Scientists and Public Engagement – STAGE (UoC)
Perfilado de sección
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Title:
What can be done to deal with misinformation regarding scientific issues & public’s distrust towards science?
General description of the module - Structure:
The course consists of three parts. In particular, the first part aims at target groups’ familiarization with the public's knowledge, beliefs, attitudes towards science and particularly towards climate change by giving emphasis on the role of media. The second part refers to the factors causing public’s distrust in science and the ways of increasing trust in science while the third part provides scientists and science communicators with the opportunity to reflect on their science communication activities & practices.
PARTS
Content – Description
Part 1
Misinformation regarding climate change – The role of media
Debunking fake news / misconceptions about climate change
Part 2
Public’s distrust towards science
The value of entrusting science
What can be done to increase public’s trust in science
Part 3
Implications for science communication activities & practices
The module has been initially developed and implemented in a blended format (see Project Result 2). In particular, the target groups had to explore multiple selected resources regarding the topics under examination in advance (based on the resources that can be found in the Toolkit (Project Result 1) and the developed infographics (Project Result 3) and take part in face – to – face, synchronous meetings to deeper discuss and be engaged with the topic based on the materials available on: http://project-stage.eu/.
At the same time, the whole unit can be also implemented asynchronously by following the sections below (Project Result 4). The whole module aims at a deeper final online discussion and reflection, while working with the active participation in the topic.
Duration of course: 5 hours
Target groups: Scientists, Researchers, Early Career Researchers, Faculty members involved in science communication activities & science communicators
General Objectives:
- Familiarization with public’s perspectives & attitudes towards climate change
- Familiarization with the factors that cause public’s distrust in science and with ways of increasing public’s trust in science
- Understanding of the implications for science communication activities & practices
Useful resources: See STAGE Toolkit (Project Result 1) & Infographics (Project Result 3).
For more information, please, click here.
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Core ideas – Content:
- Common misinformation regarding climate change
- How & why misinformation is established in public’s views
- The role of media
Objectives:
- Getting familiar with the most common misinformation regarding climate change
- Understanding why misinformation is established in public’s views
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Brief description: Through Activity 1 participants get familiar with the most common misinformation regarding climate change. In particular, they are asked to analyze seven comics and images that are very popular on social media and internet resources in order to recognize the ideas and fake news that are usually spread through these means.
Duration: 30 minutes
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Brief description: This activity provides the participants with the opportunity to get familiar with the features of misinformation in order subsequently to be able to recognize fake news and fallacies. Thus, the participants are initially asked to read online newspaper titles and social media posts that promote climate change misinformation and to analyze the characteristics of such titles and the reasons why they are “sticky”. Finally, they are asked to reflect on how these perspectives and fake news are established in public’s beliefs.
Duration: 60 minutes
Recommendation: The participants is useful to read the Practical resource 20 from STAGE toolkit titled: “The Debunking Handbook 2020”.
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Brief description: Activity 3 aims to familiarize the participants with a common debunking strategy. In particular, they are asked to develop reasonable refutations on a common climate change misinformation based on this debunking strategy.
Duration: 30 minutes
Recommendation: The participants is useful to read the Practical resource 20 from STAGE toolkit titled: “The Debunking Handbook 2020”.
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Part 2: A crisis of trust in science, scientists and institutions: How to overcome the public’s distrust in science?
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Core ideas – Content:
- What do we mean by saying Trust in Science
- Why Trust in science is important
- Which are the factors of causing distrust in science
- The role of the social practices of the scientific community in order to produce trustworthy scientific knowledge
- How to deal with uncertainty (science in the making VS established scientific knowledge)
Objectives:
- Understanding the factors of public’s distrust in science
- Understanding the ideas that should communicate in order to increase public’s trust in science
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Brief description: Activity 1 is an introductory activity in order participants to reflect on ongoing socioscientific questions and to consider whether it is possible for non - experts to be aware of all the current socioscientific issues and to make informed decisions about them. Thus, the need to know who, why and how to trust arises.
Duration: 30 minutes -
Brief description: Initially, the participants are asked to read a scientific paper about the aspects of nature of science based on the Family Resemblance Approach which describes the cognitive, epistemic and social aspects of science. In this way, the participants get familiar with a more holistic image of science. Subsequently, they are asked to consider which of the aspects of the nature of science they would discuss with the public in order to increase public's trust in science.
Duration: 1 hour
Recommendation: Read the following paper by giving emphasis on the description of the cognitive – epistemic and social aspects of science:
Erduran, S., Dagher, Z. R., & McDonald, C. V. (2019). Contributions of the family resemblance approach to nature of science in science education: A review of emergent research and development. Science & Education, 28, 311-328. -
Brief description: Activity 3 focuses on the role of scientific expertise in order for people to be able to evaluate the source they should trust. Thus, the participants read several cards with experts and they are asked to decide the source – expert they would be based on in order to take action in the context of climate change.
Duration: 30 minutes
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Core ideas – Content:
- Practices for effective science communication activities in order to increase public’s trust in science.
Objectives:
- Using FRA social aspects of science as tools for developing a holistic view of science and re – building public’s trust in science
- Redesigning current science communication practices in order to aim at enhancing public’s trust in science
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Brief description: Initially, the participants are asked to consider the strategies they think are possible to be implemented in their current science communication activities in order to enhance the public's trust in science. Afterwards, they try to re - design the goals and structure of one of their current activities and the other members of the group provide feedback.
Duration: 1 hour
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