page_title: Science education
section_title: Informal science education
hierarchical_section_title: Science education / By country / United States / Informal science education
caption_attribution_description: At its annual event "Science Careers in Search of Women", Argonne National Laboratory demonstrates to 350 young women from Chicago-area high schools why a career in science might be right for them. The day-long Science Careers in Search of Women conference puts students face-to-face with scientists from a wide variety of disciplines and provides an opportunity to interact with positive female role models. Students attending the event will see first-hand what science and technology careers are all about. More than 7,000 young women have participated in the program since it began at Argonne in 1987. Read more » Photo by George Joch / courtesy Argonne National Laboratory.
context_page_description: Science education is the teaching and learning of science to non-scientists, such as school children, college students, or adults within the general public. The field of science education includes work in science content, science process, some social science, and some teaching pedagogy. The standards for science education provide expectations for the development of understanding for students through the entire course of their K-12 education and beyond. The traditional subjects included in the standards are physical, life, earth, space, and human sciences.
context_section_description: Informal science education is the science teaching and learning that occurs outside of the formal school curriculum in places such as museums, the media, and community-based programs. The National Science Teachers Association has created a position statement on Informal Science Education to define and encourage science learning in many contexts and throughout the lifespan. Research in informal science education is funded in the United States by the National Science Foundation. The Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) provides resources for the informal science education community.
  Examples of informal science education include science centers, science museums, and new digital learning environments (e.g. Global Challenge Award), many of which are members of the Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC). The Exploratorium in San Francisco and The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia are the oldest of this type of museum in the United States.  Media include TV programs such as NOVA, Newton's Apple, "Bill Nye the Science Guy","Beakman's World", The Magic School Bus, and Dragonfly TV. Early examples of science education on American television included programs by Daniel Q. Posin, such as "Dr. Posin's Universe", "The Universe Around Us", "On the Shoulders of Giants", and "Out of This World".  Examples of community-based programs are 4-H Youth Development programs, Hands On Science Outreach, NASA and After school Programs and Girls at the Center. Home education is encouraged through educational products such as the former (1940-1989) Things of Science subscription service.
  In 2010, the National Academies released Surrounded by Science: Learning Science in Informal Environments, based on the National Research Council study, Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places, and Pursuits. Surrounded by Science is a resource book that shows how current research on learning science across informal science settings can guide the thinking, the work, and the discussions among informal science practitioners. This book makes valuable research accessible to those working in informal science: educators, museum professionals, university faculty, youth leaders, media specialists, publishers, broadcast journalists, and many others.
caption: Young women participate in a conference at the Argonne National Laboratory.
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