The STEM Ambassador Program: Supporting Scientists' Engagement with Public Audiences

STEM 大使计划：支持科学家与公众互动

基本信息

批准号：
1906408
负责人：
Sara Yeo
金额：
$ 97.71万
依托单位：
University of Utah
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Standard Grant
财政年份：
2019
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2019-07-01 至 2023-06-30
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1906408&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
STEM Ambassador Program Supporting Scientists

项目摘要

As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program funds innovative research, approaches, and resources for use in a variety of settings. Fostering greater inclusion in science creates benefits for both science and society. In this Innovations and Development project, the University of Utah will investigate how to sustain and scale the STEM Ambassador Program (STEMAP), begun in 2016 with AISL funding. STEMAP developed an innovative process to train scientists to engage members of the public, who cannot or do not gain access to science via conventional science education venues (such as museums, schools, zoos), by implementing activities in non-traditional settings. The 65 scientists trained by the initial STEMAP effort effectively engaged in over 45 settings including an affordable housing development, a youth residential treatment center, a state prison, a cooking class, a daycare facility, and several senior centers. The number of scientists applying to the program quickly exceeded STEMAP's capacity. Other institutions expressed interest in replicating the training. This project will explore strategies for scaling and sustaining public engagement training to support more scientists who can engage more people in more venues. Outcomes will serve to inform the broader implementation of STEMAP and the efforts of other public engagement programs, many of which face similar scaling and sustainability challenges. Scaling and sustaining public engagement of science (PES) programs is a central challenge for many in the informal science learning community. This project will explore strategies to scale and sustain the STEM Ambassador Program. Research questions include: (1) How do different program formats increase or restrict program capacity and engagement outcomes? (2) What benefits accrue to scientists and their institutions by participating in public engagement in science activities that might serve as motivators to continue these activities? (3) Are funding and organizational models developed in business and other professional settings applicable to sustaining these programs? To address scalability, this project will explore the effectiveness of three dissemination formats: (1) the creation of a mentorship program for in-person trainees, (2) a train-the-trainer approach, and (3) online training with in-person mentorship. The project team will create an evaluation toolkit with participant surveys, rubrics for observers, and "on-the-spot" assessment tools developed under AISL Award 1811022 to assess the effectiveness of engagement activities delivered by trainees in each of the three formats. To address sustainability, the project team will document the values of public engagement training to both the participating scientists and their institutions via surveys and interviews. Consultants from the business sectors will create a PES Campus Council to explore possible financial, organizational, and leadership plans that will help sustain engagement efforts. Outcomes will be published in peer-reviewed journals and compiled into a dissemination framework to inform actions to scale and sustain STEMAP and other public engagement of science programs to engage more hard-to-reach audiences. Inverness Research will serve as the project's external evaluator.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

作为增强非正式环境学习的整体战略的一部分，前进的非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划为在各种环境中使用的创新研究，方法和资源提供了资金。培养更多的科学包容性为科学和社会带来了好处。在这项创新和开发项目中，犹他大学将研究如何维持和扩展STEM大使计划（STEMAP），该计划始于2016年AISL资助。 STEMAP开发了一个创新的过程，以培训科学家通过在非传统环境中实施活动，使科学家与无法或不通过传统科学教育场所（例如博物馆，学校，动物园）获得科学的公众参与。受到最初的STEMAP训练的65名科学家有效地从事了45多种环境，包括经济适用房的开发，一个青年住宅治疗中心，州监狱，烹饪班，日托设施和几个高级中心。申请该计划的科学家数量迅速超过了STEMAP的能力。其他机构对复制培训表示兴趣。该项目将探讨扩展和维持公众参与培训的策略，以支持更多可以在更多场所吸引更多人的科学家。结果将有助于更广泛的STEMAP实施以及其他公共参与计划的努力，其中许多计划面临类似的规模和可持续性挑战。对于非正式科学学习社区中许多人来说，扩展和维持公众参与科学计划是一个核心挑战。该项目将探讨扩展和维持STEM大使计划的策略。研究问题包括：（1）不同的程序格式如何增加或限制计划的能力和参与结果？（2）通过参与公众参与的科学活动，对科学家及其机构带来了什么好处，这些活动可能是继续进行这些活动的动机？（3）在业务和其他适用于维持这些计划的专业环境中开发的资金和组织模型是否开发？为了解决可伸缩性，该项目将探讨三种传播格式的有效性：（1）为面对面的学员创建指导计划，（2）培训训练方法，以及（3）通过In-的在线培训人指导。项目团队将通过参与者调查，观察者的专栏以及根据AISL奖1811022开发的“现场”评估工具来创建一个评估工具包，以评估受训者在三种格式中提供的参与活动的有效性。为了解决可持续性，项目团队将通过调查和访谈向参与的科学家及其机构记录公众参与培训的价值观。业务部门的顾问将建立一个PES校园委员会，以探索可能有助于维持参与工作的财务，组织和领导计划。结果将在同行评审的期刊上发表，并汇编为传播框架，以告知行动以扩展和维持STEMAP以及其他科学计划的公众参与，以吸引更多难以触及的受众。因弗内斯研究将作为该项目的外部评估者。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛影响的评论标准来评估值得支持的。