Collaborative Research: Broad Implementation of Science Festival Alliance

合作研究：科学节联盟的广泛实施

• 批准号: 1222524
• 负责人: Todd Boyette
• 金额: $ 31.27万
• 依托单位: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-12-01 至 2016-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1222524&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Broad; Implementation; Science

This broader implementation project will create a professional network of individuals and institutions increasing their capacity to develop, implement, and evaluate the impact of large scale community science festivals. The project builds on a previous award that supported the implementation of science festivals in Cambridge, MA; San Francisco, San Diego, and Philadelphia. Each festival reached 50-70,000 attendees, many of them families from low-income, ethnic communities. Festival organizers and participants include science center practitioners, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) researchers, STEM related businesses, public television STEM producers, universities, K-12 schools, and government and foundation stakeholders. The summative evaluation indicated significant impacts on participant's STEM interest, learning, and connections to STEM resources in their community. The number of science festivals across the country is increasing. Consequently this new project will create a professional network with numerous benefits to professionals in the Informal Science Education (ISE) field and other stakeholders including: timely access to information, knowledge and experience related to science festivals; rich relationships to draw on when facing challenges; credibility of the festival concept; ability to partner with multiple festivals and magnify the reach of existing ISE institutions and program; diffusion of knowledge and innovation; and collective intelligence and inclusive consultation. It is expected that the network will involve supporting approximately 50 science festivals during the grant period. A business plan will be developed for long term sustainability of the network and the subsequent growth of science festivals. This is a collaborative proposal with 4 project partners who have distinct roles in creating and sustaining the network: MIT, University of California at San Francisco, University of North Carolina/Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, and The Franklin Institute.MIT's project deliverables include hosting the central management and administrative functions of the network and providing conferences, workshops, individual mentoring of new science festival champions, maintaining the network website, etc. UCSF will develop tools, resources, and linkages to increase participation of scientists in festivals. UNC/Morehead Planetarium and Science Center will provide expertise in statewide festival organizing. The Franklin Institute will help network participants build capacity for engaging low-income families with programming examples, community asset analysis tools, and webinars. This multi-hub approach is a new innovative strategy for creating and sustaining the first ever professional network for science festival organizers.The project evaluation will focus on the network's vibrancy, connectivity and effect. Network vibrancy impact data will be collected on how members share goals, enhance leadership, and expand geographic and model diversity. Network connectivity evaluation will study the strength and growth of the relationships within the SFA network. Network effects will study the ways the Science Festival Alliance (SFA) network is achieving science festival organizational capacity looking at increases in the number of science festivals, geographic spread, science festival innovations, and the presence of a SFA sustainability plan.This project will add new knowledge about the impact of networks on the development and impact of science festivals throughout the country.

这个更广泛的实施项目将建立一个由个人和机构组成的专业网络，以提高其发展，实施和评估大规模社区科学节的影响的能力。 该项目以先前的奖项为基础，该奖项支持在马萨诸塞州剑桥实施科学节；旧金山，圣地亚哥和费城。 每个节日都有50-70,000名与会者，其中许多是来自低收入，族裔社区的家庭。 节日组织者和参与者包括科学中心的从业人员，科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）研究人员，STEM相关业务，公共电视STEM生产商，大学，K-12学校以及政府和基金会利益相关者。 总结性评估表明，对参与者的STEM兴趣，学习和与STEM资源的联系产生了重大影响。 全国的科学节数量正在增加。 因此，这个新项目将创建一个专业网络，对非正式科学教育（ISE）领域的专业人员和其他利益相关者具有许多好处，包括：及时访问与科学节相关的信息，知识和经验；面对挑战时要借鉴的丰富关系；节日概念的可信度；能够与多个节日合作并扩大现有ISE机构和计划的影响力；知识和创新的扩散；以及集体情报和包容性咨询。 预计该网络将涉及在赠款期间支持大约50个科学节。 将制定一项业务计划，以实现网络的长期可持续性和随后的科学节增长。 这是一项合作提议，与4个项目合作伙伴在创建和维持网络方面具有不同作用：麻省理工学院，加利福尼亚大学旧金山大学，北卡罗来纳大学/莫尔黑德大学/莫尔黑德天文馆和科学中心，以及富兰克林研究所的项目交付成果。工具，资源和联系以增加科学家参加节日的参与。 UNC/Morehead天文馆和科学中心将在全州节日组织中提供专业知识。富兰克林学院将帮助网络参与者建立能力，以使低收入家庭使用编程示例，社区资产分析工具和网络研讨会。 这种多中心方法是一种新的创新策略，用于创建和维持有史以来第一个专业的科学节组织者网络。项目评估将重点放在网络的活力，连通性和效果上。 将收集有关成员如何共享目标，提高领导力以及扩大地理和模型多样性的网络活力影响数据。 网络连通性评估将研究SFA网络中关系的强度和增长。 网络效应将研究科学节联盟（SFA）网络的方式，即实现科学节的组织能力，以研究科学节的数量，地理差异，科学节创新以及SFA可持续发展计划的存在的增加。此项目将增加有关网络对整个国家科学节的影响的新知识。