This guide compiles lessons learned by seven Portal to the Public Network (PoPNet) sites as well as remaining challenges and recommendations for organizations planning similar efforts in the future. PoPNet sites used the Portal to the Public Guiding Framework to build relationships with local scientists, prepare them for public engagement using Portal to the Public training materials, and feature them at public programs.
With funding from the NASA Science Activation program, the Space Science Institute (SSI) launched NASA@ My Library in 2016. The vision of NASA@ My Library was to help public libraries and state library agencies increase NASA and STEM learning opportunities for library patrons throughout the U.S., including those in geographic areas and populations currently underserved in STEM education. SSI worked closely with its partners, including the American Library Association (ALA), Cornerstones of Science (CoS), the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), and the Pacific Science Center’s Portal to the
With funding from the NASA Science Activation program, the Space Science Institute (SSI) launched NASA@ My Library in 2016. The vision of NASA@ My Library was to help public libraries and state library agencies increase NASA and STEM learning opportunities for library patrons throughout the U.S., including those in geographic areas and populations currently underserved in STEM education. SSI worked closely with its partners, including the American Library Association (ALA), Cornerstones of Science (CoS), the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), and the Pacific Science Center’s Portal to the
With funding from the NASA Science Activation program, the Space Science Institute (SSI) launched NASA@ My Library in 2016. The vision of NASA@ My Library was to help public libraries and state library agencies increase NASA and STEM learning opportunities for library patrons throughout the U.S., including those in geographic areas and populations currently underserved in STEM education. SSI worked closely with its partners, including the American Library Association (ALA), Cornerstones of Science (CoS), the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), and the Pacific Science Center’s Portal to the
With funding from the NASA Science Activation program, the Space Science Institute (SSI) launched NASA@ My Library in 2016. The vision of NASA@ My Library was to help public libraries and state library agencies increase NASA and STEM learning opportunities for library patrons throughout the U.S., including those in geographic areas and populations currently underserved in STEM education. SSI worked closely with its partners, including the American Library Association (ALA), Cornerstones of Science (CoS), the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), and the Pacific Science Center’s Portal to the
Presentation slides from the session "Social Science Research Collaboration: Advance the field and your Organization" shared at the 2020 AZA Annual Conference (Virtual).
Informal learning environments offer a range of educational observations. Lately, many venues have adopted livestreaming and digital archiving, both as additional access for a wider offsite audience and as alternative ways to engage the onsite audience. Students can observe animals and plants from a different continent through a live camera feed, or they can watch an online recording of a science experiment even if they missed the live demonstration. However, livestreamed or archived observations remain a mostly passive experience, offering limited interactions beyond watching the videos. One way to create more active learning opportunities from these observations is to use sensors such as thermal cameras as additional streaming devices, which transmit real-time images and data that not only reveal more about what is being observed, but also allow the audience to ask deeper questions, find answers by interacting with the data, apply science knowledge in a relevant context, and become an active participant in scientific inquiry.
This project has created Telelab, a cloud platform for livestreaming and archiving interactive observations to promote citizen science. Powered by the Internet of things (IoT), Telelab allows informal science educators to present exhibits, living organisms or ecosystems through the use of sensors and actuators. Audiences both onsite and offsite can visualize biological processes in situ, such as thermoregulation, thermogenesis, metabolism, etc., or they can investigate physics and chemistry experiments by analyzing experimental data in combination with the video stream.
This work is funded by The Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to advance new approaches to and evidence-based understanding of the design and development of STEM learning opportunities for the public in informal environments; provide multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences; advance innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments; and engage the public of all ages in learning STEM in informal environments.
Imprecise definition of key terms in the "public participation" domain have hindered the conduct of good research and militated against the development and implementation of effective participation practices. In this article, we define key concepts in the domain: public communication, public consultation, and public participation. These concepts are differentiated according to the nature and flow of information between exercise sponsors and participants. According to such an information flow perspective, an exercise's effectiveness may be ascertained by the efficiency with which full, relevant
We characterize the factors that determine who becomes an inventor in the United States, focusing on the role of inventive ability (“nature”) vs. environment (“nurture”). Using deidentified data on 1.2 million inventors from patent records linked to tax records, we first show that children’s chances of becoming inventors vary sharply with characteristics at birth, such as their race, gender, and parents’ socioeconomic class. For example, children from high-income (top 1%) families are ten times as likely to become inventors as those from below-median income families. These gaps persist even
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Alex BellRaj ChettyXavier JaravelNeviana PetkovaJohn Van Reenen
Context
Engaging youth as partners in academic research projects offers many benefits for the youth and the research team. However, it is not always clear to researchers how to engage youth effectively to optimize the experience and maximize the impact.
Objective
This article provides practical recommendations to help researchers engage youth in meaningful ways in academic research, from initial planning to project completion. These general recommendations can be applied to all types of research methodologies, from community action-based research to highly technical designs.
DATE:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Lisa HawkeJacqueline RelihanJoshua MillerEmma McCannJessica RongKarleigh DarnaySamantha DochertyGloria ChaimJoanna Henderson
Face-to-face conversations between scientists and public audiences in an informal learning environment provide a valuable opportunity to support public engagement with scientific research. These types of experiences have significant benefits for members of the public and for scientists. For public audiences, interacting face-to-face with a scientist can expand awareness of the range of careers in science, spark new questions about scientific topics, and increase interest in learning more about the scientist’s topic (Tisdal, 2011; Ong, 2014). Scientists, too, are positively impacted by this
NASA@ My Library is made possible through the support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Science Mission Directorate as part of its Science Activation program. The project is led by the National Center for Interactive Learning (NCIL) at the Space Science Institute (SSI) in partnership with the American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office, Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI), and Education Development Center (EDC). From 2016-2020, 78 public libraries (75 partner libraries and 3 pilot libraries), 18 State Library Agencies, 6 Portal to the Public Network sites, and 30 NASA-funded scientists participated in the project. More than 225,000 library patrons were reached through their efforts.
In 2021-2022, public libraries, universities, and state library agencies will participate in the project to increase and enhance STEAM learning opportunities in their communities, with an emphasis on reaching audiences underrepresented in STEM education and professions.