Collaborative Research: Advancing language research and outreach in a language museum

合作研究：推进语言博物馆的语言研究和推广

• 批准号: 2116959
• 负责人: Charlotte Vaughn
• 金额: $ 31.09万
• 依托单位: University of Maryland, College Park
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-09-01 至 2025-02-28
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2116959&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Advancing; language; research

This award is funded with support from NSF's program for Advancing Informal STEM Education.This project develops a partnership between language researchers and Planet Word, a new museum devoted to language in Washington D.C., to engage museum visitors in scientific research and outreach. Interested museum visitors from all ages and backgrounds are invited to participate in behavioral research studies on a range of language-related topics. This "living language laboratory" of interactive studies includes accompanying educational demonstrations. These activities will lead to the development of infrastructure and best practices that will allow future language researchers to engage with the public at Planet Word and other similar sites. The project enhances scientific understanding by engaging visitors in activities that expose them to active science about language as a part of their visit to the museum. For example, the research examines topics from understanding what makes certain American Sign Language signs more learnable, to why it is easier to understand people we know rather than strangers, to whether we think differently when we are reading a text message compared to reading more formal writing. In doing so, the project raises the profile of linguistics among the general public and promotes scientifically informed attitudes about language. The project also provides key opportunities to disseminate research findings of interest to the public and to promote greater interest in STEM topics among museum visitors, as well as student trainees and museum staff. The project creates educational and research opportunities for students, who will be trained in a hands-on course, and will gain first-hand experience with research and outreach in a museum setting. Through the collaborative partnership of researchers from University of Maryland, Howard University, and Gallaudet University, the project broadens participation of underrepresented minority students in the language sciences, seeking to diversify the pipeline of scholars continuing in careers in the language sciences and related STEM fields.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.

该奖项由NSF的促进非正式STEM教育计划资助。该项目发展了语言研究人员与Planet Word之间的合作关系，Planet Word是一个致力于华盛顿特区语言的新博物馆，让博物馆参观者参与科学研究和推广活动。来自各个年龄和背景的感兴趣的博物馆参观者被邀请参加一系列与语言相关的主题的行为研究。这个互动研究的“活语言实验室”包括伴随的教育演示。这些活动将导致基础设施和最佳实践的发展，使未来的语言研究人员能够在Planet Word和其他类似网站上与公众互动。该项目通过让参观者参与活动来增强科学理解，这些活动使他们接触到关于语言的积极科学，作为他们参观博物馆的一部分。例如，该研究调查了一些主题，从理解是什么使某些美国手语符号更容易学习，到为什么我们认识的人比陌生人更容易理解，到我们在阅读短信时与阅读更正式的文字时是否有不同的想法。通过这样做，该项目提高了语言学在公众中的形象，并促进了对语言的科学知情态度。该项目还提供了重要的机会，以传播公众感兴趣的研究成果，并提高博物馆参观者、学生学员和博物馆工作人员对STEM主题的兴趣。该项目为学生创造了教育和研究机会，他们将接受实践课程的培训，并将获得在博物馆环境中进行研究和推广的第一手经验。通过马里兰州大学、霍华德大学和Gallaudet大学的研究人员的合作伙伴关系，该项目扩大了代表性不足的少数民族学生对语言科学的参与，旨在使继续从事语言科学和相关STEM领域职业的学者渠道多样化。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准。