4-H Science: Evaluating Across Sites to Critically Examine Training of Adult Facilitators

Authors

  • Pamela Larson Nippolt University of Minnesota Extension

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2012.114

Abstract

As 4-H Youth Development focuses on developing and delivering high quality STEM learning experiences, the issues related to the preparation of the adults who facilitate learning with youth are important to address. This paper outlines a five-state pilot project funded by the 3M Foundation to test a model for training adult facilitators. The findings from this study raise questions about how non-formal educational programs involve and mobilize adult facilitators to work with youth in STEM-related learning when the emphasis is not only on engaging young people, but also on deepening their thinking and learning about engineering phenomena, in this case wind energy. Evidence from the process evaluation illustrates the extent to which three train-the-trainer applications incorporated the original educational design, surfacing questions about how to design high quality, yet practical, training applications within 4-H.

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Published

2012-12-01

Issue

Section

Feature Articles