well as the formation of a STEM identity.
To date, there has been a dearth of research focusing on children’s informal STEM experiences when compared to formal, school-based STEM learning experiences. This Research Topic focuses attention on the authentic, everyday experiences of children and how these experiences provide opportunities for STEM learning, engagement, and identity. In addition, these papers will explore how these everyday experiences can be leveraged and augmented to promote STEM learning and engagement through culturally-relevant design and implementation.
Research related to many of these topics has appeared in peer-reviewed journals and is presented at national and international conferences. However, different aspects of this research are often disseminated in separate fields, such as education, psychology, human development and family studies, and urban design, leading to a disconnect between professionals who may be interested in the same topics. One goal of this Research Topic is to identify professionals from a variety of fields who may share interests in informal STEM learning. Another goal is to bring together a body of work that outlines various methodologies that differ from the STEM learning interventions that have been investigated previously in formal or laboratory settings. A final goal is to bring together the research that highlights the importance of identifying community needs and incorporating community values in these informal STEM learning environments in pursuit of cultural relevance.
For this Research Topic, potential areas of research include, but are not limited to:
1. Instances of family STEM learning, in particular, at-home learning opportunities
2. STEM learning in community and public settings such as parks, bus stops, grocery stores, and libraries, and those that lead to additional child outcomes (e.g., literacy skills)
3. Measurement and metrics of STEM learning and STEM readiness outside of school/other formal settings
4. Challenges and opportunities for recruiting and connecting with families and communities who may not have access to informal science organizations, such as science museums and zoos. These communities might include racially or ethnically minoritized populations, economically under-resourced communities, and food-insecure families, among others.
5. Opportunities for community-based participatory research that draws from community cultural capital and assets to customize evidence-based STEM learning opportunities.
6. Methodologies for incorporating STEM learning opportunities into home and community spaces
7. Shifts in community attitudes and beliefs regarding informal STEM learning environments
8. Promoting STEM identity and supporting children and families’ orientation toward STEM career pathways through informal STEM learning experiences
We welcome the following article types: brief research report, original research article, systematic review, registered report, mini review
To date, there has been a dearth of research focusing on children’s informal STEM experiences when compared to formal, school-based STEM learning experiences. This Research Topic focuses attention on the authentic, everyday experiences of children and how these experiences provide opportunities for STEM learning, engagement, and identity. In addition, these papers will explore how these everyday experiences can be leveraged and augmented to promote STEM learning and engagement through culturally-relevant design and implementation.
Research related to many of these topics has appeared in peer-reviewed journals and is presented at national and international conferences. However, different aspects of this research are often disseminated in separate fields, such as education, psychology, human development and family studies, and urban design, leading to a disconnect between professionals who may be interested in the same topics. One goal of this Research Topic is to identify professionals from a variety of fields who may share interests in informal STEM learning. Another goal is to bring together a body of work that outlines various methodologies that differ from the STEM learning interventions that have been investigated previously in formal or laboratory settings. A final goal is to bring together the research that highlights the importance of identifying community needs and incorporating community values in these informal STEM learning environments in pursuit of cultural relevance.
For this Research Topic, potential areas of research include, but are not limited to:
1. Instances of family STEM learning, in particular, at-home learning opportunities
2. STEM learning in community and public settings such as parks, bus stops, grocery stores, and libraries, and those that lead to additional child outcomes (e.g., literacy skills)
3. Measurement and metrics of STEM learning and STEM readiness outside of school/other formal settings
4. Challenges and opportunities for recruiting and connecting with families and communities who may not have access to informal science organizations, such as science museums and zoos. These communities might include racially or ethnically minoritized populations, economically under-resourced communities, and food-insecure families, among others.
5. Opportunities for community-based participatory research that draws from community cultural capital and assets to customize evidence-based STEM learning opportunities.
6. Methodologies for incorporating STEM learning opportunities into home and community spaces
7. Shifts in community attitudes and beliefs regarding informal STEM learning environments
8. Promoting STEM identity and supporting children and families’ orientation toward STEM career pathways through informal STEM learning experiences
We welcome the following article types: brief research report, original research article, systematic review, registered report, mini review
Keywords: Informal STEM learning, family learning, community-based learning, playful learning, home learning
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
