A Reverse Science Fair that Connects High School Students with University Researchers

Many university science outreach programs involve presentations of research projects to high school students. These presentations often focus more on exciting scientific content and less on fostering direct relationships between high school students and scientists. Such interactions are important for sustaining student interest in science throughout high school and into college. The Reverse Science Fair seeks to build relationships between high school students and graduate student researchers by swapping the roles that each play during a traditional science fair. Graduate student researchers are introduced as young scientists devoted to asking their own research questions and finding their own answers. This facilitates discussion not only about the scientific method and the research being presented, but also about researchers’ personal experiences in the laboratory. Graduate students from Tufts University (Medford, MA), in October 2015, first exhibit and discuss their own research at poster presentations ...