Great Science for Girls: Extension Services for Gender Equity in Science through After-School Programs (GSG Extension Services) will use 21st century technologies in combination with in-person professional development, customized consulting services, and evidence-based, gender-equitable curricula to create a unified program of change around girls and STEM. The project will bring together the Educational Equity Center at the Academy for Educational Development (EEC/AED) and two AED Centers that have worked extensively in the after-school field: the Center for Youth Development and Policy Research (CYD) and the National Training Institute for Community Youth Work (NTI) as partners. In addition, the project will work in partnership with regional intermediary organizations that provide training and technical assistance to after-school centers; and after-school centers directly serving girls and other underserved youth.
Intellectual merit-- GSG Extension Services will build the capacity of after-school centers to deliver evidence-based programming that provides a learning environment for girls that includes opportunities for leadership; active, intelligent engagement with concerned adults and other students; inquiry-based, hands-on experimentation; risk-taking; challenges and problem-solving; cooperative learning; and fun. Integral to this project will be EEC/AED's Science, Gender and After-school On-Line Community of Practice (COP). The COP will serve as an online virtual support system for program implementation, and an important follow-up tool for program participants. In addition, the COP will provide ongoing, cutting-edge information and services to a national client base, and act as a continuous link between researchers and practitioners.
Broader Impacts: During the five-year project period, GSG Extension Services will make significant impact by building the capacity of 16 national intermediary organizations to implement the unified program of change with 10,880 youth workers in the 2,720 centers they serve, ultimately reaching 162,800 girls. Through this comprehensive approach, GSG Extension Service will advance STEM opportunities for the large number of low and moderate-income girls and other underrepresented students who attend after-school programs.
In the last decade, research has documented the important role of afterschool in fostering improved attitudes and enthusiasm among girls and other underserved groups about STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). These include greater confidence in science ability, improved performance in scientific subjects, persistence in the scientific pipeline, increased knowledge of and interest in STEM careers, and changes in course-taking behavior. Based on the research, the Educational Equity Center at FHI 360* wrote a successful proposal to the National Science Foundation for Great Science for Girls: Extension Services for Gender Equity (GSG). GSG developed and extended an approach to science education in the field of informal education by working to deliver evidenced-based programming through Intermediary organizations that, in turn, work with thousands of afterschool programs. Over a five-year period, GSG has been able to bring gender equity in STEM to a large, influential, and expanding audience. Through a partnership with thirteen Intermediary organizations across the country that provide training and technical assistance to afterschool centers within their regions, GSG reached 400 afterschool centers and an estimated 17,000 underserved students, the majority of whom are girls. During the course of the project, GSG provided professional development and on-site consulting; created a virtual support system of technical assistance, training, resources and research; and developed new tools to inform the field of afterschool education about gender-equitable STEM. An evaluation of the project revealed the following positive results: Intermediaries reported that GSG influenced the organization’s awareness of gender equity. Intermediaries rated highly the influence of GSG on their organizations’ capacity to provide technical assistance to afterschool centers and their knowledge of inquiry-based science. Staff and youth reported enjoying being part of GSG and felt they gained new skills through the initiative. A majority (70%) of staff reported that the professional development provided by GSG was very useful. Surveys indicate that staff and youth learned about the importance of science, became more aware of science careers and less stereotypical in their beliefs about who could do science. Girls reported greater change than boys in all areas. Staff who felt curriculum trainings were useful were more satisfied with GSG and also reported greater changes in themselves (in opinions about women in science and the realization of science’s importance) as well as among youth (in interest in science and fewer stereotypes about who could be a scientist). Over 70% of surveyed youth agreed that through the GSG programs they learned new things about science, gained new skills and had fun. Over 90% of surveyed youth reported their interest in science increased as a result of their participation. Over the course of five years, GSG created several gender-equitable tools to support sustainability for participating Intermediaries. The tools are downloadable from the GSG website free of cost for informal STEM educators in afterschool centers, Extended Learning Programs, and other out-of-school time venues. They are: Starter Kits for Intermediaries and Afterschool Centers provide practical information for implementing GSG including: a program flyer, talking points, press release, descriptions of evidence-based curricula, program management tools, and local outreach and funding. Gender Equitable STEM Strategies: Stories from the Field brings to life the many successful strategies employed by Intermediaries and afterschool centers to increase their capacity to deliver programming that broadens and sustains girls’ interest in STEM. Through written survey and telephone interviews, GSG participants from Intermediary organizations and afterschool programs contributed their knowledge and experience in youth development, as well as their insights, strategies, and outreach techniques to providing gender equitable STEM experiences to the students (both girls and boys) they serve. Great Science for Girls Program Quality Tool and User Manual help programs implement GSG in a way that promotes general youth development as well as specific values such as gender equity, and inquiry-based STEM education. The Program Quality Tool and the User Manual were created in collaboration with the David P. Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality, a division of the Forum for Youth Investment and developers of the research-validated and widely used Youth Program Quality Assessment. The Tool combines elements of the Youth Program Quality Assessment with questions that focus on gender equity and scientific inquiry. The User Manual details how to use the Tool and provides various examples of quality youth development and STEM practices. Great Science for Girls is nationally recognized by the image of a bright young girl, fully engaged in making discoveries about the contents of a jar, who appears on the GSG website and all materials developed by the project. Please see www.greatscienceforgirls.org for more information. * The grant was awarded originally to the Academy for Educational Development (AED). During Year 5 of the initiative, FHI 360 acquired the assets, expertise and programs of AED.
