Learning Science in Informal Environments Resources
This portion of the site contains a cross-section of papers pertaining to science learning.
Please note that any information given below or its links does not reflect the work of the
Board and committees, and may be subject to copyright restrictions of the writer and/or
organization. Any opinions and statements are solely those of the individual persons or
their organization, and are not necessarily adopted or endorsed or verified as accurate by
The National Academies. Please note that this is a work in progress; therefore, the list will
be updated on a regular basis.
Allen, S. (2004). Designs for learning: Studying science museum exhibits that do more
than entertain. Science Education, 88, S17-S33.
Anderson, D., Lucas, K. B., Ginns, I. S., & Dierking, L. D. (2000). Development of
knowledge about electricity and magnetism during a visit to a science museum
and related post-visit activities. Science Education, 84(5), 658-679.
Ash, D. (2003). Dialogic inquiry in life science conversations of family groups in a
museum. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 40(2), 138-162.
Bang, M., Townsend, J., Unsworth, S., & Medin, D. (2005). Cultural models of nature
and their relevance to science education. Northwestern University.
Bekerman, Z., Burbules, N. C., & Keller, D. S. (2006). Learning in places- the informal
education reader. New Y ork: Peter Lang.
Bodilly, S. J., & Beckett, M. K. (2005). Making out-of-school time matter: evidence for
an action agenda. Washington, DC: RAND Corporation.
Bransford, J., Barron, B., Pea, R., Meltzoff, A., Kuhl, P ., Bell, P ., et al. (2006).
Foundations and opportunities for an interdisciplinary science of learning. In R.
K. Sawyer (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences. New York:
Cambridge University Press.
Bransford, J., V ye, N., Stevens, R., Kuhl, P ., Schwartz, D., Bell, P ., et al. (2005).
Learning theories and education: Toward a decade of synergy In P . Alexander &
P . Winne (Eds.), Handbook of educational psychology (2nd ed.). Mahwah, NJ:
Erlbaum.
Callanan, M. A., & Jipson, J. L. (2001). Explanatory conversations and young children's
developing scientific literacy. In K. Crowley, C. Schunn & T. Okada (Eds.),
Designing for Science: Implications from Everyday, Classroom and Professional
Settings (pp. 21-49). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Callanan, M. A., Shrager, J., & Moore, J. L. (1995). Parent-child collaborative
explanations: methods of identification and analysis.Journal of the Learning
Sciences, 4(1), 105-129.
Chen, M. (1994). Television and informal science education: Assessing the past, present
and future of research. In V . Crane, H. Nicholson, M. Chen & S. Bitgood (Eds.),
Informal science learning: What research says about television, science museums
and community-based projects (pp. 15-59). Dedham, MA: Research
Communications Limited.
Cole, P . R. (1998). More on Dewey: Thoughts on Ted Ansbacher's paradigm.Curator ,
41(2), 78-80.
Colfax, D., & Colfax, M. (1998). Homeschooling for excellence. New York: Warner
Books.
Comstock, G., & Scharrer, E. (2001). The use of television and other film-related media.
In D. G. Singer & J. L. Singer (Eds.), Handbook of Children and the Media (pp.
47-72). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Cook, J., & Smith, M. (2004). Beyond formal learning: informal community eLearning.
Computers & Education, 43, 35-47.
Corporation., C. (1998). A report on the evaluation of the National Science Foundation's
informal science education program.
Costa, V. B. (1995). When science is "another world": Relationships between worlds of
family, friends, school, and science.Science Education, 79: 313-333.
Crane, V . (1994). An introduction to informal science learning research. In V . Crane
(Ed.), Informal science learning: What the research says about television, science
museums, and community-based Projects. Deham, MA: Research
Communications Ltd.
Crowley, K., Callanan, M. A., Jipson, J. L., Galco, J., Topping, K., Shrager, J., et al.
(2001). Shared scientific thinking in everyday parent-child activity.Science
Education, 85(6), 712.
Crowley, K., & Galco, J. (2001). Everyday activity and the development of scientific
thinking. In K. Crowley, C. Schunn & T. Okada (Eds.),Designing for science:
Implications from everyday, classroom and professional settings (pp. 333-356).
Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Crowley, K., & Jacobs, M. (2002). Building islands of expertise and the development of
family scientific literacy. In G. Leinhardt, K. Crowley & K. Knutson (Eds.),
Learning conversations in museums (pp. 333-356). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates.
Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Hermanson, K. (1995). Intrinsic motivation in museums: What
makes a visitor want to learn? Museum News, 74(3), 34-37 + 59-61.
