Encouraging Science Communication in the Wabash College Chemistry Department

鼓励沃巴什学院化学系的科学交流

• 批准号: 1503919
• 负责人: Laura Wysocki
• 金额: $ 20.9万
• 依托单位: Wabash College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-10-01 至 2018-09-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1503919&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Encouraging; Science; Communication; Wabash; College

Providing undergraduate chemistry students with opportunities to acquire effective science communication skills is an important component of science education for the twenty-first century. Scientists encounter a variety of audiences with which they must communicate, including peer disciplinary experts, scientists from disciplines other than their own and the general public audience. Current research in the field of science communication identifies several types of methods by which the interchange of information occurs and suggests that broadening the exchange of ideas between experts and the public is a valuable pursuit. Yet undergraduate science programs rarely include meaningful opportunities for students to learn how to communicate highly technical information to others, especially to non-scientific members of the public. This project will provide robust education in science communication by incorporating innovative activities throughout the undergraduate chemistry curriculum at Wabash College. For students majoring in chemistry, the activities will include communicating laboratory results in a clear and effectual manner, translating scientific data for a general audience and encouraging broad discussion of science-related news items, innovations and public policy issues. For non-major chemistry students, activities will be designed to demonstrate how to incorporate scientific evidence into public decision-making about issues such as energy policy and the use of genetically modified organisms. Integrating effective communication skills into the science curriculum has the potential to impact how educators think about science education, preparing students for the challenges they will face after graduation. As they enter the workforce, regardless of their career path, science graduates will be required to communicate scientific principles, concepts and results to clients, patients, members of teams of collaborators, investors and many more audiences. In the public sphere, they will be faced with countless conversations with non-scientists about policies related to science and technology, issues of health and safety and actions that affect society as a whole. This interdisciplinary science communication approach of this project spans the entire chemistry curriculum and will develop valuable skills in students to create well-rounded citizen-scientists who can competently serve as leaders for their communities and their governments in the future.The overarching focus of the project is to build capacity in students and their professors to create learning environments that will ultimately empower students to understand, interpret and explain complex scientific matters competently, which will ultimately facilitate effective communication with both scientific peers and the general public. The primary goals of this project are: (1) to develop innovative curriculum-based modules that cultivate science communication skills in Wabash College Chemistry majors and minors; (2) to increase the abilities of non-science majors to understand the importance of scientific research and evidence in personal and public decision making; and (3) to encourage faculty development in science communication education. Project activities will include providing students early in the curriculum with exposure to the language of chemical research. More advanced undergraduates will engage in translational science communication activities, public presentations of scientific news items and will receive guidance via evaluation of oral communication through senior comprehensive examinations. Faculty professional development will be achieved through a series of summer workshops for Wabash College Chemistry faculty and chemistry faculty members from a diverse group of other institutions, including two-year colleges. Additionally, materials and outcomes generated by the project will be disseminated through conferences and workshops to encourage and equip other faculty to integrate science communication into their curricula. To evaluate the activities, the project will use pre- and post-surveys that incorporate quantitative and qualitative measures to assess items such as self-reported learning gains and the ways students and/or faculty conceptualize science communication.

为化学专业本科生提供获得有效科学交流技能的机会是21世纪科学教育的重要组成部分。 科学家必须与各种各样的受众进行交流，包括同行学科专家、本学科以外的科学家和一般公众。 目前在科学传播领域的研究确定了几种类型的方法，通过这些方法进行信息交流，并表明，扩大专家和公众之间的思想交流是一个有价值的追求。 然而，本科科学课程很少包括有意义的机会，让学生学习如何与他人，特别是与公众的非科学成员交流高度技术信息。 该项目将通过在瓦巴什学院的本科化学课程中纳入创新活动，提供强大的科学传播教育。 对于化学专业的学生，活动将包括以清晰有效的方式传达实验室结果，为普通观众翻译科学数据，并鼓励广泛讨论与科学相关的新闻，创新和公共政策问题。 对于非化学专业的学生，活动将旨在展示如何将科学证据纳入有关能源政策和使用转基因生物等问题的公共决策。 将有效的沟通技巧融入科学课程有可能影响教育工作者对科学教育的看法，为学生毕业后面临的挑战做好准备。 当他们进入劳动力市场时，无论他们的职业道路如何，科学毕业生都将被要求向客户，患者，合作者团队成员，投资者和更多的观众传达科学原理，概念和结果。在公共领域，他们将面临与非科学家就与科学和技术有关的政策，健康和安全问题以及影响整个社会的行动进行的无数对话。 该项目的跨学科科学传播方法涵盖整个化学课程，将培养学生的宝贵技能，以培养全面发展的公民科学家，使其能够胜任社区和政府未来的领导者。该项目的首要重点是培养学生及其教授的能力，以创造学习环境，最终使学生能够理解，解释和解释复杂的科学问题，这将最终促进与科学同行和公众的有效沟通。该项目的主要目标是：（1）开发创新的基于化学的模块，培养瓦巴什大学化学专业和未成年人的科学沟通技能;（2）提高非科学专业的学生理解科学研究和证据在个人和公共决策中的重要性的能力;（3）鼓励教师发展科学沟通教育。 项目活动将包括在课程的早期为学生提供接触化学研究语言的机会。更先进的本科生将从事翻译科学传播活动，科学新闻项目的公开演示，并将通过高级综合考试的口头交流评估得到指导。 教师专业发展将通过一系列的夏季讲习班，为瓦巴什大学化学教师和化学教师从不同的其他机构，包括两年制学院组实现。 此外，该项目产生的材料和成果将通过会议和讲习班传播，以鼓励和装备其他教师将科学传播纳入其课程。 为了评估这些活动，该项目将使用前和后的调查，包括定量和定性的措施，以评估项目，如自我报告的学习成果和学生和/或教师概念化科学传播的方式。