School Outreach Research Articles

The Linguistics Roadshow

Abstract This paper presents an overview of the Linguistics Roadshow, an interactive showcase about the science of language and a hub for fun and interactive resources about linguistics. The Roadshow began as a travelling high school outreach programme introducing Australian students to linguistics and has grown to include online resources, providing an accessible introduction to linguistics with information about how students can pursue their interests in language. This paper is intended to provide a general guide to conducting linguistics-themed school incursions, to highlight opportunities afforded and challenges faced in undertaking this kind of outreach. We discuss the motivations for developing the Roadshow, outline the process of designing the workshop programme and materials, and offer a detailed description of the content and format. We reflect on our achievements and impact as well as lessons learned, and discuss future directions for a sustainable Roadshow and for linguistics outreach in the Australian context.

Student attitudes toward quantum information science and technology in a high school outreach program

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection in Investigating and Improving Quantum Education through Research.] With the current growth in quantum information science and technology (QIST), there is an increasing need to prepare precollege students for postsecondary QIST study and careers. This mixed methods, explanatory sequential research focused on students’ affective outcomes from a one-week, 25-h summer program for U.S. high school students in grades 10–12. The workshop structure was based upon psychosocial theories of self-determination and planned behavior, where QIST aspirations may be facilitated and viewed as achievable choices if students acquire disciplinary knowledge, self-efficacy, normative expectancy of their capacity in the field, and awareness of vocational roles. The program featured lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on experiences in classical and quantum physics and quantum computing. Students’ attitudes toward QIST (N=77)—including self-efficacy, self-concept, relevance, career aspirations, and perceptions of quantitative fluency—showed improvement with a medium effect size, even though treatment students entered the program with more positive QIST attitudes when compared with a control group of high school physics students (N=65). Postprogram interviews with n=12 participants identified several explanatory themes: (i) Students tended to comprehend classical and quantum topics taught through multiple representations, regardless of whether they had taken physics previously; (ii) students experienced some challenges with mathematics and science concepts that support quantum understanding, yet they revealed a willingness to learn new concepts outside of their comfort zone; (iii) students expressed motivation for pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and/or quantum-related careers in the future, as well as increased QIST self-concept, largely through understanding the relevance of QIST in solving technological problems; and (iv) students reported increased self-efficacy in understanding QIST topics and performing related tasks. This informal summer program showed promise in promoting positive student attitudes toward QIST, a critical emerging field in advancing technological solutions for global challenges. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Findings from public engagement programme for school children aged 14-16 years about endocrinology.

To investigate the utility and effectiveness of a school outreach programme in areas of lower socioeconomic status to improve understanding of common endocrine topics and the medical profession. Two secondary school outreach sessions were conducted in July 2022. Students were invited to attend lectures delivered by medical professionals and engage in poster-making sessions using the knowledge they had gained throughout the day. Participants completed anonymised pre- and post-session surveys. Outcomes were identified using Kirkpatrick's training evaluation model. Self-reported perceptions and beliefs (Kirkpatrick's Level 2a) were compared using chi-square tests. Thematic analysis of team-led poster presentations was performed. Of the 254 participants included, the response rates of pre- and post-session questionnaires were 75.6% and 56.2%, respectively. The outreach day increased students' understanding of Obesity and Diabetes, PCOS, and Health Technology. The most well-received activities from the outreach day were voted to be the poster challenge (43.4%) and poster presentation (14.7%). Following the session, there was a trend towards an increased understanding of medical careers and interest in pursuing a medical career, although these did not reach statistical significance. Outreach programmes could be a practical and effective approach to engaging prospective medical applicants from areas of lower socioeconomic status. Further studies are required to expand outreach programmes to investigate the efficacy of school engagement programmes.

Evaluation of content knowledge and instructor impacts in a middle school outreach program: lessons from Brain Explorers

Despite general agreement that science outreach is important, the effectiveness of science outreach programs on participants' learning often is not assessed. Brain Explorers is a neuroscience outreach program that allows medical students to partner with Biomedical Sciences faculty to develop lesson plans with learning objectives, interactive experiments for middle schoolers, and assessments of learning. These lessons are then implemented through a community-level intervention in which medical students teach their lesson plans to middle schoolers and assist them in performing activities to reinforce the concepts. Importantly, the efficacy of these active learning interventions is assessed. Throughout the program's evolution, a variety of different forms of assessment have been utilized to examine student understanding. While the goals of outreach programs are varied, here we have focused on the evaluation of content knowledge gains laying out three unique evaluation methods including post-event, immediate pre- and post-event, and spaced pre- and post-event evaluation. Specifically, using Brain Explorers lessons as examples we explore the practicality and feasibility of various learning assessments in outreach programs, begin to examine the impacts of participation in these programs on the medical school instructors and encourage others in the field to implement assessment of their programs.

