Brazilian research has grown intensely in all areas of microbiology, with the increase in the amount of governmental resources for the sector and the strengthening of a greater number of research groups. However, very few academic studies deal with research about teaching and science communication in microbiology. There is no in-depth study of how this topic is currently being divulgated in communication journals, didactic books and the Internet, or about the interest and the difficulties faced by researchers in communicating microbiology to the general public. This paper investigates academic
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Daniela Franco Carvalho JacobucciGiuliano Buza Jacobucci
In this Connecting Researchers to Public Audiences (CRPA) project, the researchers from Florida State University, in partnership with their local public broadcasting station (WFSU-TV), will engage the audience in an exploration of the ecosystem services of coastal habitats. The main content focus is the important linkages among coastal foundation species (oysters and salt marsh plants), the human and ecological communities they support, and the ecosystem services they provide. In particular, the project illuminates the roles of biodiversity and consume-prey relationships in influencing ecosystem services, while conveying the excitement of ecological research. The complementary target audiences are the general WFSU viewers and listeners, groups that actively use or promote coastal habitats, and graduate students at Florida State University and Florida A&M University. The main deliverables include: 1) a TV documentary, a series of short videos and radio spots; 2) a research blog; and 3) a science communication three-day workshop for current and future researchers to converse with the public about key learning goals. In addition, in year two of the grant, the PIs will deliver a monthly seminar series focused on effective communication skills for scientists. The resulting documentaries will be broadcast by WFSU and offered to other PBS stations via APT and/or NETA. Other materials will be made available via PBS Learning Media and other portals. Community group project collaborators, such as SciGirls and the Science Cafe, will extend the reach and impact of the project. The project design includes formative evaluation which will focus on ways to improve the accessibility and usability of the research blog, and summative evaluation which will review each component of the deliverables. Results of the summative evaluation will be posted on www.informalscience.org. This proposal addresses the communication gap between scientists and the public by simultaneously targeting both audiences with deliverables designed to promote dialogue and understanding. By highlighting compelling natural history information and key ecological concepts associated with current research, the project will provide engaging educational experiences to a wide audience. These activities will not only educate the public about specific research but also demonstrate the process of science. Finally, the proposed seminar for students, along with the other informal learning opportunities throughout the project, will enhance the communication skills and outreach abilities of a diverse group of graduate students.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Randall HughesDavid KimbroRoberto Diaz de Villegas
This poster was presented at the 2014 AISL PI Meeting in Washington, DC. It highlights the goals, audience, outcomes, and lessons learned for a pathways project to develop a model for producing scientific news reports in a variety of media formats on a range of topics of keen interest to rural and Native American communities in Montana. Cultural differences and geographic isolation influence opportunities to provide STEM content to these communities, yet these communities are facing perplexing decisions about exploitation of their environmental resources. The poster highlights the successes of
This Pathways project responds to the high level of public skepticism about climate change science despite strong scientific consensus. In 2010, two George Mason University / Yale University polls became headline news in mainstream media (such as the NY Times and NPR) when they reported that 50% or more of our broadcast meteorologists and TV news directors are skeptical about global climate science. A full 30% of TV broadcast meteorologists, who are largely untrained in disciplines other than meteorology and weather forecasting, denounce anthropogenic global warming (AGW) as a hoax or a scam. Such polls strongly suggest that the general public trusts media statements over scientific facts, despite position statements acknowledging dominantly human responsibility for global warming in the past 50 years from nearly every U.S. professional society dealing with Earth sciences. Climate literacy in citizens and policy makers is essential for advancing responsible public policy on energy legislation, carbon emission reductions, and other climate change issues, and TV broadcast meteorologists have great potential for enhancing that literacy.
The Living on Earth's Ecological Literacy project (ELP) offers a comprehensive, flexible curricular framework that includes an integrated approach to field-based environmental studies, investigative journalism and computer-based radio production and engineering in middle and high school settings. The 2002-03 school year marked Year Three of the three-year, NSF-funded Ecological Literacy Project. Rockman et al, an educational research firm headquartered in San Francisco, conducted an independent evaluation of the ELP Year Two program activities (Char and Rockman, 2002), and continued evaluation
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Saul RockmanWorld Media FoundationCindy Char
The Informal Science Education Program has been supporting the radio series "Living on Earth" for several years. The World Media Foundation is now adding environmental science and technology features to "Living on Earth" and is developing and testing an outreach component that will involve youth as researchers and radio producers. The science and technology features, ranging in length from four to twenty-four minutes, will depart from the usual news-driven reports on the programs. Many of the segments will illustrate basic building blocks of environmental science, technology and related mathematics. Others will profile diverse pioneers in these disciplines. The radio programs will be the framework for an interdisciplinary exploration program for youth. Working with a team of educators from the Antioch University Graduate Program in Environmental Education, the project staff will develop a program in which secondary school aged youth cooperate with peers to produce professional, concise reporting on local environmental issues. Living on Earth will feature the best of the student work on National Public Radio and highlight these pieces as an expanded feature on its website.
The Self-Reliance Foundation (SRF) Conociendo Tu Cuerpo (Know Your Body) Hispanic Community Health Sciences Education project is an initiative designed to introduce Hispanic students and families to biomedical science and health education resources, and increase their participation levels in these fields. The educational goals of the project are to: (1) Encourage Hispanic undergraduate students to pursue careers in biomedicine and science through a mentoring program at the university level; (2) Inspire an interest in biomedical science among Hispanic elementary-age students and parents through community outreach activities; (3) Inform Hispanic parents about biomedical science education standards and academic requirements for pursuing biomedical and science related careers; and (4) Inform and inspire Hispanic students and their families about the biomedical sciences and related careers through a series of daily nationally broadcast Spanish-language radio capsules, and a nationally syndicated Spanish newspaper column. Conociendo Tu Cuerpo (Know Your Body) includes several key components: A model, Washington, D.C., area coalition of informal science, health, community, education, and media organizations that will publicize and provide hands-on health science activities at community festivals and other community settings; Hispanic undergraduate student health-science fellows to be trained and provided experience in facilitating health science activities; and nationally broadcast Spanish-language radio capsules that will cover topics in areas of biomedicine, research, education, and health-science careers. Parents and students will be able to access additional information about biomedical science opportunities and Hispanic role models in the biomedical sciences through the project's Conociendo Tu Cuerpo website and the bilingual 800 telephone help line promoted by 147 participating radio stations and 102 newspapers nationwide. The project will be supported at the national level through collaboration with the Hispanic Radio Network and the Pacific Science Center. The Washington, D.C., collaborative will include the Capital Children's Museum, local Spanish language radio stations, area universities, and health and community organizations. Development Associates, the largest American education and evaluation consulting corporation, will evaluate the project.