Project Overview
The EU-funded Explorathon 4D project had the remit to engage over 1,500 schoolchildren in Glasgow on Friday 30th September 2016. A self-selected group of eighty researchers from both Strathclyde and Glasgow Universities were tasked with designing and delivering hands-on, inspiring activities relating to their research. The aim was to inspire pupils from early years to late secondary phase, to consider a career in research. The MUSE team were vital to the successful delivery of the day by administering the project on behalf of both Universities, liaising with over 40 schools.
Project Outputs
Eighty Researchers from Strathclyde and Glasgow Universities engaged with 1890 school pupils from schools in the city of Glasgow (12 Secondary and 28 Primary schools and 1 Early Years). This targeted engagement ensured the city-wide and in turn Scotland-wide target number of engagements was exceeded by almost 20%.
The researchers promoted a competition on social media following their activity, which invited pupils to consider:
“If I was a researcher, I would research…….”
The array of completed posters on the Explorathon twitter feed showed that the pupils were inspired to research all manner of topics and subjects! A winner from the Primary and Secondary school entries was selected at random, and two children took their families free of charge to the Glasgow Science Centre.
Project Outcomes
The joint administrative team found that they invested a lot of time into matching the researcher teams to an appropriate school and pupil age group. A restriction of the Explorathon funding means delivery must take place at a certain time and day, therefore not all activities could be delivered:
“The researcher was really friendly and was able to engage pupils in the breakdancing activity. Things went a bit pear-shaped with timings at our end so we had 2 groups which the researcher was pleased to accommodate. The event was much better suited to the original S1 group that was planned and they enjoyed it.”
Since the event, a number of schools have been in contact with the Explorathon Team to request a researcher be identified to assist the children research a specific subject.
There are plans to repeat the task in September 2017 as part of the Explorathon 4D funding.