Dhingra, K. (2003). Thinking about television science: How students understand the
nature of science from different program genres. Journal of Research in Science
T eaching, 40(2), 234-256.
Dierking, L. D., Ellenbogen, K. M., & Falk, J. H. (2004). In Principle, in practice:
Perspectives on a decade of museum learning research (1994-2004).Science
Education, 88, S1-S3.
Dierking, L. D., & Falk, J. H. (1994). Family behavior and learning in informal science
settings: A review of the research. Science Education, 78(1), 57.
Dierking, L. D., & Falk, J. H. (1997). Optimizing out-of-school time: The role of freechoice learning. New Directions for Youth Development, 2003(97), 75-88.
Dierking, L. D., & Falk, J. H. (1997). School field trips: Assessing their long-term
impact. Curator , 40(3), 211-218.
Dierking, L. D., Falk, J. H., Rennie, L., Anderson, D., & Ellenbogen, K. (2003). Policy
statement of the "Informal science education" Ad Hoc committeeJournal of
Research in Science T eaching, 40(2), 108-111.
Dierking, L. D., & Martin, L. (1997). Guest editorial: Introduction. Science Education,
81(6), 629-631.
Dunbar K, F., J, and Stein,. (In Press). Do naïve theories ever go away? Using brain and
behavior to understand changes in concepts. In P . S. a. M. L. (Eds.). (Ed.),
Thinking about data: Hillsdale. NJ: Erlbaum.
Dunbar, K. a. B., I. (2001). The in vivo/in vitro approach to cognition: The case of
analogy. Trends in Cognitive Science 5(8), 335-339.
Dunbar, K. a. F., J. (2005). Scientific thinking and reasoning. In K. H. a. R. M. (Eds.)
(Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of thinking and reasoning. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Dworkin, J. B., Larson, R., & Hansen, D. (2003). Adolescents' accounts of growth
experiences in youth activities.Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32(1), 17-26.
Eberbach, C., & Crowley, K. (2005). From living to virtual: Learning from museum
objects. Curator 48(3), 317-338.
Falk, J. (2004). The Director's cut: Toward an improved understanding of learning from
museums. Science Education, 88, S83-S96.
Falk, J. H. (1997). Testing a museum exhibition design assumption: Effect of explicit
labeling of exhibit clusters on visitor concept development.Science Education,
81(6), 679.
Falk, J. H. (2001). Free-choice science education: How we learn science outside of
school. New Y ork: Teachers College Press.
Falk, J. H., & Adelman, L. M. (2003). Investigating the impact of prior knowledge and
interest on aquarium visitor learning. Journal of Research in Science Teaching,
40(2), 163-176.
Falk, J. H., & Balling, J. D. (1982). The Field trip milieu: Learning and behavior as a
function of contextual events. Journal of Educational Research, 76(1), 22-28.
Falk, J. H., & Dierking, L. D. (1992). The Museum experience. Washington, DC:
Whaleback Books.
Falk, J. H., & Dierking, L. D. (1997). School field trips: Assessing their long-term
impact. Curator , 40, 211-218.
Falk, J. H., & Dierking, L. D. (1998). Free-choice learning: An alternative term to
informal learning?Informal Learning Environments Research, 2(2).
Falk, J. H., Moussouri, T., & Coulson, D. (1998). The effect of visitors' agendas on
museum learning. Curator , 41(2), 106-120.
Forman, E., & Sink, W. (2006). Sociocultural approaches to learning science in
classrooms (Commissioned Paper). Pittsburgh: Department of Instruction and
Learning, University of Pittsburgh.
Gee, J. P . (2004). Situated language and learning: A critique of traditional schooling.
New Y ork: Routledge.
Gelman, R., Massey, C. M., & McManus, M. (1991). Characterizing supporting
environments for cognitive development: Lessons from children in a museum. In
L. B. Resnick, J. M. Levine & S. D. Teasley (Eds.), Perspectives on socially
shared cognition (pp. 226-256). Washington, DC: AP A.
Guberman, S., Rahm, J., & Menk, D. (1998). Transforming cultural practices:
Illustrations from children's game play.Anthropology and Education Quarterly,
29(4), 419-445.
Guberman, S., & Saxe, G. B. (2000). Mathematical problems and goals in children's play
of an educational game. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 7(3), 201-216.
Gutierrez, K. D. a. R., B. . (2003). Cultural ways of learning: Individual traits or
repertoires of practice. Educational Researcher 32(5 ), 19-25.