Parent perceptions of school relationships: Considerations of racial-ethnic differences and youth's peer victimization.

Literature has highlighted that social relationships at school are essential to school success, yet few studies have examined this construct from parents' perspectives. Even less research has explored perceptions of social relationships in the school among parents whose children are bullying victims and potential racial-ethnic differences in the perceptions. Using self-report data from 3,261 parents of middle and high school youth, this study used multilevel analyses in which parents were nested in their child's schools and examined parent perceptions of school relationships (including Child-School Connectedness, Parent-School Connectedness, School Outreach and Involvement, and Culture of Inclusiveness and Equity) in the context of youth victimization and whether these perceptions varied by the parent's racial-ethnic background. Results showed that compared with parents whose child was not a bullying victim (63.5%), those whose child was victimized (36.5%) had poorer perceptions of school relationships and that this difference was more pronounced in some racial-ethnic groups (e.g., Asian and Black) than in others (e.g., White, bi- or multiracial). These findings underscore the importance of addressing ethnic heterogeneity in how parents evaluate school-based social relationships in the context of peer bullying to effectively engage racial-ethnic minoritized parents of victimized youth in culturally responsive school bullying interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceived Effectiveness of a Surgical High School Outreach Program on Career Trajectory of Underserved High School Students

Background: The United States faces a significant physician shortage, projecting a need for 52,000 more primary care doctors by 2025.1 Underserved communities are disproportionately affected by this shortage. With underrepresented minority healthcare providers being significantly more likely to practice in underserved communities, it is essential to increase diversity in medicine.2–4 High school outreach programs introducing teenagers from minority populations to the medical field may increase availability of healthcare in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. Our goal was to determine whether participants in the Urology High School Outreach Program experienced increased interest in pursuing a career in medicine, or STEM-related fields after receiving mentorship and exposure to the medical field. Methods: 138 underserved high school students participating in a one-day Urology High School Outreach Program (HSOP) took a pre-survey prior to a physician-led lecture, and five urology-related surgical techniques workshop stations, led by medical students. The sessions culminated with a Q&A panel with the medical students, followed by the post-survey. Results: Of the 138 students that participated in the pre-survey, 110 students (79.7%) answered the post-survey. Analysis of these survey responses revealed that the Urology HSOP predominantly served a demographic consisting of Hispanic (39.1%) and Asian (32.7%) backgrounds. Question One, pertaining to the likelihood of pursuing a career in healthcare, saw a statistically significant average increase of 0.11 out of 5 (p=0.014). Question Two, pertaining to the likelihood of pursuing a career in STEM, saw the largest significant average increase of 0.34 out of 5 (p<0.00001). Question Three, pertaining to interest in developing new technology, saw a statistically significant average increase of 0.28 out of 5 (p=0.001). Conclusion: In summary, a significant increase in interest towards STEM and medicine careers emerged among Urology High School Outreach Program participants. Further investigation is warranted to ascertain whether these changes are limited to the underrepresented demographic, or extend to all program participants.

Evaluating the impact of school-based influenza vaccination programme on absenteeism and outbreaks at schools in Hong Kong: a retrospective cohort study protocol

IntroductionSeasonal influenza causes annual school breaks and student absenteeism in Hong Kong schools and kindergartens. This proposal aims to conduct a retrospective cohort study to evaluate the impact of a school-based influenza vaccination (SIV) programme on absenteeism and outbreaks at schools in Hong Kong.MethodsThe study will compare schools that implemented the SIV programme with schools that did not. The data will be sourced from school records, encompassing absenteeism records, outbreak reports, and vaccination rates. We will recruit 1000 students from 381 schools and kindergartens in 18 districts of Hong Kong starting June 2024. The primary outcome measures will include absenteeism rates due to influenza and school influenza outbreaks. Secondary outcomes will consist of vaccination coverage rates and the impact of the SIV programme on hospitalisations due to influenza-like illness. A t-test will be conducted to compare the outcomes between schools with and without the SIV programme.Ethics and disseminationThe school completed signing the participants’ informed consent form before reporting the data to us. Our study has been approved by the Hospital Authority Hong Kong West Cluster IRB Committee (IRB No: UW 17–111) and was a subtopic of the research “The estimated age-group specific influenza vaccine coverage rates in Hong Kong and the impact of the school outreach vaccination program”.Trial registrationThis study will be retrospectively registered.

