This is the final evaluation report from RMC Research Corp. for the PES@LTERs project. Appendix includes instruments.
RMC Research designed evaluation activities to provide formative and summative feedback to Harvard Forest and the Hubbard Brook Research Foundation (Hubbard Brook) on their plan to embed public engagement with science (PES) into the cultures and practices of Long-Term Ecological Research Sites (LTERs) in the northeastern US. The purpose of this project was to build PES mechanisms into long-term ecosystem studies that create on-going, open exchanges between scientists and
This document describes the summative project evaluation of 5 annual cohorts of STE(A)M teachers, mostly from California, Florida, and New Mexico participating in out-of-school authentic research experiences collecting fossils and learning about geology, biology, and the natural history along the Panama Canal, and their experiences with museums and research collections. The STEM content of this project is based on the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) of animals and plants across the Isthmus of Panama over the past 5 million years. This report also describes the efficacy of sustained
There is a vein of democratic idealism in the work of science museums. It is less about political democracy than epistemological democracy. As a one-time museum educator and a researcher who studies science museums, I have always thought of it in terms of an unspoken two-part motto: “see for yourself–know for yourself.” Although this strain of idealism has remained constant throughout the history of science museums, it has been interpreted differently in different eras, responding (in part) to the social upheavals of the day. In the late 1960s, for example, a new generation of self-described
This study researched whether and how affiliation with the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net) led to change in informal science education organizations’ (ISEs) practices. The NISE Net provided an opportunity to look at how participation in a large but loosely-structured network of museums, science centers, educators, and scientists can influence museums to experience organizational change and adopt new practices.
By conducting qualitative case studies of a few selected partners, this research aimed to understand the conditions that facilitate or impede the influence of
The aim of this review of the literature is to identify what we already know about the engagement of children aged under eight in makerspaces. Given the limited literature in the area, the review takes a broader look at makerspaces for older children where relevant. This is not a systematic review; its aim is not to offer an exhaustive account of all of the research conducted in the area. Rather, this narrative review provides an introduction to key aspects of research on makerspaces and enables the identification of themes dominant in the field, and those areas where more research is needed
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Jackie MarshKristiina KumpulainenBobby NishaAnca VelicuAlicia Blum-RossDavid HyattSvanborg JónsdóttirRachael LevySabine LittleGeorge MarusteruMargrét Elísabet ÓlafsdóttirKjetil SandvikFiona ScottKlaus ThestrupHans Christian ArnsethKristín DýrfjörðAlfredo JornetSkúlína Hlíf KjartansdóttirKate PahlSvava PétursdóttirGísli ThorsteinssonUniversity of Sheffield
This is the protocol for a research project to assess the wants and needs of adults in underserved STEM learning communities -- in our case, the Richmond, VA African American community -- towards the goal of using a community-university partnership to staging STS science cafes that respond to these wants and needs.
This assessment is based on the three vertices of a triangle composed of cognition, observation, and interpretation, all of which converge on the nature of science, the relevance of science to everyday life, and decision-making behaviors.
We chose one measure from Conley, Pintrich, Vekiri, & Harrison (2004). This measure encompasses four dimensions about scientific knowledge -- source, certainty, development and justification -- so we thought it might reveal interesting dimensions of stasis and change in attitudes toward science from formal school environments to informal adult learning
Twenty-first century skills are vital for preparing youth for careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. STEM out-of-school time (OST) programs play an important role in helping youth develop these skills, particularly the teamwork skills necessary for the growing collaborative nature of STEM jobs. However, there is a lack of appropriate measures to evaluate this key programmatic outcome in STEM OST settings. This dissertation research addresses the lack of measures through the development of an instrument to assess team communication skills in middle and high school
This poster, which was presented at the Visitor Studies Association Conference in 2017, shares methods, working definitions and frameworks, and lessons-learned from Developing Guidelines for Designing Challenging and Rewarding Interactive Science Exhibits (DRL-1612577). Through design-based research, this project is investigating the emotional state of “productive struggle,” an intensive, fruitful state of exhilaration and challenge characterized by high levels of physiological arousal along with the experience of negative emotions. The project pushes beyond the positive range of emotional
This is a report from Workshop II: Overview of Organizational Support for Public Engagement among Scientific Societies, part of the Support Systems for Scientists' Communication and Engagement workshop series. Workshop II was held Feb. 28 - Mar. 1, 2018 at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Chevy Chase, MD. The report provides an overview of a project aiming to help reveal how societies view the concept of “public engagement” and to provide an empirical understanding of the availability and prevalence of tools that societies currently use to support engagement efforts.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Shupei YuanAnthony DudoJohn BesleyBrooke Smith
As the maker movement is increasingly adopted into K-12 schools, students are developing new competences in exploration and fabrication technologies. This study assesses learning with these technologies in K-12 makerspaces and FabLabs.
Our study describes the iterative process of developing an assessment instrument for this new technological literacy, the Exploration and Fabrication Technologies Instrument, and presents findings from implementations at five schools in three countries. Our index is generalizable and psychometrically sound, and permits comparison between student confidence
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Paulo BliksteinZaza KabayadondoAndrew P. MartinDeborah A. Fields
resourceresearchProfessional Development, Conferences, and Networks
With support from NSF/AISL, the Exploratorium held the Generating Engagement and New Initiatives for All Latinos (GENIAL) Summit on June 5-6, 2017, in San Francisco, California.
The goals of the GENIAL Summit were to:
- Identify needs and opportunities for Latinos in informal science learning (ISL) environments.
- Facilitate and strengthen professional relationships.
- Identify recommendations and actionable insights with an outlook toward the future.
- Contribute to a more informed ISL field.
A total of 91 participants, a mix of practitioners, community leaders, media specialists