Literature Connections for BI Projects with Public

References for rationale or as background to prepare to work with these audiences.

1. National Research Council (2014). Enhancing the Value and Sustainability of Field Stations and Marine Laboratories in the 21st Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/18806

   For over a century, field stations have been important entryways for scientists to study and make important discoveries about the natural world. They are centers of research, conservation, education, and public outreach, often embedded in natural environments that range from remote to densely populated urban locations. Because they lack traditional university departmental boundaries, researchers at field stations have the opportunity to converge their science disciplines in ways that can change careers and entire fields of inquiry. Field stations provide physical space for immersive research, hands-on learning, and new collaborations that are otherwise hard to achieve in the everyday bustle of research and teaching lives on campus. But the separation from university campuses that allows creativity to flourish also creates challenges. Sometimes, field stations are viewed as remote outposts and are overlooked because they tend to be away from population centers and their home institutions. This view is exacerbated by the lack of empirical evidence that can be used to demonstrate their value to science and society.

2. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2018). Learning Through Citizen Science: Enhancing Opportunities by Design. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25183

   In the last twenty years, citizen science has blossomed as a way to engage a broad range of individuals in doing science. Citizen science projects focus on, but are not limited to, non-scientists participating in the processes of scientific research, with the intended goal of advancing and using scientific knowledge. A rich range of projects extend this focus in myriad directions, and the boundaries of citizen science as a field are not clearly delineated. Citizen science involves a growing community of professional practitioners, participants, and stakeholders, and a thriving collection of projects. While citizen science is often recognized for its potential to engage the public in science, it is also uniquely positioned to support and extend participants' learning in science.

3. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2015). Trust and Confidence at the Interfaces of the Life Sciences and Society: Does the Public Trust Science? A Workshop Summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/21798

   Does the public trust science? Scientists? Scientific organizations? What roles do trust and the lack of trust play in public debates about how science can be used to address such societal concerns as childhood vaccination, cancer screening, and a warming planet? What could happen if social trust in science or scientists faded?

4. Falk, J. H. (2005). Free-choice environmental learning: framing the discussion. Environmental Education Research, 11:265-280.

   Education is a lifelong endeavor; the public learns in many places and contexts, for a diversity of reasons, throughout their lives. During the past couple of decades, there has been a growing awareness that free-choice learning experiences — learning experiences where the learner exercises a large degree of choice and control over the what, when and why of learning — play a major role in lifelong learning.

Examples of working with non-traditional audiences

1. Couchman, G., Williams, G., and Cadwalader, D. (1994). Three Keys to a Successful Limited-Resource Families Program. Journal of Extension. August 1994, Volume 32, Number 2

   This article reviews three tenants of successful programming for limited-resource families. The keys to successful programming include understanding the audience, expanding education through volunteers, and networking with community agencies.

2. Dodd, Sara & Follmer-Reece, Holly & Kostina-Ritchey, Erin & Reyna, Roxanna (2015). Food Challenge: Serving Up 4-H to Non-Traditional Audiences. Journal of Extension, 53.

   This article describes a novel approach for introducing 4-H to non-traditional/diverse audiences using 4-H Food Challenge. Set in a low SES and minority-serving rural school, Food Challenge was presented during the school day to all 7th grade students, with almost half voluntarily participating in an after-school club component. Program design supported school-level STEM enrichment and career development priorities. Topics addressed ranged from food handling/safety to nutrition and cost analysis.

3. Ulrich, C., and N. Nadkarni (2008). Sustainability research in enforced residential institutions: collaborations of ecologists and prisoners. Environment, Development, and Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-008-9145-4

   Enforced institutional settings such as penitentiaries provide environments to raise awareness, carry out research, and implement and assess practices for sustainable living. Institutions where residence is enforced due to health, recreational, military, or legal reasons (e.g., assisted living centers, summer camps, army bases, prisons) house people who may lack scientific training but have time and need for intellectual stimulation that can be filled by supervised research.

Additional Resources

1. The Public Face of Science https://www.amacad.org/project/public-face-science

   The American Academy of Arts and Sciences' initiative to explore and improve the connection between science and society in America.

2. Role Models Matter Toolkit https://www.techbridgegirls.org/rolemodelsmatter/

   Created by Techbridge Girls, prepares STEM professionals to do outreach with girls and underrepresented youth. It includes hands-on STEM activities, reflection exercises, and tips for "dejargonizing" your communication for K-12 audiences.