Martin Storksdieck

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Director and Professor at Oregon State University

In this chapter we offer the concept of the Virtuous Cycle of Affect, Engagement and Learning as a means to connect factors that alone and in combination contribute to learning success and are themselves influenced by one another. The Virtuous Cycle recognizes how factors that support learning pathways over time can serve as “on-ramps,” and lack of...

We present a conceptual framework rooted in the practices and experiences of nine collaborative partnerships between universities and informal science education organizations. Our analysis and resulting framework aim to support those brokering, designing, and evaluating partnerships in making sense of the dynamism of interorganizational efforts to...

A key broadening participation challenge for science communication is to reach non-traditional audiences beyond those already interested in science. In this study we test a “Guerilla Science” approach that blends elements of access, by removing barriers to participation, with those of inclusion, by designing participant-centered activities, for rea...

The conceptual model of learning and the Situated Identity Model are two theoretical frameworks prominent for understanding learning in informal STEM learning (ISL) environments. In this chapter, we will describe both of the theoretical frameworks including a brief history of their development and examples of their application in the literature. We...

The third iteration of the Why Zoos and Aquariums Matter Study is a partnership between the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and three social science research groups that explores the full visit cycle to investigate how the public thinks of zoos and aquariums (Z/A) at different times. The research team from Oregon State University (OSU) investigat...

This chapter covers a comprehensive understanding of storytelling, followed by a focus on storytelling for sustainability and its possible uses. The first section is about the meaning of storytelling and distinguishes between the characteristics of stories themselves and the characteristics of the contexts in which they are told. The second section...

Informal STEM learning is the process of learning about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in contexts outside of the school classroom. Because informal STEM learning can take place anywhere, researchers have found it useful to categorize this learning based on the contexts in which it typically occurs: everyday learning, designed en...

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) occupations are projected to grow over two times faster than the total for all occupations in the next decade. This will require reskilling and upskilling those currently in the workforce. In response, many universities are deliberately developing academic programs and individual courses focu...

This article describes the process for creating an evidence‐based professional learning (PL) competency framework for people working in the informal science learning field. The project reviewed PL literature, models, and frameworks. Applying what we found to a field which lacks any unified career pathways, we determined a career stage approach woul...

Taking part in creating location-based augmented reality (LBAR) experiences that focus on communication, art and design could serve as an entry point for art-oriented girls and young women towards career pathways in computer science and information communication technology. This conceptual paper presents our theory-based approach and subsequent app...

In this paper, we describe a virtual high school earth science enhancement program that embeds a citizen science experience within a scientist-mentored research internship. We demonstrate the success of the program as measured by knowledge of pertinent science concepts and processes, and changes in future career orientation, and explore the role of...

The aim of this paper is to describe an analytical approach for addressing the ceiling effect, a measurement limitation that affects research and evaluation efforts in informal STEM learning projects. The ceiling effect occurs when a large proportion of subjects begin a study with very high scores on the measured variable(s), such that participatio...

From the Executive Summary: This report presents summative evaluation results for a National Science Foundation funded project entitled Grounding Institutional Partnerships in Structures for Broader Impacts Design (BID). The project represents a collaboration between five institutions: Institute for Learning Innovation, The STEM Research Center at...

Many citizen science (CS) programs aim to grow and sustain a pool of enthusiastic participants who consistently contribute their efforts to a specific scientific endeavor. Consequently, much research has explored CS participants’ motivations and their relationship to participant recruitment and retention. However, much of this research has focused...

Field learning experiences reach tens of thousands of undergraduate students annually, constituting their importance as components of undergraduate education and potential pathways for STEM education. Reports and planning efforts by national entities have highlighted the need to ground undergraduate field learning experiences in evidence-based prac...

Introduction Few would argue that the national parks provide significant value to both the nation and the world. The question remains though, What is that value and how to measure it? Increasingly, a key indicator of this value is the learning that parks support. However, as we will discuss, even defining what is meant by educational value is chall...

The concept of storytelling has sparked renewed interest in different fields of research and practice. Stories are presumed to simultaneously convey information, explain problems and evoke emotions. Educators and communicators wishing to explore the potential benefits of storytelling in a sustainability context, however, have struggled with concept...

Dedicated science learning spaces such as science museums, science cafes, or science media attract mostly those who seek out science learning experiences. This self-selection represents a major challenge for broadening participation in informal science learning (ISL). In this study, we examine an approach to ISL that aims at reaching audiences who...

The concept of storytelling has sparked renewed interest in different fields of research and practice. Stories are presumed to simultaneously convey information, explain problems and evoke emotions. Educators and communicators wishing to explore the potential benefits of storytelling in a sustainability context, however, have struggled with concept...

Purpose of review: This review covers articles in 2018 and early 2019 that employed the concept of networks and social interactions in research on how patients with cancer cope, receive and respond to medical treatment and allied support. The use of social aspects, and more formally the method of social network analysis for research on cancer is q...

Outreach activities at the interface of science and art present a unique opportunity to connect and engage with “latently interested” publics who do not otherwise take part in science activities like visiting science museums. In this paper, the authors present “Guerilla Science” as one model that supports the hypothesis that well-designed science +...

