Create a Professional Development Program

Independent environmental education professionals move through communities.

They have a reach that others do not.

They have a relationship with their community that others do not.

These truths describe your work too.

So, how can your work be amplified?

Let's consider the lessons learned by the Philadelphia-Camden Informal Science Education Collaborative (PISEC). They launched a five-year program to teach science to families at venues within their communities.

The PISEC team built their program on the foundation of their previous work, which focused on creating community science ambassadors.

They called their community project Communities of Learning for Urban Environments and Science (CLUES). The PISEC team had the following goals for CLUES:

1. Create a model for community-led science learning emphasizing family participation.

2. Develop a training program that a community-based organization (CBO) can adopt.

3. Prepare CBO educators to develop science programming.

4. Support collaboration between families, CBO educators, and museums.

The PISEC team recruited science apprentices and paired them with museums. Through this relationship, apprentices learned how to create and deliver programs.

I share this project because it aligns with how freelance environmental professionals move through the world.

Each leads a community-based organization.

While we may call them practices or projects, they are all community-based. After reading about the CLUES program, I could easily see how environmental professionals could amplify their good work by applying what the PISEC team shares in the guide they wrote specifically for informal science educators. It is important to note that the CLUES team did not build their program around classroom teachers. They built it for community members leading at community venues already familiar to their audience.

The guide the PISEC team wrote helps mentors and trainers recruit “non-traditional informal science educators," train them, and build capacity in their communities. 

Here is what you'll find inside the guide titled Nurturing ISE Talent from Within Your Community: Building a Professional Development Program for Community Informal Science Educators:

1. How to recruit science apprentices and mentors.

2. How to work with museum staff.

3. How PISEC approached the development of two professional development tracks (i.e., Informal Teaching & Learning and Science-Specific Content).

4. How the PISEC team approached their trainings about object-based learning, formal vs. informal learning, inquiry and facilitation, evaluation, workshop preparation, and portfolio building.

Team building was critical to the CLUES project. Apprentices and mentors attended many training sessions and field trips.

Authors of the CLUES guide include several resources for community-based educators, including recruitment materials, interview documents, application forms, and assessment documents. They also share examples of lesson plans and activities.

If you've considered creating a training program to build a team and expand your reach, consider getting the CLUES guide. You can download it for free.