Collaborative Research: Effective environmental workshop facilitation and local community action

作为其整体战略的一部分，以加强在非正式环境中的学习，推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划旨在推进新的方法，并以证据为基础的理解，在非正式环境中的STEM学习的设计和开发。这包括提供多种途径，以扩大获得和参与STEM学习经验，推进非正式环境中STEM学习的创新研究和评估，以及发展参与者对深入学习的理解。这个服务于实践的研究项目探讨了非正式的基于地点的协作学习如何支持当地社区与当前环境变化相关的规划过程。 作为这项研究的一部分，研讨会将在8个社区进行，这些社区根据最近的极端环境变化，如干旱/野火，洪水，入侵物种或本土野生动物的损失，制定了一系列规划任务。 基于地点的适应研讨会将设计成与当地相关，并使人们能够学习和根据他们新获得的理解采取行动。地方社区集体行动可能包括一系列决定（例如，基础设施的变化，如在沿海社区建立抵御海平面上升的防御设施，或改善道路质量以承受更高的温度。 集体行动也可能导致整个社区的行为变化，例如个人使用更少的水或农民种植不同的作物。这项研究将侧重于在全国各地社区举办的8个讲习班所用方法的效力。 研究目标包括：1）确定专家对成功研讨会最关键组成部分的看法; 2）了解以前的研讨会成果; 3）测试假设的有效做法，并了解学习如何发生，集体行动是否发生。该项目解决了AISL招标的关键优先事项，包括对非正式STEM学习领域的战略影响，推进合作和建设专业能力。如招标书所述，它吸引了公众和专业受众。 公众受众包括8个社区的利益攸关方，如社区环境团体、非政府组织、企业、土地所有者和地方政府规划者。专业受众包括将接受实验性研讨会方法培训的研讨会科学家和主持人。 该项目建立在现有的AISL科学传播项目的基础上，并扩大了现有的AISL科学传播项目组合，如科学咖啡馆，科学节，科学媒体和图书馆项目。 这是EcoAdapt和弗吉尼亚理工大学的一个合作项目，参与者来自国家公园保护协会、沙漠研究所和野生动物保护协会等。研究将分两个阶段进行。 第一阶段旨在确定在适应研讨会上促进学习和行动的基于共识的有效做法。 它包括一项德尔菲研究，以综合美国各地经验丰富的研讨会主持人对有效做法的看法。 第二阶段包括在具有一系列规划任务和最近极端天气经验的不同社区举办八个适应研讨会的迭代设计和研究。 通过反复修改研讨会的设计，本研究将阐明不同的研讨会组件如何影响参与者的学习，个人的行为意图，以及随后的集体行动的努力。 整体研究设计将探讨教学和协作技术的学习成果和集体行动的关系。 这些经验教训中的许多可能与其他合作性非正式科学学习环境相关。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments. This includes providing multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences, advancing innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments, and developing understandings of deeper learning by participants. This Research in Service to Practice project examines how informal place-based collaborative learning can support local communities' planning processes related to current environmental changes. As a part of this study workshops will be conducted in 8 communities that have a range of planning mandates based on recent extreme environmental changes such as drought/wildfires, flooding, invasive species, or loss of native wildlife. Place-based adaptation workshops will be designed to be locally relevant and empower people to learn and act on their newly acquired understandings. Local community collective actions may include a range of decisions (e.g., infrastructure changes such as building defenses against sea level rise in coastal communities or improving the quality of roads to withstand higher temperatures.) Collective action may also lead to community wide behavioral changes such as individuals using less water or farmers planting different crops. The study will focus on the efficacy of the methods used in 8 workshops in communities throughout the country. Research objectives include: 1) identifying experts' belief about the most critical components of successful workshops; 2) Understanding of prior workshop outcomes and 3) test hypothesized effective practices and understand how learning takes place and collective action does or does not take place. The project addresses key AISL solicitation priorities including strategic impact on the field of informal STEM learning, advancing collaboration, and building professional capacity. It engages both public and professional audiences as described in the solicitation. Public audiences include stakeholders in each of the 8 communities such as community environmental groups, NGOs, businesses, landowners, and local government planners. Professional audiences include the workshop scientists and facilitators who will be trained in the experimental workshop approach. The project builds upon and expands the existing AISL portfolio of science communication projects such as science cafes, science festivals, science media, and library based projects. This is a collaborative project of EcoAdapt and Virginia Tech with participants from the National Parks Conservation Association, the Desert Research Institute, and the Wildlife Conservation Society and others.The research will progress through two phases. Phase 1 is designed to identify consensus-based effective practices for promoting learning and action in adaptation workshops. It includes a Delphi study to synthesize beliefs about effective practices held by experienced workshop facilitators across the United States. Phase 2 includes iterative design and research of eight adaptation workshops in various communities with a range of planning mandates and recent extreme weather experience. By iteratively revising the workshop design, the study will elucidate how different workshop components influence participant learning, individual behavioral intentions, and subsequent efforts toward collective action. The overall research design will examine the relationships of pedagogical and collaborative techniques to learner outcomes and collective action. Many of these lessons are likely relevant to other collaborative informal science learning contexts.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.