How can partnerships support youth pathways into digital futures? Informal learning organizations often use partnerships to ‘punch above their weight’ in various ways - to design and spread new learning innovations, to bring pedagogical practices into formal settings, and to coordinate learning across settings. Within the Connected Learning community, a persistent question has been how to support “youth pathways” - how youth can “geek out” and pursue interest-driven learning with digital media in ways that span longer timescales and multiple settings. In this session, we look at three models of informal learning organizations implementing “pathway partnerships” that support learning spanning multiple institutions. We highlight examples from informal digital learning organizations that are part of a larger research-practice partnership focused on youth pathways - Free Spirit Media, The Knowledge House and YOUmedia - and share emerging research from New York University on this theme.