Little research is currently available that captures variation in the degree to which individuals who have, or had cancer in the past (but are in remission) integrate their cancer experience into their sense of self or their cancer-associated identity. Such research should cover how those identities shape personal narratives within existing or new...

Scientists are increasingly being called upon to play a more prominent role in the interface of science and society by contributing to science literacy in ways that support two-way exchanges with the public. However, many remain reluctant to participate in public engagement activities in part because they feel they lack relevant skills and experien...

We propose a thoughtful process for scientists to develop their “impact identity”, a concept that integrates scholarship in a scientific discipline with societal needs, personal preferences, capacities and skills, and one’s institutional context. Approaching broader impacts from a place of integrated identity can support cascading impacts that deve...

Der Begriff des Storytellings hat in vielen gesellschaftlichen Bereichen Interesse geweckt, wird mit ihm doch auf das Potenzial von Geschichten verwiesen, Informationen zu transportieren, Probleme zu erklären und Emotionen hervorzurufen. Der Beitrag bilanziert, wie vielseitige Formen des Storytellings eine Reihe von Chancen für die Nachhaltigkeitsk...

Objective: To conduct a scoping literature review to identify practices or programs that promote AYA patient-centered communication. Methods: Between January and May of 2016, we applied standard scoping review methodology to systematically review articles. We considered peer-reviewed, English language articles written at any phase of interventio...

Since 2012, three organizations advancing the work of citizen science practitioners have arisen in different regions: The primarily US-based but globally open Citizen Science Association (CSA), the European Citizen Science Association (ECSA), and the Australian Citizen Science Association (ACSA). These associations are moving rapidly to establish t...

Grace Reid and the late Stephen Norris argue in this issue the urgent need for widespread Science Media Education (SME) as an integral part of formal and informal science education. SME is to achieve two goals: First, allow learners to critically evaluate any media as a source for scientific information by understanding the socio-economic and socio...

div class="title">Using Microscopy for Authentic Science Teaching: A Learning Sciences Perspective - Volume 21 Issue S3 - Martin Storksdieck

This study assesses how scientists think about science communication training based on the argument that such training represents an important tool in improving the quality of interactions between scientists and the public. It specifically focuses on training related to five goals, including views about training to make science messages understanda...

On April 7, 2014 the Center for Research on Lifelong STEM Learning and the Office of the Associate Provost for Academic Success and Engagement launched the Undergraduate Success Initiative with an invitational workshop entitled Redefining Undergraduate Success. A small planning team convened a group of 32 faculty and administrators with a wide a...

Climate change poses challenges as well as opportunities for businesses and, broadly speaking for the entire economy. Businesses will be challenged to provide services or products with less harmful influence on the climate; respond to a changing policy, regulatory, and market environment; and provide new services and products to help address the ch...

The forested land in the United States is an asset that is owned and managed not only by federal, state, and local governments, but also by families and other private groups, including timber investment management organizations and real estate investment trusts. The more than 10 million family forestland owners manage the largest percentage of fore...

Climate change poses challenges as well as opportunities for businesses and, broadly speaking for the entire economy. Businesses will be challenged to provide services or products with less harmful influence on the climate; respond to a changing policy, regulatory, and market environment; and provide new services and products to help address the ch...

Science presented to the general public often focuses on content. However, also sharing the nature of science may create a more scientifically literate public.

Science-based professionals (SBP) often use hands-on materials to help non-scientists build knowledge. I will discuss the results of a cost-benefits analysis that compares museums investments in hands-on exhibits with the impacts they have on visiting, non-scientist publics. Visitor-scientist interactions have the greatest depth when designed to fa...

Science museums play a role in creating visitor experiences that relate to contemporary issues in science, and in linking audiences to the scientific enterprise and the community of scientists. In the Portal to the Public approach, science researchers are trained by museum educators with experience in inquiry-based learning, and are then given oppo...

Amateur astronomers play a critical role engaging the general public in astronomy. The role of individual and club-related factors is explored using data from two surveys (Survey 1 N ¼ 1142; Survey 2 N ¼ 1242) of amateur astronomers. Analysis suggests that formal or informal training in astronomy, age, club membership, length of club membership, an...

Traditional education and public outreach (EPO) by amateur astronomers is dominated by "star parties," which are public night sky or solar viewing events in which amateur astronomers allow the public (or school children) to observe astronomical objects through telescopes and interpret for them "the wonders of the heavens." Amateur astronomers are e...

Traditional education and public outreach by amateur astronomers is dominated by “star parties,” which are public night sky or solar viewing events in which amateur astronomers allow the public (or school children) to observe astronomical objects through telescopes and interpret for them “the wonders of the heavens.” Amateur astronomers are engaged...

Environmental field days offer a distinct opportunity to connect students with science and the environment. The literature on field days, informed by research on field trips, provides a framework for best practices. If there are best practices, however, then presence or lack of the practice should have a discernable impact on the outcomes of the fi...

