Voices of experience: Education practitioners in conversations at the Mission to Mars Summer School Marathon Greece

This report synthesises and reflects upon the experiences of practicing teachers and educators from across Europe. It is specifically designed to help contextualise the wider evaluation of the Space Awareness project resources and activities. The Space Awareness project targeted educators as key users of project activities and resources and the conduits of change. This report explores some of the broader patterns from the point of view of educators as practitioners. They are the experts on the contexts they work within, and their voices are valuable evidence of the issues at stake

Empowering teachers: Summary of qualitative evaluation of the Navigation Through the Ages Massive Open Online Course via participant observation.

This report complements the questionnaire-based evaluation of the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Navigation Through the Ages. The aim in this report is to draw on qualitative data to build a rich picture of how the course engaged educators and how this in turn is translated into practice and student engagement. To experience the course as a participant, a single researcher enrolled on Navigation Through the Ages as a participant observer (the process is described in more detail in section 2). Like the other MOOCs, Navigation Through the Ages started with an introduction followed by a set of paced modules (the course structure and content is described in section 1.1). The course introduction presented the participants with an overview of ICT tools and opportunities for participation and interaction with each other. For the researcher these were also opportunities for gathering data, and to follow up these public interactions with conversations via email and online chat (data sources are described in more detail in section 0). From these activities some of the richest qualitative data came from these sources: participant posts and learning diaries published in Padlet1; lesson plans published in Learning Designer2; recorded webinars; the MOOC Facebook group and small group email exchanges

Leisure and Pleasure: Science events in unusual locations

Building on concepts relating to informal science education, this work compares science-related activities which successfully engaged public audiences at three different ‘generic’ locations: a garden festival, a public park, and a music festival. The purpose was to identify what factors contribute to the perceived success of science communication activities occurring within leisure spaces. This article reports the results of 71 short (2–3 min) structured interviews with public participants at the events, and 18 structured observations sessions, demonstrating that the events were considered both novel and interesting by the participants. Audience members were found to perceive both educational and affective purposes from the events. Three key elements were identified as contributing to the success of the activities across the three ‘generic venues’: the informality of the surroundings, the involvement of ‘real’ scientists, and the opportunity to re-engage participants with scientific concepts outside formal education

Winning Hearts and Minds: Highlights from pupil and teacher competitions run within the Space Awareness programme

To showcase outstanding practice and celebrate both teacher and pupil achievements, two international competitions were run within the Space Awareness programme, the Celebrating Excellent Space Science Teaching competition for educators, and the Space Scoop Comic Contest for pupils. The case studies within this document are designed to (1) highlight examples of outstanding contributions; (2) celebrate the efforts and impacts of the competitors; and (3) inspire the future practice of other educators based throughout Europe and beyond. The case study selection in each case was based on a complementary selection of winning and international finalist entries, showcasing diversity in terms of audiences, approaches and geographical regions

Best Practice in Public Communications Training in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

Effective training in key communications skills is critical for successful public engagement. However, what are the secrets to designing and delivering an effectual training course? This paper outlines key findings from a research study into communication training programmes for public engagement with STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The research focused on training in direct communication methods, (as separate from media training) and encompassed both trainers and trainees, the latter group spanning across both scientists and explainers. The findings indicated that training courses are effective at increasing involvement in science communication events and trainees feel more confident and able to engage due to training. An interactive style was found to be a key element of training courses. Demonstrations of good practice followed by own performance with feedback were also important, preferably involving a ‘real’ audience. A list of guidelines on best practice has been developed which offers practical advice

Best Practice in Public Communications Training in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

Effective training in key communications skills is critical for successful public engagement. However, what are the secrets to designing and delivering an effectual training course? This paper outlines key findings from a research study into communication training programmes for public engagement with STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The research focused on training in direct communication methods, (as separate from media training) and encompassed both trainers and trainees, the latter group spanning across both scientists and explainers. The findings indicated that training courses are effective at increasing involvement in science communication events and trainees feel more confident and able to engage due to training. An interactive style was found to be a key element of training courses. Demonstrations of good practice followed by own performance with feedback were also important, preferably involving a ‘real’ audience. A list of guidelines on best practice has been developed which offers practical advice

Space Science: The View from European School Students

Gender imbalance in the physical sciences and engineering is a longstanding and well-documented concern within science education, industry, and policy. The current study is motivated by this issue and focuses on space science in particular, which has been promoted as a physical science with the capacity to inspire both boys and girls. A survey of over 8000 pupils aged 9–16 from 11 European countries was utilised to provide the first large-scale investigation of school students’ perceptions of space science. Enthusiasm for space science was clear within our sample, and individual differences were more important than background characteristics (gender, age, country) in driving attitudes to space science. However, although these positive attitudes and perceptions were shared by boys and girls, substantially fewer students, particularly females, expressed interest in pursuing a career in space science

Science communication between researchers and policy makers. Reflections from a European project

Around the world there are widespread efforts to ensure that policy decisions are based upon a sound evidence base, and in particular to facilitate closer integration between the research and policy communities. This commentary provides an overview of the current situation in different parts of the world relating to the opportunities that exist for policy makers to assimilate scientific findings, as well as the existing barriers perceived by both the policy and research communities. Mutual trust and respect between the relevant parties emerge as crucial factors in successful collaboration. Skilled mediators are also considered essential to ensuring effective communication; this may be via third parties such as NGOs, or news services and online portals to convey, ‘translate’ and place in a policy context the scientific findings. Mechanisms for improving researchers’ communication skills as well as increasing their awareness of the need to communicate proactively with the policy community are also considered in order to inform future practice in this area

The Rise and Rise of Science Festivals: An international review of organised events to celebrate science

Recent years have witnessed a dramatic global growth in the development of large-scale public science events. Although usually grouped together under the umbrella term ‘Science Festivals’, the events differ greatly in size and scope. This paper presents the findings from a 2008/09 international survey of Science Festivals in order to compare and contrast worldwide trends. An online survey was completed by 56 self-identified Science Festivals, supplemented by a content analysis of 94 Festival websites identified internationally. This work identifies for the first time a common international definition for events which identify themselves as ‘Science Festivals’. The findings show that Science Festivals are currently particularly common within Europe; however, their popularity is growing within other regions. There is a large diversity in the scale of Science Festivals, encompassing some small, localised events reaching a few hundred people, up to nationwide events reaching many millions. Precise audience figures are not acquired by many Festivals; however, there is evidence that over 5.6 million people are reached by Science Festivals annually, with events focused mainly on hands-on activities combined with some talks, lectures, discussions, and debates. The funding and operational modes also vary significantly, with the vast majority of Science Festivals obtaining their funding from multiple sources, including government support, sponsorship, and funding grants. A considerable number of Science Festivals conduct at least an informal evaluation, with some Festivals making their evaluations publicly available. This work demonstrates that Science Festivals are an increasingly important area of science communication worthy of further research

Deep Impacts: A summary report of the evaluation findings from the Space Awareness Massive Open Online Courses

Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches, the evaluation approach built on a set of intended participant outcomes agreed in advance of the MOOCs to investigate what changes participants experienced by following the MOOC(s). A series of pre-, post- and follow-up surveys (conducted two months after the end of the course) enabled direct comparison of participants’ self-reported attitudes, values, skills and perceptions. A qualitative analysis of the discussions undertaken within one course, Navigation Through the Ages, provided a complementary perspective of more indirect evidence regarding participants’ experiences