Hall, E. R., Esty, E. T., & Fisch, S. M. (1990). Television and children's problem-solving
behavior: A synopsis of an evaluation of the effects of square one TV Journal
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of
Mathematical Behavior , 9, 161-174.
Hall, G., Yohalem, N., Tolman, J., & Wilson, A. (2002).Promoting positive youth
development as a support to academic achievement: National Institute on Out-ofSchool Time (NIOST), Forum for Youth Development.
Hall, R., & Schaverien, L. (2001). Families' Engagement with Young Children's Science
and Technology Learning at Home. Science Education, 85, 454-481.
Jipson, J. L., & Callanan, M. A. (2003). Mother-child conversation and children's
understanding of biological and nonbiological changes in size.Child
Development, 74(2), 629-644.
Korpan, C. A., & Bisanz, G. L. (1997). What did you learn outside of school today?
Using structured interviews to document home and community activities related
to science and technology. Science Education, 81(6), 651.
Larson, R. (2001). How U.S. children and adolescents spend time: What it does (and
Doesn't) tell us about their development. Current Directions in Psychological
Science, 10(5), 160-164.
Lave, J. (1988). Cognition in practice: Mind, mathematics, and culture in everyday life.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Leinhardt, G., Crowley, K., & Knutson, K. (2002). Learning conversations in museums.
New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Leinhardt, G. a. K., K., . (2004 ). Learning environment. In In Listening in on museum
conversations.: Altamira Press.
Lipka, J., & Mohatt, G. V . (1998)). Transforming the culture of schools: Yup'ik Eskimo
examples. Sociocultural, political, and historical studies in education.: Mahwah,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum & Associates.
Livingstone, D. W. (2000). Researching expanded notions of learning and work and
underemployment: Findings of the first Canadian survey of informal learning
practices. International Review of Education, 46(6), 491-514.
Martin, L. (2004). An emerging research framework for studying informal learning and
schools. Science Education, 88, S71-S82.
Miller, J. (2004). Public understanding of and attitudes toward scientific Research: What
we know and what we need to know. Public Understanding of Science, 13(3),
273-294.
Nasir, N. S., Rosebery, A. S., Warren, B., & Lee, C. D. (2006). Learning as a cultural
process: achieving equity through diversity In R. K. Sawyer (Ed.),The
Cambridge handbook of the learning sciences (pp. 489-504). New York:
Cambridge University Press.
Nasir, N. S., Roseberry, A., Warren, B., and Lee, C. (2005). Achieving equity through
diversity: Learning as cultural process. . In K. Holyoak and R. Morrison (Eds.)
(Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of the learning sciences. : Cambridge University
Press.
Nocon, H., and Cole, M. (2006). School’s invasion of “after-school”: Colonization,
rationalization, or expansion of access? In N. B. Z. Bekerman, and D. Silberman
(Eds.) (Ed.), Learning in places: The informal education reader . (pp. 99-122).
New Y ork: Peter Lang.
Paris, S. G. (1997). Situated motivation and informal learning.Journal of Museum
Education, 22(2), 22-26.
Pugh, K., & Bergin, D. (2005). The effect of schooling on students' out-of-school
experience. Educational Researcher , 34(9), 15-23.
Rennie, L., & Johnston, D. J. (2004). The nature of learning and its implications for
research on learning from museums.Science Education, 88, S4-S16.
Rogoff, B. (2003). The Cultural nature of human development. New York: Oxford.
Schauble, L., & Bartlett, K. (1997). Constructing a science gallery for children and
families: The role of research in an innovative design process.Science Education,
81(6), 781.
Schreiner, C. (2006). Exploring a ROSE-garden: Norwegian youth's orientations towards
science - seen as signs of late modern identities. Unpublished Doctoral,
University of Oslo.
Scribner, S., & Cole, M. (1973). Cognitive consequences of formal and informal
education. Science, 182(9), 553-559.
Silverstein, G., Wells, J., Herrell, K., Powers, A., and Butler, R. . (2006).Analysis of a
sample of projects funded under the ISE program.
Solomon, J. (2003). Home-school learning of science: The culture of homes, and pupils'
difficult border crossing. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 40(2), 219-
233.
Stevens, R., & Hall, R. (1997). Seeing tornado: How video traces mediate visitor
understandings of (Natural?) Phenomena in a science museum.Science
Education, 81(6), 735.
Uitto, A., Juuti, K., Lavonen, J., & Meisalo, V . (2005). Is pupils’ interest in biology
related to their out-of-school experiences? Journal of Biology Education
[Finland], 2.