Assessing Attitudes about Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI): The Development and Use of a Questionnaire

Abstract The purpose of this article is to trace the development, validation and use of a questionnaire for evaluating teacher and student attitudes regarding Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI).  RRI is a framework, developed by the European Union, which provides general standards to guide the development of trust and confidence of the public regarding advances in science and technology, and the development of their participation in these advances.  The article traces the development of the RRI framework and focuses on its educational component, whose goal is to sensitize teachers and students into "RRI-based thinking" about past and current scenarios regarding the development of science and technology advances. The use of the RRI questionnaire is demonstrated through the presentation of teacher and student data taken before and after the implementation of RRI-based modules, developed in the EU-funded Irresistible Project. Based on this work, we suggest that the RRI questionnaire can be used to assess the development of attitudes regarding RRI across diverse populations of teachers, students, scientists, consumers and other members of the general public. Resumo O objetivo deste artigo é delinear o desenvolvimento, validação e uso de um questionário de avaliação de atitudes de professores e alunos, relativas à Inovação e Investigação Responsáveis (IIR). O artigo descreve o enquadramento do desenvolvimento da IIR e foca-se na componente educacional, cujo objetivo é sensibilizar os professores para um “pensamento fundamentado na IIR”, sobre cenários passados e presentes relativos ao desenvolvimento da ciência e aos avanços da tecnologia. O uso do questionário sobre IIR é demonstrado através da apresentação de dados sobre estudantes e professores, recolhidos antes e depois da implementação dos modelos fundamentados sobre IIR, desenvolvidos no âmbito do projeto IRRESISTIBLE, financiado pela EU. Baseados neste trabalho, sugerimos que o questionário sobre IIR pode ser usado para avaliar o desenvolvimento das atitudes face à IIR em diferentes populações de professores, estudantes, cientistas, consumidores e outros membros do público em geral

Assessing Attitudes about Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI): The Development and Use of a Questionnaire

AbstractThe purpose of this article is to trace the development, validation and use of a questionnaire for evaluating teacher and student attitudes regarding Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI).  RRI is a framework, developed by the European Union, which provides general standards to guide the development of trust and confidence of the public regarding advances in science and technology, and the development of their participation in these advances.  The article traces the development of the RRI framework and focuses on its educational component, whose goal is to sensitize teachers and students into "RRI-based thinking" about past and current scenarios regarding the development of science and technology advances. The use of the RRI questionnaire is demonstrated through the presentation of teacher and student data taken before and after the implementation of RRI-based modules, developed in the EU-funded Irresistible Project. Based on this work, we suggest that the RRI questionnaire can be used to assess the development of attitudes regarding RRI across diverse populations of teachers, students, scientists, consumers and other members of the general public. ResumoO objetivo deste artigo é delinear o desenvolvimento, validação e uso de um questionário de avaliação de atitudes de professores e alunos, relativas à Inovação e Investigação Responsáveis (IIR). O artigo descreve o enquadramento do desenvolvimento da IIR e foca-se na componente educacional, cujo objetivo é sensibilizar os professores para um “pensamento fundamentado na IIR”, sobre cenários passados e presentes relativos ao desenvolvimento da ciência e aos avanços da tecnologia. O uso do questionário sobre IIR é demonstrado através da apresentação de dados sobre estudantes e professores, recolhidos antes e depois da implementação dos modelos fundamentados sobre IIR, desenvolvidos no âmbito do projeto IRRESISTIBLE, financiado pela EU. Baseados neste trabalho, sugerimos que o questionário sobre IIR pode ser usado para avaliar o desenvolvimento das atitudes face à IIR em diferentes populações de professores, estudantes, cientistas, consumidores e outros membros do público em geral

“Chemistry, climate and the skills in between”: mapping cognitive skills in an innovative program designed to empower future citizens to address global challenges

One of the primary objectives of an education system is to prepare students for their adult lives by imparting them with the requisite knowledge, qualifications, and skills that will enable them to confront future challenges effectively. A whitepaper published by the Israeli Ministry of Education titled “The Graduate’s Image” stresses the importance of incorporating specific skills into the school curriculum. However, there is a lack of educational programs that can transform teaching skills into actual practice. In light of this conclusion, we developed the program “Chemistry, Climate & the Numbers in Between” to foster these skills and produce graduates with the ability to adopt a critical approach and a well-informed perspective toward the world. In this paper, we delineated the cognitive skills developed in the program. The results indicate that innovative program can be utilized to integrate several important skills into a chemistry lesson. The program has the potential to equip and empower future citizens to address and tackle global challenges while utilizing cognitive skills using chemistry knowledge. However, it is important to note that learning in this way requires much more time than a regular lesson does and requires a significant commitment and investment from the teacher