Schools of all backgrounds can do physics research – on the accessibility and equity of the Physics Research in School Environments (PRiSE) approach to independent research projects
2021
Abstract. Societal biases are a major issue in school students' access to and
interaction with science. School engagement programmes in science
from universities, like independent research projects, which could
try and tackle these problems are, however, often inequitable. We
evaluate these concerns applied to one such programme, Physics Research
in School Environments (PRiSE), which features projects in space
science, astronomy, and particle physics. Comparing the schools involved
with PRiSE to those of other similar schemes and UK national statistics,
we find that PRiSE has engaged a much more diverse set of schools with significantly more disadvantaged groups than is typical. While
drop-off occurs within the protracted programme, we find no evidence
of systematic biases present. The majority of schools that complete
projects return for multiple years with the programme, with this repeated
buy-in from schools again being unpatterned by typical societal inequalities. Therefore, a school's ability to succeed in independent research projects
appears independent of background within the PRiSE framework. Qualitative
feedback from teachers shows that the diversity and equity of the programme,
which they attribute to the level of support offered through PRiSE's
framework, is valued, and they have highlighted further ways of making
the projects potentially even more accessible. Researcher involvement,
uncommon in many other programmes, along with teacher engagement and
communication are found to be key elements to success in independent
research projects overall.
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