This study addressed a deficiency in the agricultural literacy of the U.S. population by focusing on the challenges that core subject teachers face when integrating agriculture into their curriculum. Using a phenomenological research approach, this investigation explored the lived experiences of Louisiana teachers who piloted a 4-H STEM…

Background: In this paper, we extend findings from previous iterations of a design-based project called ThinkerSpaces design studios that promotes human-centred design among children. ThinkerSpaces design studios is a play-based afterschool club that follows principles of embedded design by prioritising learner agency, exploration and ongoing…

Informal community-based science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) clubs provide rich informal learning environments that help elementary-aged students develop STEM knowledge and skills while fostering their initial and continued interests in STEM. This phenomenographical case study sought to interpret stakeholders' (five university…

The Texas Afterschool Centers on Education (ACE) is the program administered through the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for the federally funded 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) grants. The Texas ACE Boys and Girls Clubs of Austin Area Cycle 10 program is composed of a compilation of activities at 9 Austin Independent School District…

The international Eco-Schools programme promotes Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) through introducing and stimulating pro-environmental initiatives by school learners and staff. This enabled learners in the Eco-Clubs at a resource-poor primary school to identify and undertake transformative pro-environmental initiatives in 2011 and 2014…

The purpose of this study was to determine if reading achievement of students from high-poverty US schools differs as a function of participation in summer tutoring versus access to books. Data from 100 at-risk youth who participated in tutoring (n = 45) or received self-selected books (n = 55) indicated significant gains for students in both…

This article applies sociocultural theorizing as a tool to analyze children's collaborative cooking practices through the key sociocultural concepts of social interaction and collaboration within a school cooking club. The "everyday" activity of cooking is examined using field notes gathered through participant observations, diary…

This study examined the Community Super Investigators Club, through which we aimed to apply mathematics and literacy skills by using project-based learning (PBL) to investigate elementary students' interest in learning how to improve the environment for animals. PBL is a teaching method used to improve critical thinking skills around a project…

This paper describes an after-school club aimed to engage elementary students in project-based learning by integrating mathematics and literacy connections within a community-based topic. Building on students' backgrounds and interests, researchers created the Community Super Investigators (CSI) Club as part of an after-school program to explore…

This paper reports on the significance of social capital in relation to education, exploring its relevance to teachers and other professionals as well as among young people. It draws on aspects of five case studies undertaken by the Schools and Social Capital Network, within the Applied Educational Research Scheme in Scotland. These case studies…

This article builds upon research on youth sport clubs conducted from a socio-cultural perspective by reporting on a study that inquired into the reasons why children aged 9-12 joined swimming clubs in France, Germany and Australia. Comprising three case studies it employed a mixed method approach with results considered within the framework of…

This article reports on a study conducted in Australia and France that inquired into the meaning and the nature of children's experiences of being in swimming clubs with a focus on the positive aspects of membership that keep them in their clubs. Three-month long case studies were conducted in a club in Australia and in a club in France, employing…

Rules guide and constrain participants' actions as they participate in any educational activity. This ethnographically driven case study examines how organizational rules--the implicit and explicit regulations that constrain actions and interactions--influence children to use science in the experiential educational activity of raising 4-H market…

Background: No research to date has extensively described moderate and vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and healthful eating (HE) opportunities in the after-school environment. The current study described the quality of the after-school environment for its impact on children's MVPA and HE. Methods: An alliance of 7 elementary schools and Boys and…

In the inner-city of Washington, D.C., lives a generation of young people for whom violence, discrimination, and poverty are a daily reality. This article describes one youth organization that encourages these young people to voice their hopes and concerns for their community and work to create solutions. The out-of-school-time programming of…