4-H Delivers

Imperial County 4-H National Youth Science Day Event 2010

The Issue

While California, and America as a whole, lag behind other developed countries in youth science achievement, this is particularly true in rural Imperial County.  Scores on the 2002 California Standardized Testing and Report (STAR) showed an  average 76% of 9th, 10th and 11th graders were at the “Basic”, “Below Basic” or “Far Below Basic” levels for Biology and Life Sciences.  For Chemistry, 85% of the same youth scored at the levels below “Proficient”.  It is even more disheartening for the Earth Science topic – 91% of 9th, 10th and 11th graders were at the basic, below basic or far below basic level.  Early, hands-on, experiential science exposure is critical. National and State 4-H administrators have turned a strong light on the science achievement inadequacies.  Part of the strategy to address this problem was the creation of the 4-H National Youth Science Experiment (NYSE).  Annually, an experiment is developed and distributed to all counties willing to participate.  In 2010, that experiment topic is “4-H20”.

What did 4-H do?

To gain an awareness of the county’s poor science achievement while at the same time highlighting the 4-H Youth Development Program’s response to the need, presentations of the 2010 NYSE were conducted at the regular meeting of the Imperial County Board of Supervisors, in conjunction with National 4-H Week. 

With generous support from the State 4-H Office, the experiment was performed at a County Board of Supervisors meeting, several schools, at two 4-H events, a Leaders Council meeting, and with four 4-H clubs.  Appearances by the 4-H SET members at the centennial celebration for the Desert Research and Extension Center (DREC) and at the California Midwinter Fair and Fiesta are planned for January and March, 2011, respectively.

The Payoff

Several youth exhibited great interest and leadership in the experiment topic and shared their enthusiasm with audiences young and old.  It is estimated over 500 contacts will be made by the conclusion of the Fair in March, 2011.

Author: Mary Harmon, Imperial County 4-H Youth Development Advisor