Silicon Valley Creates: Making media and building community with youth

By Alex Gurn, Ph.D. REA recently completed a two-year external evaluation of SV Creates’ The Studio. Funded in part by the Adobe Foundation, The Studio was established to provide opportunities for underrepresented youth in Silicon Valley to practice creative arts, while connecting them to professional resources, networks, and hands-on learning in filmmaking, visual arts, music, […]

Building with Biology helps scientists and the public to learn from one another

By Claire Quimby and Camellia Sanford Photo courtesy of National Informal STEM Education Network Congratulations to the Museum of Science, Boston team who just received supplemental funding from NSF to extend the reach of their Multi-Site Public Engagement with Science (MSPES). REA served as an external evaluator for the MSPES project, funded by an NSF […]

STEM Media That Matters: Examining Youth Radio’s STEM-Powered Media Production

By Alex Gurn, Ph.D. Young people growing up today must learn to navigate a digitally-mediated world of increasing complexity and contradiction. The ubiquity of digital technology and the rapid expansion in the use of data across all sectors of the economy has reshaped our everyday realities around communication, education, work, and community life. To navigate […]

Inspiring Young People to Pursue STEM Careers

By Alex Gurn, Ph.D. I recently attended, “Stories from ITEST – Culturally Competent Projects that Inspire Young People to Pursue STEM Careers.” The NSF-related webinar presented findings from some of the research in a special issue of Journal of Science Education and Technology, ‘Stories from ITEST: Inspiring Young People to Pursue STEM Careers’ (http://stelar.edc.org/publications/journal-science-education-and-technology-special-issue-stories-itest-inspiring-young). REA’s […]

Critical Youth Literacy for a Changing World

By Alex Gurn, Ph.D. Our world is changing—and it’s changing fast. Over the past three decades, massive societal transformations have rippled out from the complex realities of globalization. For better and for worse, K-12 schools, universities, and community-based organizations are experiencing the consequences of economic shifts, technological innovation, demographic changes, and increasing inequality. As a […]