Welcome to the ITEST Resource Library
The curricula, instruments, and publications included in this library were submitted by ITEST projects and are relevant to the work of the NSF ITEST Program. Use the filters to the right to find relevant materials. A PDF and/or URL to the original resource are included within the resource description whenever possible. In some cases, full text publications are located behind publishers’ paywalls and a fee or membership to the third party site may be required for access.
Please note: permission for the use of instruments must be requested through the publisher or author listed in each entry, and cannot be granted by STELAR.
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ITEST Info Brief: Meeting the Needs of STEM Workforce Development
PublicationsThis 2010 ITEST Information Brief shares examples and data about how the ITEST program strives to connect workforce development needs and K-12 learning in and out of school.
ITEST Idea Brief: Recruiting and Retaining Diverse Participants through Community Partnerships and Other Strategies
PublicationsIn this Idea Brief, Principal Investigators from three youth-based ITEST projects discuss how community partnerships strengthen their efforts to recruit and retain diverse participants.
ITEST Idea Brief: Marketing Your Program
PublicationsITEST LRC Idea Brief Volume 3, October 2005 Marketing is an essential part of the work of ITEST projects, and affects recruitment, partnerships, sustainability, etc. To support the efforts of fellow ITEST staff, the Eyes in the Sky project presented experiences and ideas about marketing.
America After 3PM
PublicationsAmerica After 3PM is the nation’s most in-depth study of how America’s children spend their afternoons and spans a decade of data chronicling how children spend the hours between 3 and 6 p.m. — the hours after school ends and before parents typically return home from work.
The 10 Step Guide to Program Planning
PublicationsThe YouthLearn Initiative has outline some action steps to help you plan a successful and effective youth program. Whether you're offering an in-school or out-of-school program, good planning is very often the key to success. You may find that you have the time and resources to do some of these action steps while others may be beyond the scope of your current priorities or capacity. Just remember, it's never too late to embark on a particular phase of planning, even after a program has launched.
The Impact of Informal Science Education: A Massachusetts Perspective
PublicationsThe projects described in this booklet represent the work that has been funded by the Informal Science Education program at the National Science Foundation. The outcomes of these projects have provided a wide range of opportunities for students, teachers, and the general public to become more familiar and interested in learning about science. Just a few of the impacts that have come about as a result of this work are: Wired to Win is expected to reach between 8 to 10 million viewers over a 5 year distribution period. In Boston alone, over 68,000 individuals have seen the film. Terrascope Youth
Out-of-School Time STEM: Building Experience, Building Bridges
PublicationsThis report from the Exploratorium's Learning and Youth Research and Evaluation Center (LYREC) highlights trends, questions, and findings related to out-of-school-time science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (OST STEM) programs by drawing on the efforts of some two dozen federally funded programs that participated and presented their work at a conference held in Washington, DC in October of 2009.
ITEST Idea Brief: Summer Programs Tips & Tricks
PublicationsITEST LRC Idea Brief Volume 1 , June 2005 This Idea Brief shares tips and tricks from four different ITEST projects around planning and implementing summer programs.
Ten Years of Youth Programs at The American Museum of Natural History: An Independent Perspective and Lessons Learned
PublicationsIn this report, Inverness Research summarizes their findings based on evaluating the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)'s high school program over 10 years. The report includes: A discussion of the theory of action and the rationale that underlies the AMNH youth programs A description of three of the programs that have been offered and the evolution in program design that has taken place over the years A description of the core common features of the programs
ITEST Data Brief: Published Instruments Used by ITEST Projects to Measure Impact
PublicationsITEST LRC Data Brief Volume 1, Issue 2 This Data Brief explores findings reported in the 2011-2012 Management Information System (MIS). In this edition we focus on the topic of validated instruments, by analyzing information reported by the projects regarding their use of instruments to measure youth and teacher outcomes, their research questions and their evaluation questions. The MIS asked project Principal Investigators (PIs) whether or not they use externally developed and validated instruments to measure youth or teacher outcomes. For those projects using external instruments, the MIS