Abstract
Space education not only plays a key role in helping young people understand the natural world and their impact on the planet but is also vital in ensuring that future generations can make meaningful contributions to the space sector at all levels. Positive perceptions of the space sector can lead young people to take roles where they can contribute to new knowledge, develop new technologies, and tackle societal challenges. As the relationship between science and society is tested by global events—such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic—scientific trust and accountability have become topics of frequent and public debate. The way in which young people engage with space education and perceive their potential involvement with the space sector is of greater importance now than ever before. This paper describes a two-year European space education project that was carried out before and during the COVID-19 global pandemic. An evaluation of the project activities showed that young people are generally enthusiastic about space, but their perceptions of the European space sector—and their connections to it—are less positive. Recommendations are made on the challenges facing the space sector and how it needs to adapt to better support the development of a more inclusive space education community.
Highlights
Perceptions of science are affected by a myriad of background factors such as education, media, culture, and family life (Schibeci and Riley 1986; Bauer et al, 1994; Nisbet et al, 2002; Davies and Horst, 2016)
The aim of the spaceEU project was to foster a space education community for young people in Europe and it set out to achieve this by implementing a programme of social constructivist activities designed to educate, engage, and encourage young people to better understand the role of European space science, including its benefits to society as well as potential career paths within the field
The respondents were balanced in terms of participants who had or had not attended a science event in the past 12 months (46% reported they had) and, while limited, the sample provided a valuable insight into youth perceptions of the European space sector during a global pandemic
Summary
Perceptions of science are affected by a myriad of background factors such as education, media, culture, and family life (Schibeci and Riley 1986; Bauer et al, 1994; Nisbet et al, 2002; Davies and Horst, 2016). These same background factors contribute to perceptions of space science and astronomy, and may affect how young people, in particular, self-identify and consider future careers (Jensen and Jensen, 2019; Anjos and Carvalho, 2020). Through hobbyist participation in the form of amateur astronomy (Hayes et al, 2020) and citizen science (Cox et al, 2015), space education can be more accessible than some scientific disciplines, and with its presence in art (Milbrath, 1999; Carlson et al, 1999) and pop culture (Consolmagno, 1996) remains of interest to people regardless of age or cultural background (Selin, 2000; Nobes et al, 2003).
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