Design Effective Informal Physics Education Experiences

When communicating with a wider audience about physics, you are likely engaging in informal physics education and public engagement, forms of physics education outside of formal educational structures, such as a classroom. There are a wide range of activities related to informal physics education and public engagement, but a key part of all of these activities is that the facilitator and participants are both mutually engaged in exploring physics topics together, with an emphasis on curiosity and excitement.

A similar term for this kind of education may be "outreach;" however, this term can imply a one-way, hierarchical interaction. Instead, we use terms like "informal physics education" and "public engagement" because they capture the mutual interaction that is more likely to make for interesting, fulfilling, and successful activities to spark interest in physics and foster a sense of belonging in science.

Public engagement guiding principles

When planning public engagement opportunities, APS encourages you to align with these guiding principles:

• Partnership and mutual engagement: Foster long-term collaborations rather than one-time visits to build sustainable relationships and community confidence.
• Listening and trust: Focus on these essential foundations for understanding and effective communication.
• Reflecting and evaluating: Regularly assess the impact of your initiatives and make iterative improvements.
• Equity and inclusion: Ensure that all activities, policies, and programs are accessible and inclusive to diverse participants.

Guiding questions

When designing informal physics education experiences that are inclusive, accessible, and meet the needs of everyone involved, consider some guiding questions before you begin:

• Have you identified the need for a public engagement event or program?
  One of the most essential parts of planning a public engagement event or program is to consider how the community's needs and interests fit with your own. Reflect on your goals, interests, and purpose for organizing the program, as well as the context and needs of the community where it will take place.
• Have you identified participants and considered their needs, goals, and prior experiences?
  Strive to understand not just what your participants know about the topic but also how you can connect the topic to their lived experiences. Intentionally listen to your collaborators to deeply understand their needs and perspective with a goal of creating an environment where you both can achieve your mutual goals.
• Have you identified (potential) collaborators and considered their needs, goals, and prior experiences?
  Look for existing local organizations and individuals already engaged in your community as potential collaborators and volunteers. Partner with teachers, museum educators, librarians, etc., to avoid the pitfalls of the “drop-in” expert model and to support culturally responsive engagement.
• Have you identified what you hope to learn from the participants?
  Public engagement is multidirectional – events and programs can help support physics research and improve scientists’ communication skills. Recognize that participants contribute their own knowledge and perspectives, and be open to expanding or changing your own viewpoint.
• Stop and check: Do your goals align with those of your participants and collaborators?
  If your goals do align, you have likely successfully identified the purpose of your public engagement event or program! If not, ask yourself, What change would you need to make to your goals to bring them into alignment?
• Have you identified ways to make your event inclusive and welcoming?
  Thoughtful science communication is a co-creative process that can remove traditional barriers between the scientist and the public. Use clear, simple language and avoid jargon. Define complex terms clearly the first time you use them. Engage with the participants through storytelling, analogies, and visually appealing materials that prioritize making complex concepts relatable and understandable.
• Have you determined how to implement accessible and culturally responsive practices?
  Consider who is represented in your materials and your team and who is not. What examples will you draw on and what cultural knowledge do those examples assume of the participants? Providing access to content is not enough to remove barriers for people who have been historically marginalized in science. Apply Universal Design for Learning Guidelines and culturally responsive practices to support your planning process.
• Have you set goals and outcomes and considered how to measure them?
  Goals should be specific and measurable. Define your intended impact to guide the format of your engagement. For example, will your goals be better served by an interactive after-school program or maybe a science series at your local library?
• Have you determined which data and metrics to collect and how to do so equitably? How will the feedback guide future events or programs?
  Decide what resources or tools you will need to be successful in gathering and analyzing data. Consider how you can directly incorporate these metrics into the design of your event or program.
• Have you considered how to document your event or program for future reference and learning?
  Whether or not you share or publish the outcomes of your event or program, having documentation you may refer to when planning for the future is useful. Consider sharing your successes and failures within your community to support future public engagement initiatives.
• Have you defined and tested the content, strategies, format, and materials for your event or program?
  Integrate your objectives with local or state educational standards, connect with community partners to participate in their events, and work with collaborators who are locally or regionally established. They have great ideas about what works in the context of your community.
• Have you promoted the event or program and prepared for risks or contingencies?
  Whenever possible, align your activities with existing educational programs and systems – they will often have marketing strategies and contingency plans already in place.
• Have you identified available and needed resources as well as chosen a venue for your event based on your participants' and collaborators' needs?
  Clearly identifying needed resources is a good way to open the door to engagement with potential funders and donors. Be sure to communicate with your collaborators to finalize these requests.
• Have you considered all accessibility needs for your participants and collaborators?
  Consider if all participants and collaborators will be able to say, “I can use this resource to its fullest potential. I can see myself represented. My needs are anticipated and accommodated.” There are many forms of accessibility to consider, including mobility, cognitive, economic, and temporal accessibility. The Universal Design for Learning Guidelines are an evidence-based framework to help support your accessible design.

Additional resources

For more information about creating inclusive, accessible public engagement opportunities, we encourage you to read "Fostering connection: Principles and practices for well-designed public engagement in physics." You can also view a checklist version of the guiding questions (PDF) posed in this article and a related presentation about guiding principles and questions for public engagement (PDF).

Contact

Please email the APS Public Engagement team with questions. We love to help our members design effective public engagement experiences.