Economic Analysis of Secondary School Outreach Athletic Training Services

The health care benefit of athletic trainers in secondary schools is well established; however, the economic effects of athletic training outreach programs on the organization providing the services are not well researched. The purpose of this study was to determine the economic effects of outreach athletic training services on the organization the outreach athletic training services. The daily number of patient visits and procedure charges were compiled and compared between a time period when outreach athletic training services were provided to local secondary schools and a time period when these services were not provided. The findings of this study showed that an organization providing outreach athletic training services may experience significant increases in daily patient visits and daily procedure charges.

Utilizing a medical school outreach program to help high school students explore the impact of food security and ultraprocessed foods on health risks.

We offered an enrichment program for high school students with the theme, "The Environment, Health, and You" during the Summer of 2022 and the Spring of 2023. We developed several educational modules for high school students that provided them with an opportunity to learn and explore the foundations of physiological systems, nutrient needs to maintain health, and the impact that environmental factors can have on them. The modules included videos, discussion boards, games, readings, and labs. These modules were integrated into the first session: Your Body and Health. On day 1, the first module explored the basic physiology and anatomy of the body with respect to the organization of cells into organ systems. Additionally, the educational content included information on macro- and micronutrients and their impact on body development, nutrition, and metabolism. The nutrition module explored nutrition concepts and various factors that can impact healthy eating patterns, such as food insecurity issues and the consumption of ultraprocessed foods. A lab activity on label reading was included to help empower students to make healthy choices. A total of 43 high school students participated in the program. Overall, the quality of the educational content in the modules was rated highly by the students, and they indicated that the educational experience inspired them to learn more about the physiology and nutrition concepts associated with human metabolism, and the importance of healthy food choices to maintain health.NEW & NOTEWORTHY We describe how we integrated guided learning teaching modules in an enrichment program for high school students with the aim of enhancing their knowledge and skills to empower them to take charge of their own health risks and well-being.

Curious minds to aspiring pharmacists: Impact of high school outreach on pharmacy knowledge and interest

ObjectiveTo analyze the impact of a pharmacy student delivered presentation on prospective rural high school students' interest toward the pharmacy profession and knowledge regarding a career in pharmacy. MethodsPresentations about applying to pharmacy school, the Doctor of Pharmacy degree, and pharmacist careers were given at ten high schools across North Dakota and Minnesota by third year pharmacy students attending North Dakota State University. Each pharmacy student presenter received training to ensure that all high school students received clear and consistent information. A pre-post survey was used to understand the impact of the presentation on high school student interest and knowledge regarding a career in pharmacy. Data was analyzed using a chi-square test and McNemar's test. ResultsFive hundred and eight students consented to the study and completed the pre-post surveys. Of these students, the largest group was high school juniors (number (n) = 239, 47%), followed by sophomores (n = 161, 32%), seniors (n = 104, 20%) and freshmen (n = 3, 1%). The majority of students attended school in North Dakota (n = 469, 92%). Similarly, most students planned to attend a four-year college (n = 451, 89%) and were interested in a medical/healthcare related career (n = 310, 61%). All interest and knowledge questions showed a statistically significant increase in score pre-post. ConclusionPresentations delivered by pharmacy students to prospective rural high school students improved overall interest and knowledge regarding pharmacy school and the profession. Presentations are a useful tool for pharmacy programs to help promote their school and the profession of pharmacy.

Spreadsheet-based application integrated with Virtual reality for teaching economic and environmental assessment of subsurface gasification and combustion for hydrogen production

Herein we developed an education game based on a spreadsheet- activity and virtual reality (VR) for teaching the fundamentals of gasification and combustion. The game could be used as a valuable resource to motivate students at the undergraduate and senior high school level to consider economic and environmental assessment including sustainability concerns as they design a hypothetical chemical product or process. The proposed game is intended to be incorporated into any sustainability course design or chemical engineering course. The game is suitable for both chemistry majors and non-chemistry majors as it introduces fundamental energy changes in chemical reactions and design principles. Additionally, the game can be adapted for high school outreach activities. The game is freely available and encourages students to think critically while considering several factors in making key industrial decisions about a product or process. Factors considered include the water availability, socioeconomic impact, environmental impact, and proximity of technological location to infrastructures. The game is designed to raise awareness about hydrogen as an energy carrier, including its economic aspects and its wide range of industrial applications. It could also be used as a means of recruiting students into chemical sciences and engineering degree programs.

