Students' approaches to developing scientific communication skills.

Abstract

Science communication is a core skill for undergraduate science students to acquire in preparation for their future careers, but studies show that this skill is underdeveloped in science graduates. The aim of this study was to discover the resources and approaches undergraduate students use to effectively develop their science communication skills and how the use of these methods relates to academic performance on a communication task. Undergraduate students undertaking a second-year biomedical science course (n = 490) were asked which approaches and resources they used to aid the development of their science communication skills, and the frequency of their responses was correlated against their laboratory report mark, using multiple regression and relative weights analysis. Students' (n = 453) use of Communication Learning in Practice for Scientists (CLIPS; an open-access interactive website on science communication), resources provided by the university, interactions with university teaching staff, and engagement with the scientific literature significantly predicted the laboratory report mark. Students enrolled in a blended format or in remote online learning only, and in different programs, performed comparably in the written report and used similar approaches and resources, other than remote students reporting more use of other online resources and students in blended learning engaging more with university resources. Together, these findings provide insight into which strategies are most helpful for undergraduate students to engage with to improve their scientific communication skills. The findings highlight that the provision of well-designed interactive communication resources, guided assessment resources, and opportunities to engage with teaching staff can assist in the development of science communication skills.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study identifies the approaches and resources that undergraduate science students use to develop their science communication skills. It reveals which of these approaches and resources predict improved academic performance in a written science communication assessment task. The findings point to the importance of explicit guidance, and engagement with teaching staff, in advancing the development of science communication skills.