More people participate in non-school based science and environmental education each year than attend all professional sports combined. This course seeks answers to questions about what and how they learn in these kinds of settings by reviewing research and practice in what has been called free-choice learning: the learning that occurs when people believe that they have choices over what they learn, how they learn, how much time they spend learning, and what their sources of information are. We will examine research on learning in and from museums, aquariums, zoos, botanical gardens and interactive science centers, as well as after school programs, magazines, newspapers, television and apprenticeships. Although the focus of this course is free-choice science learning, we will touch on findings from research in art, history, and environmental learning as well.

The course may be useful for future educators in both formal and informal environments as well as anyone who anticipates working with the public around marine issues (i.e., extension agents, resource managers, agency communicators, environmental educators).

For more information on Free-choice learning.

Link to more information on the course and Dr. Shawn Rowe.

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