In-Person to Online Transition Increased Access and Geographical Diversity in Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine High School Outreach Programs

In-Person to Online Transition Increased Access and Geographical Diversity in Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine High School Outreach Programs

A qualitative evaluation of the impact of a medical student school outreach project on both medical students and school pupils

ObjectiveTo explore medical student and school pupil experiences of an outreach school teaching project.SettingCommunity engagement is increasingly commonplace within medical school. Secondary schools offer ample opportunities for community engagement as...

The Ties That Bind: An Examination of School-Family Relationships and Middle School Discipline in New York City

Inequities in exclusionary discipline result from a complex process involving students, families, and school personnel. However, little research has explored the topic from parent perspectives. This study used parent survey data from New York City to investigate the link between school-family relationships and students experiencing exclusionary discipline. Results indicate that stronger parental trust toward teachers is connected to a reduced probability that a student receives an office discipline referral, while greater trust in principals is associated with a lower chance of suspension. Several aspects of school-family relationships, such as parent-principal trust, parental involvement, and school outreach and communication, heterogeneously predict a lower likelihood of experiencing exclusionary discipline by student race and special education status. These findings demonstrate the interdependent role of families and school staff in child development and highlight the need to cultivate positive school-family relationships as a potential strategy for addressing exclusionary discipline disparities.

A conceptual framework for profiling engagement strategies used in high school engineering outreach activities

ABSTRACT High school outreach activities in the engineering context aim to attract high school students to join a university engineering programme. Oftentimes, high school outreach activities are organised and conducted by university representatives, for instance, teachers and students, who employ different engagement strategies during their interaction with the high school students. While studies exist concerning the organisational and pedagogical aspects of high school engineering outreach activities, there are limited attempts to develop a conceptual framework specifically designed for profiling the engagement strategies employed by university representatives in this context. The current study uses existing research related to pre-university students and insights from sociology and psychology to advance such a conceptual framework. The application of the framework was illustrated by conducting five focus groups with 19 university representatives involved in high school outreach activities organised by a Romanian public engineering university.

Effect of an Oncology Focused High School Outreach Event in Increasing Interest in Cancer Care and Healthcare Careers.

Despite widely heralded efforts to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in oncology, few outreach programs exist to inspire high school students to pursue a career in medicine. Doctors' Day is an event developed and organized by medical trainees that features both didactic and hands-on learning components to provide high school students with exposure to the healthcare field and knowledge about cancer and cancer screening. We investigated in the influence of Doctors' Day on students' interest in healthcare careers and oncology. On March 30, 2023, health professions students and residents organized and led Doctors' Day, a half-day educational program for eight public high schools in Nashville, TN. After the event, high school student participants were invited to complete a 21-item survey. The questionnaire collected demographic information, feedback regarding the session, and comfort with various activities related to the program. Among the 8 public high schools involved in Doctors' Day, 91 participants completed the survey. Few (9, 9.9%) participants were White or European American, and 30 (33.0%) and 23 (25.3%) were Black and Hispanic, respectively. There were 20 (22.0%) participants who identified as LGBTQI+ with 2 (2.2%) indicating they were unsure. Feedback regarding the program was positive across all domains, and students reported increased interest in healthcare careers and oncology along with an increased comfort level in describing the importance of cancer screening. Our community outreach program for high school students with backgrounds underrepresented in medicine was effective in increasing interest in healthcare careers and oncology.

Raising Rarity: Creating meaningful and sustainable conservation outcomes through community-based outreach.

A priority in plant conservation science is the identification of species at risk of extinction, allowing for conservation efforts to be focused on those that are most critically endangered to prevent their loss. A 2023 revision of threatened plants in Victoria found that 1,557 species remain under direct threat of extinction, despite conservation work being undertaken across the state to safeguard both individual species and plant communities. Although conservation efforts are fundamental to the protection of our flora, the persistently high number of threatened species illustrates a need to reimagine the way in which we approach conservation. Central to this is a need to engage more people across a broader cross-section of the community so that they can contribute to initiatives that effectively reduce the number of species at risk.Raising Rarity is a community-based outreach programme run by Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV). It is designed to actively engage distinct sectors of the Victorian community in local plant conservation. The programme acknowledges that although the expertise provided by RBGV in areas that include conservation horticulture, seed ecology, population genetics, outreach and education is critical to plant conservation efforts, the engagement and involvement of the broader community is fundamental to creating sustainable plant conservation solutions. Raising Rarity achieves this by working with volunteers, school groups, regional botanic gardens, local councils and members of the nursery industry to grow and display rare and threatened Victorian plants in accessible horticultural settings. The initiative aims to increase public knowledge, awareness and hands-on involvement in plant conservation.There are four key components to the Raising Rarity programme: (1) school outreach; (2)local government outreach; (3) botanic gardens outreach in an initiative called Care for the Rare; and (4) commercialisation of an RBGV rare plant collection. This article provides an overview of each of these components and outlines future objectives for the Raising Rarity programme.

