Summer of Social Science

Liam Kaplan, College of Human Ecology, Class of 2023

For the past half decade, my summers have consisted of lifeguarding at the local pool in my hometown. There, I looked forward to interacting with various kids of different ages during my shifts. Although my primary duty was to of course ensure everyone’s safety in the pool, my time out of the lifeguard chair was just as important. It was during these breaks in our rotation that I could help kids have fun, and this was the most essential part of my summer. Be it helping them brainstorm poolside activities, officiating games, or simply witnessing something they were proud of, I was a valuable resource for their summer shenanigans, just like the lifeguards of my youth had been for me. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t frequently get nostalgic for the summers as a child at that very same pool. Having moved on from lifeguarding, I can take consolation in the fact that a new generation of lifeguards will step up to the challenge of keeping the cycle going for the future youth craving an exciting summer.

Looking back on this past summer experience where I got the chance to work on PRYDE’s Youth Investigators team, I’m still so grateful that such a perfect opportunity arose. Not only was it my first time to truly implement the social science concepts I’ve learned in my various Human Development classes, but it also allowed me to take on a mentoring role that I was so badly missing from my lifeguarding days. Furthermore, I got my first glimpse into what it takes to formally teach youth. I’m certain that if I decide to teach once out of college, this initial experience of reviewing/editing a curriculum, practicing facilitation of a program, and gathering/implementing feedback for improvements in the future will be my inspiration.

Our Youth Investigators team ran our social science curriculum at 4-H’s Career Explorations on Cornell campus during the last few days of June. It fell on me to teach our twelve participants research ethics: our fifth and final module. Thankfully for my nerves, my team and I had been practicing the facilitation of our modules over and over again in the month leading up to the program to the point we all felt like experts. Prior to this summer, I absolutely did not know enough about research ethics to accurately teach youth, but the practice and support within my team let me learn and grow to where I truly felt confident in my abilities by the time of our facilitation. It was immensely gratifying to see the youth engaged in our activities and to hear so many positive things from them about our program as a whole. One of the youth commented how they appreciated how I had incorporated supplemental knowledge on the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles in my lesson on how researchers conducted studies ethically. Hearing this kind of feedback was rewarding, not just because of the personal compliment, but because it let me know that youth are excited and eager to learn about the research process.

With the conclusion of Career Exploration, we shifted towards reviewing and analyzing feedback to improve the program for the future program delivery. With the summer now winding down and our last edits being made, I’m truly proud of what our team has accomplished. It’s been an honor getting to work on Youth Investigators, and I’m excited to see where it goes with more widespread application on the horizon!