Environmental Field Days (EFD) are held throughout the country and provide a unique opportunity to involve students in real world science. A study to assess the validity of an observation tool for EFD programs was conducted at the Metro Water Festival with fifth grade students. Items from the observation tool were mapped to students' evaluation que...

The Climate Change Education (CCE) Roundtable fosters ongoing discussion of the challenges to and strategies for improving public understanding of climate science and climate change among federal agencies, the business community, non-profit, and academic sectors. The CCE Roundtable is provides a critical mechanism for developing a coherent, nationa...

Background/Question/Methods: The goals of achieving a high level of climate change literacy and positive attitudes for actions to combat climate change in the general public seems to be fading; recent studies on attitudes towards climate change in the United States show a dramatic increase in skepticism over the last year, fueled in part by a chang...

What types of resources can best support amateur science-based organizations who share their enthusiasm with the public? For several years the Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) and Institute for Learning Innovation (ILI), have partnered to conduct research aimed at understanding the culture of public outreach conducted by astronomy clubs an...

Based on an ongoing study that investigated how families use an interactive and media-based exhibition on pre-evolutionary concepts, and how adults and children learned from their experiences in the museum, this presentation will explore strategies for lifelong learning opportunities to improve evolution literacy in the general public that are affo...

The school field trip constitutes an important demographic market for museums. Field trips enlist the energies of teachers and students, schools and museums, and ought to be used to the best of their potential. There is evidence from the literature and from practitioners that museums often struggle to understand the needs of teachers, who make the...

Across a variety of studies over the last 20 or so years, the public has exhibited mixed performance on knowledge tests about science and environmental topics (e.g., Coyle, 2005; National Science Board, 2008; European Commission 2001). These studies raise concern about the public’s ability to respond to environmental challenges or contribute to cur...

Most people visit a science center in order to satisfy specific leisure-related needs; needs which may or may not actually include science learning. Falk proposed that an individual's identity-related motivations provide a useful lens through which to understand adult free-choice science learning in leisure settings. Over a 3-year period the author...

This review of the literature on field trips to out-of-school settings will briefly summarize key findings and discuss implications for future research and field trip practice. Cognitive and affective learning can occur as a result of class visits to out-of-school settings, and learning outcomes are fundamentally influenced by the structure of the...

Background/Question/Methods Traditional news media (broadcast television, newspapers, radio, and news magazines) are key sources of science and environmental information for the public. Yet, little is known about how news providers perceive environmental issues or how news stories influence public understanding of, interest in, and attitude about t...

In building national capacity for better informal astronomy education and public outreach (EPO), what sorts of professional development interactions are most effective in what situations--and what interventions for improvement can be effectively applied? Building on previous experience, the ASP, in conjunction with its partners, is conducting two N...

Historically, most of the focus of science education has been on pre-college and college level schooling. Although some of the public's interest and knowledge about science is unquestionably shaped by compulsory schooling, given that the average adult spends only a fraction of their life participating in some kind of formal schooling, we argue that...

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP), the Astronomical League (AL), and the Institute for Learning Innovation initiated a web survey of amateur astronomers' educational outreach in early 2002. A web survey was seen as the best viable and cost-effective option to reach the broad and dispersed target group, an open population. Although the u...

This chapter explores what is already known about museums and their long-term impact on visitors, the complexities and challenges inherent in trying to study and understand long-term impacts, future research and methodological approaches that we can use to effectively assess the longterm impacts of museum experiences, and the implications of these...

Falk and Dierking's Contextual Model of Learning was used as a theoretical construct for investigating learning within a free-choice setting. A review of previous research identified key variables fundamental to free-choice science learning. The study sought to answer two questions: (1) How do specific independent variables individually contribute...

This paper discusses three case studies – an exhibition on biodiversity, a hotel water conservation program, and a partnership between a nature center and urban public schools – to establish parameters for designing learning experiences that accommodate the varied worldviews and attitudes of learners. Positive outcomes occurred in all three cases,...

This article provides an overview of current understandings of the science learning that occurs as a consequence of visiting a free-choice learning setting like a science museum. The best available evidence indicates that if you want to understand learning at the level of individuals within the real world, learning does functionally differ dependin...

science from museums. História, Ciências, Saúde – Manguinhos, v. 12 (supplement), p. 117-43, 2005. This article provides an overview of current understandings of the science learning that occurs as a consequence of visiting a free-choice learning setting like a science museum. The best available evidence indicates that if you want to understand lea...

Die als »ideologisch« erfahrenen Aspekte eines Studiums an der Kennedy School of Government werden von einem Teilnehmer am McCloy Programm kritisch unter die Lupe genommen. Als fragwürdige Transferangebote deckt der Autor die Schwächen der wohlfahrsökonomischen Kosten-Nutzen-Analyse, der utilitaristischen Ethik und der wertneutralen politschen Anal...

Natural Connections is an environmental education program, run by Irvine Nature Center, in which Irvine staff train Baltimore City high school students to teach hands-on science lessons to elementary school students. The goals of the program are to nurture a positive attitude towards nature, to increase knowledge about nature, and to provide outdoo...