Community Science Education & Leadership (SEAL) Project

1. Community Science Education & Leadership (SEAL) Project A Multi-Agency Community Collaborative

2. Community SEAL Project Overview • Community College and high school students work in teams to implement a science education curriculum to at-risk children in San Diego County, California. • Outreach efforts are the “Community Laboratory” component of a one-semester Community College course. • Course content includes: effective teaching strategies, working with diverse audiences, career exploration, and curriculum training.

3. Community SEAL Project Collaborators • Grossmont College, El Cajon, California • San Diego County 4-H Youth Education Foundation • El Cajon Valley High School • UC-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinary Medicine Extension • University of California Cooperative Extension, 4-H Youth Development Program, San Diego County • University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources

4. Community SEAL Project Needs • Academic Enrichment Opportunities for At-Risk Children in After School Programs. • Positive Cross-Age Role Models for At-Risk Children. • Low Levels of Science Literacy Among Elementary-Age Children. • Authentic Community Service Opportunities for Community College and High School Students in At-Risk Communities.

5. Community SEALProject Aims • To enhance the quantity and quality of science instruction in non-formal education settings. • To improve the science literacy of at-risk children in non-formal education settings. • To contribute to the academic and career preparation of high school and community college students. • To develop a sustainable community collaboration model.

6. Development of the SEAL Collaborative • Needs identified through work with the San Diego County 4-H Youth Education Foundation and El Cajon Valley High School. • Relationships established and liaisons identified with Grossmont Community College, El Cajon Valley High School, and 4-H Foundation after school programs. • Programmatic collaboration established through DANR and UCD Veterinary Medicine Extension.

7. Community-Based Partnership Model Grossmont Community College El Cajon Valley High School 4-H Foundation After School Programs UCCE San Diego UC-Davis SVM; UC Division of Ag & Natural Resources

8. Procedures • Community College and High School interns attend weekly seminar series, Education 299, at Grossmont College. • Weekly visits by interns to area after school child care settings for curriculum implementation. • Interns develop a journal to record progress of student teams.

9. Community College Seminar • Community College and high school students learn and practice effective science education outreach methods. • Opportunity for community college and high school interns to interact with university faculty and community educators from a variety of disciplines and organizations.

10. Seminar Content • Guest speakers emphasize effective educational techniques and strategies (e.g., inquiry-based science teaching, open vs. closed questions, age-appropriateness, diverse audiences, and authentic assessment). • Alternating curriculum training workshops provide students with content and practice.

11. Curriculum Intervention Program • Animal Ambassadors is a youth science education outreach program developed by the UCD Veterinary Medicine Extension. • Program uses the world of animals as a “bridge” to the world of science. • Hands-on, inquiry-based curriculum emphasizes critical thinking and life skills.

12. Curriculum Content, Materials, and Methods • Interdisciplinary: Science, Language Arts, Math, Geography, Art, and Physical Education. • Hands-on materials organized into learning kits. • Animal Alternatives: Rubber foot molds; plaster tooth molds; artificial animal coats.

13. Project Evaluation • Science Literacy of Participating Children: Test of Basic Process Skills (BAPS) (Padilla et al, 1995). • Academic and Career Preparation of Participating Community College Students and Teens: Pre-/Post-Project Surveys; Post-Project Focus Group Interview.

14. Benefits to Young Children • N = 28. • 16 female and 12 male participants. • Mean age = 10. • 17 children were EO learners; 11 children were ESL learners. • Data were analyzed using ANOVA. • Data tested for changes in score over time and effects of age, gender, and ESL status.

15. Benefits to Young Children • Time: Scores for all children rose from pre- to post-test (p = .001). • ESL status: EO students scored higher than ESL students from pre- to post-test (p = .023). • Age and Gender: No significant effects.

16. Benefits to High School & College Participants • Survey responses (N = 22) have revealed that the project helped to clarify future education and career goals. • Survey responses also revealed a positive impact on career and life skills, including: leadership, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving.

17. Benefits to High School & College Participants • Focus group interviews supported survey data: Clarification of education and career; life skills development. • Results revealed that participation in the Community SEAL Project sparked an interest in teaching among the student interns. • Although students expressed a variety of career goals, most stated that they would now like to incorporate teaching either in their career or elsewhere in their lives.

18. Focus Group Response “When I started I just wanted the credit, but now I really want to be a teacher. This was my first time teaching and I liked it. So I am going to start taking more classes on teaching.”

19. Focus Group Response • “I am going to work at a summer camp this summer to be a counselor and I think it was a result of my participation in this class that got me interested in it.”

20. Focus Group Response “I am learning a lot about myself. I had to work hard with a boy who was behaving poorly. I thought he would hate me, but at the end of the day he was smiling and waved goodbye to me.”

21. Focus Group Response “Oh, I definitely think I look at things differently after taking this class. I see more than one way to approach things than I did before.”

22. Benefits of the SEAL Collaborative • High School • Service learning • Career Exploration • College Connection • Mentoring Opportunities • Community College • Service Learning • Outreach Opportunity • Connection to University Resources

23. Benefits of the SEAL Collaborative • Community-Based Youth Program Provider • Ensure Quality Educational Programs • Cross-age Mentoring Opportunities • Source of Future Staff • University • Outreach Opportunity • Pilot New Materials/Curriculum

24. Importance of Community-Based Education with At-Risk Populations • Promotes positive community involvement through service-learning opportunities for youth. • Provides a context that enables an authentic experience of personal success. • Provide additional academic learning experiences. • Increases the opportunity for the development of assets available to youth.

25. Importance of Sustainability • Maximizes the use of resources by collaborators; minimizes the duplication of efforts. • Higher likelihood for long-term impacts within the community. • Helps build community coalitions; can create a cycle of success. • Creates a sense of trust within the community.

26. SEAL Collaborative as a Sustainable Model • Needs identified by community partners. • Model’s structure allows for interchangeable community partners based on needs. • UCCE represents a non-regulatory, non-competitive community entity. Link to campus resources. • Formal relationship with the Community College is key to centralizing efforts and maintaining a connection to a variety of entities in the community.

27. Community-Based Partnership Model: A Template for Collaborations Community College Community Collaborator UCCE Community Collaborator UC or CSU

28. Value of Cooperative Extension in Community Collaborations • Non-competitive and stable facilitator in collaboration efforts. • Facilitates dynamic relationships bridging campus and community members, resources, and opportunities. • Promotes a broad-based approach to community needs. • Facilitates the construction and use of a “best practices” resource base for communities.

29. “Recipe for Success” • Have specific goals based on needs identified by the community. • Make sustainability one of the goals. • Collect formative data and make necessary changes. • Collect summative data and assess the desired impacts. • Keep lines of communication open at all levels.

30. Contacts • H. Steve Dasher – 4-H Youth Development Program, UCCE San Diego, hsdasher@ucdavis.edu • Martin H. Smith – Veterinary Medicine Extension, UC Davis, mhsmith@ucdavis.edu