Socialization of the Role of Face-Based Communication in the Improvement of Students at SDN Alalak Utara 3 in Banjarmasin

Socialization of the Role of Face-Based Communication in Improving Students at SDN Alalak Utara 3 in Banjarmasin. Effective communication is used by teachers and all existing teaching staff to provide direction to students to obey and implement the system of school regulations so that communication between students and teachers can be carried out through an effective face-based communication method in improving students at North Alalak Elementary School in Banjarmasin Therefore, as a community service team, lecturers from the economics faculty and the teaching and education faculty at Uniska Banjarmasin have carried out school outreach at SDN Alalak Utara 3 in Banjarmasin using several existing methods, namely a persuasive approach method, a comprehensive approach method for the school. and the method of providing motivation to students through behavior-oriented counseling guidance methods through competencies and indicators of competency achievement. The results of community service are: After carrying out community service it can be concluded as follows: The students in the AKM (Minimum Competition Assessment) class have experienced an increase of around 32%, where before socialization of class AKM was 35% and after socialization of class AKM was 37%, it can be concluded that the role of face-based communication is very effective in improving students at SDN Alalak Utara 3 Banjarmasin, especially providing positive things in improving the process of learning and teaching.

Critical interventions for demand generation in Zambia, Nepal, and Senegal with regards to the 5C psychological antecedents of vaccination

IntroductionChildhood vaccination is an effective intervention for lowering the burden of infectious disease. Vaccine coverage has increased globally, but vaccine hesitancy and refusal threatens these gains. The 5C psychological antecedents of vaccination (“5C”) provides a validated measure of “vaccine hesitancy or confidence” to assess individual thoughts and behaviors behind vaccination. We investigated population-level factors that contributed to high and sustained vaccination coverage in Zambia, Nepal, and Senegal, and alignment with the 5Cs. MethodsData was collected in the larger Exemplars in Vaccine Delivery study, from focus group discussions (FDGs) and key informant interviews (KIIs) at the national, regional, district, health facility, and community levels of health systems in Zambia, Nepal, and Senegal. We assessed the demand environment, as relayed by participants, and identified interventions reported as successful for demand generation, then retroactively aligned the interventions with the 5C constructs. ResultsDemand was positively correlated with high confidence and collective responsibility. Psychological constraints sometimes impacted demand. Physical constraints created barriers in some communities, particularly difficult to access (i.e., mountainous). Occasionally, physical constraints did not affect vaccination behavior - parents believed the benefits of vaccination worth pursuing. Factors negatively correlated with demand and intent, complacency and calculation, had limited impact. Critical interventions were: targeted and tailored health education activities (media partnerships, school outreach); community engagement; community ownership; and community involvement (community health workers, leaders, religious figures). ConclusionWe found similar interventions used to generate demand, with strategies aligned with the 5C constructs. Categorizing interventions by drivers of demand may help strategic planning and the division of resources; decision makers may choose to implement our suggested interventions. Assessing the 5Cs allows decision-makers to operationalize demand generation into concrete interventions and policies, and determine the individual impact of these constructs on the population and focus efforts on interventions tailored to a specific need.

An Inquiry-Based Learning STEM Outreach Module to Teach Principles of Bioadhesives and Tissue Repair.

Bioadhesives are an important subset of biomaterials, which aid wound healing, hemostasis, and tissue repair. In order to advance the field of bioadhesives to promote more regenerative healing, there is a societal need to teach diverse trainees about their design, engineering, and testing. To address this, we deployed a hands-on, inquiry-based learning (IBL) bioadhesives module to middle school students from underserved communities in the Young Eisner Scholars (YES) program. The module, which lasted approximately 3 hr, was designed to teach students about applications of bioadhesives, engineering bioadhesives for various biomedical applications, and mechanically testing their adhesive strength using standard practices. Students who participated in our IBL bioadhesives module displayed significant learning gains by pre/post-test assessment, demonstrating that the module was effective for middle school outreach. Pre/post-survey assessments showed no significant differences in attitudes towards STEM, which was likely due to the fact that students in YES had a strong predisposition for STEM. Overall, results motivate the use of this module, or similar hands-on IBL modules, for outreach with K-12 students who are underrepresented in STEM.