The role of age and gender on implementing informal and non-formal science learning activities for children

Abstract

There is a growing number of informal and non-formal learning activities worldwide related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) subject areas - particularly, those related to coding and making. To understand the general aim and content of such activities, we conducted a survey addressing highly experienced instructional designers and instructors of informal and non-formal science learning activities in nine European countries (N=128). The goal of this paper is to investigate the relation between (1) the targeted age-group and (2) the gender of the participants in these activities, and (3) the gender of the activity leader experts and (I) the content and (II) the main goal of the activity. The results show that the gender and age of the participants and the gender of the activity leader experts are associated with regards to the underlined content and the goal of the activity. We introduce the revealed patterns that describe typical goals and content in association with the participant's gender and age along with patterns between the activity leader experts' gender and the content and the main goal of the activity. We discuss the study findings in detail, their implications and their value for the informal and non-formal learning communities.