Informal Education

Dynamic afterschool programs for middle school students. Adult literacy programs for parents in New York City or coffee farmers in Papua New Guinea. Interactive exhibits at a library, teen center, museum, or national park. The potential for learning exists in every corner of every community. EDC works to realize that potential in its work with institutions and community groups. Along with our partners, we develop creative, engaging programs that guide people in building basic educational skills or developing deep content knowledge.

EQUIP3/Preparing Youth for Work (PAS: Prepara Ami Ba Servisu)

Preparing Youth for Work (PAS), an EQUIP3 Associate Award, is a workforce preparation program that assists minimally educated youth (ages 16–30) from East Timor’s most rural areas in gaining the skills and expertise needed to find job opportunities and promising futures. These young men and women will benefit from the program’s 8-month combination of off-the-job classroom instruction, on-the-job training, and livelihood accompaniment.

Evaluation of NASA Projects

This five-year project is designed to provide NASA with rigorous evaluation findings of its education portfolio contributions to furthering key strategic goals: develop the STEM workforce in relevant disciplines, attract and retain students at all stages of the educational pipeline, build strategic partnerships between STEM formal and informal education providers, and promote STEM literacy and awareness of NASA’s mission.

Generating Income for HIV/AIDS Affected Families in Chiangrai

In Chiangrai Province in Thailand, EDC and the Association for Community and Ecology Development will assist families affected by HIV/AIDS or extreme poverty to reduce household expenses and generate sustainable incomes to fulfill their basic household needs and cover their children’s education. Sixty families with children will be trained to enhance their entrepreneurial knowledge and vocational skills. Seed funds will be provided to each family to start income generating activities.

Returning from the War Zone: Guides for Military Personnel and their Families

EDC will produce two new 10-15 page publications—one specifically targeted for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and the other for their families. They will be based on the VA National Center for PTSD’s successful publication for war veterans, “Returning from the War Zone”.

Adult Literacy Media Alliance (ALMA)

ALMA’s mission is to help adults gain basic reading, writing, and math skills. ALMA creates innovative, educationally sound, and entertaining television-based teaching materials and cultivates community networks to support ALMA learners. TV411, ALMA’s magazine-format television series (with ancillary print materials and an instructional Web site) is aired on more than 100 stations nationwide.

Students Shape Urban Planning (ITEST Massachusetts)

Urban Ecology is a project developed by the Urban Ecology Institute and Boston College to provide 7-12th grade teachers and students with scientific, instructional, and technological training in urban ecology field studies. This Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by the Learning Resource Center at EDC.

Publishing Genome Research (ITEST New Jersey)

Bioinformatics: the Rutgers Initiative in Teacher Enhancement (BRITE) is a project engaging thousands of New Jersey high school students and their teachers in cutting edge molecular biology investigations. This Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by the Learning Resource Center at EDC.

Gaining Catfish Aquaculture Skills (ITEST Mississippi)

Catfish Environmental Monitoring (CEMO), a collaboration between Mississippi Valley State University and Scotland Fisheries, is a program designed to integrate experientially-based STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) learning into the high school curriculum of 13 rural Mississippi Delta schools. This Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by the Learning Resource Center at EDC.

Girls Explore IT Careers (ITEST California)

Build IT is an afterschool and summer program for underserved middle school girls that capitalizes on its participants interest in design and communication technologies by engaging them in hands-on, collaborative, real-world experiences. This project, a collaboration between SRI International and Girls Inc of Alameda County (GAIC). This Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by the Learning Resource Center at EDC.

Becoming Green Energy Experts (ITEST Michigan)

Green Energy Technologies in the City (GET City), a collaboration between Michigan State University and Lansing Boys and Girls Club, is a program designed to empower inner-city youth to become community science experts in energy sustainability and environmental health topics. This Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) project is funded by the National Science Foundation and supported by the Learning Resource Center at EDC.