BERG: Fostering pupils’ interest in science at Higher Education & beyond

The session presented details of a successful University of East Anglia (UEA) science outreach widening participation project called Bringing Scientists To You. This innovative programme, for students in Year 8 and Year 9, involves UEA academics and PhD students delivering hands-on practical workshops in school classrooms. These link to a diversity of science subjects available at Higher Education (HE) and careers, involving topics and concepts that are familiar to the students from their current studies and relatable real world examples.

This talk included details of the content used for demonstrating Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Environmental Science, Computing and Mathematics in practical workshops. The programme is run at three host schools/colleges across Norfolk, over four days. The session revealed how UEA delivers the workshops to around 400 students from up to 22 local schools each year whose pupils are from the most underrepresented groups in HE. It was discussed how this project is part of a number that pupils can receive throughout their education journey with UEA and how it aims to build their science capital. Feedback from the programme was shared showing positive impact on pupils at least one year after the event.

While the talk focused on the conference theme of practicals in a classroom, some of the other themes were incorporated such as how professional journeys that students might take are communicated through the use of role models, the research that has taken place on the project to establish success and how sustainability, climate change and environmental issues are linked into some of the sessions.