- 27 Mar, 2021
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science communicator
This week’s activity and final submission provides you an independent opportunity for creativity and application as you practice with lessons we’ve covered this term. Specifically, this lab is designed to practice skills related to:
Critical thinking about research
Careful description of scientific literature to a public audience
Application of content related to the process of learning to an applied student context
In this activity, you are going to assume the role of a science communicator. “SciComm” is a career path that focuses on translating academic and scholarly research into a message that is easily understood and relevant for a specific (or general!) audience.
For example, David Suzuki, Bill Nye the Science Guy, Jane Goodall, Ms. Frizzle in the Magic School Bus, and Sesame Street can all be considered as various types of science communication.
Being famous, or being on TV aren’t the only career paths in SciComm. Indeed, many work “behind the scenes” developing evidence-based content into a form that is accessible to the target audience. Others write books, develop reputable blogs, create public service campaigns, design and evaluate public education programs, design museum exhibits, and more—the opportunities are many!
SciCommers have at least one very important feature in common: In SciComm, it is very important in that messages are accurate and grounded in evidence. Folks working in SciComm have the ability and responsibility to communicate science as accurately as possible to help inform varied audiences of important findings.
Are you interested in learning more about just one example of SciComm from psychological science? Here is Dr. Wendy Craig, from our Queen’s Department of Psychology, talking about her work in the prevention of bullying.
Your target audience is broad—you can choose who you will create this message for. Using what you’ve learned from PSYC100, please create a communication (as described below) that teaches about an aspect of your choosing related to mental health. Be sure your communication is grounded in evidence from PSYC100!
SciComm is exciting for many professionals because it is an area where artistic style and science can interact. This activity embraces this opportunity: you can choose any one of the following mediums to present your communication. We will be grading on content, not medium, so feel free to express your message in the format that you prefer.
Write no more than 1 sentence at the beginning of your submission, indicating who your target audience is.
Write a 1 page double-spaced (max) article outlining evidence-based insights into your topic of choice related to mental health.