We live in a neurodiverse world, and therefore need to ensure that equally diverse educational opportunities are accessible to all learners. The term "neurodiversity," coined by Judith Singer (1999) describes the broad, and complex, spectrum of human brain functionality. Terms like "neurodivergent" or "neurodistinct"…

This study aimed to reveal the experiences of science education graduate students about education in out-of-school learning environments before and after they took a course on this topic. The study group consisted of four students who were attending the science education graduate program at a state university in Turkey and who were taking the…

To develop the pedagogic efficiency of informal education in science teaching, promoting a close cooperation between institutions is suggested by Monteiro, Janerine, de Carvalho, and Martins (EJ1102247). In their article, they point out effective examples of how teachers and educators work together to develop programs and activities at informal…

This paper explores the design, delivery and evaluation of a new bespoke reflection tool for enhancing informal learning in the workplace via reflection in and on action, as part of an undergraduate reflective practice course component. The rationale underlying the tool is presented first, followed by the results of a mixed-methods study…

Purpose: Extension workers' knowledge and competencies are fundamental to a successful practice. Most academic literature focuses on how to train extension workers, but neglects how complex their learning processes are. This article contributes to the topic by describing and analyzing extension workers' sources of knowledge and learning.…

The talents that neurodiverse individuals bring to STEM fields are being increasingly recognized, thus it is important to ensure neurodiverse youth have opportunities to experience an array of STEM fields as viable career options. Based on the results of a systematic review, this article provides recommendations for how informal STEM learning…

Many educators interested in notions of 'learning through or from experience' are influenced by Kolb's basic model of experiential learning. Yet as a set of stages, the model involves a dilemma acknowledged by Kolb himself that it can proceed from either concrete experience or abstract conceptualisation. The paper builds on Kolb's insights about a…

This study aims to analyse opinions of social studies prospective teachers towards out-of-school learning. It was conducted with 12 prospective teachers who were at their final year at Kafkas University Education Faculty, Social Studies Teaching Department. In this qualitative study, phenomenological design was adopted, and the data was collected…

The purpose of this paper is to describe how and where Lesotho citizens have learned about democracy, their civic life and citizenship. The paper draws from a larger PhD study that was conducted in 2013 that focused on how Basotho people understand the concepts of citizenship and democracy with implications for civic education in Lesotho. This…

The main objective of this article is to analyse informal learning processes in the field of video games. As many teenagers are engaged in these kinds of practices, the big question is: How do teens learn to play video games? In most cases they do not learn to play video games at school or with their parents, and therefore it is necessary to map…

Through the participation of local communities in the arts, Community-Based Arts Education (CBAE) raises awareness of ecology and the environment, and also facilitates the search for and establishment of a socio-cultural identity. It provides students with specific forms of experiential learning involving out-of-classroom experiences. Since 2003…

The purpose of this study was to explore how a health-based informal science education course, as part of an elementary undergraduate teacher preparation program, influenced pre-service teachers' ideas about formal and informal science teaching and learning. Additionally, the study explored how the course impacted their understandings of the value…

This article examines community-driven adult environmental learning in a volunteer watershed stewards program. We look for evidence of elements that portray steps toward "concientización"--the process of individuals and communities directing their own learning in nonhierarchical ways. Leveraging two theories from the learning sciences…

Facilitating successful informal STEM learning experiences is essential for building knowledge and comfort with STEM content for children and teachers alike. Informal learning experiences are by nature hands-on and interdisciplinary and provide play-based, real-world, authentic learning experiences. This article describes what elementary teacher…

Background: Educational museums are composed of objects, documents, and narratives that together create a learning experience. Existing models of museum education tend to analyze the visitor experience, but rarely take into consideration the unique characteristics and challenges of multicultural heritage museums. Purpose: This article proposes a…