Visit CAISE at the ASTC 2017 Annual Conference

September 27th, 2017

The Association of Science-Technology Centers 2017 Annual Conference will be taking place October 21-24, 2017 in San Jose, CA. Join CAISE for concurrent sessions on Broadening Participation in STEM and on current and potential synergies between informal STEM education and science communication. CAISE will also be participating in the poster session, where staff and co-PIs will be on hand to share progress on the project’s expanded charge. Staff and co-PIs will also be available in the Exhibit Hall ASTC Resource Center on Saturday and Sunday to respond to questions and ideas, and provide support for using the InformalScience.org website.

 

Exhibit Hall

Visit CAISE in the ASTC Resource Center on October 21st & 22nd to grab a CAISE pen to write down everything you can learn about how to use InformalScience.org resources for developing projects, research, and evaluation.

Sessions

CAISE staff and co-PIs will lead the following conference sessions:

Broadening Participation in STEM: Where Do We Go From Here?

Session Leader & Moderator: Bronwyn Bevan, University of Washington

Presenters: Cecilia Garibay, Garibay Group and Angela Calabrese Barton, Michigan State University

Sunday, October 22, 2017: 1:15 PM-2:30 PM

In 2017, CAISE convened a task force on Broadening Participation in STEM. Leaders in the fields of informal science education and science communication reviewed the current evidence base (both research and practice) to identify gaps, strategies, and needs for strengthening our efforts to make STEM learning more relevant, empowering, and available to all.

Bridging Informal STEM Learning and Science Communication (Poster Presentation)

Session Leader: Grace Troxel, CAISE

Sunday, October 22 from 3:00-4:15 PM

The Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) was recently awarded a new five-year grant from NSF to bridge the informal STEM learning and science communication communities. CAISE will convene task forces around three areas of traction: broadening participation, connecting research and practice, and evaluation and measurement.

An Evolving Landscape of Opportunity: Informal Education and STEM Research Working Together

Session Leader & Moderator: Jamie Bell, Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education

Presenters: Martin Storksdieck, Oregon State University, Luisa Massarani, Museu da Vida, Kevin Crowley, University of Pittsburgh and Ann Bostrom, University of Washington

Monday, October 23 from 4:15-5:30 PM

How we identify as professionals and professional communities sometimes “silos” us from others whose work has relevance, findings and challenges that we can learn from and leverage. What are the current and potential ways that designers, evaluators and researchers of informal STEM learning and science communication experiences overlap, or not?

 

ASTC Sidetalks

New to conference this year, and in response an ASTC survey that identified the need for a space to have conversations and ad hoc gatherings outside of structured sessions, a designated seating area on the concourse will be the venue for ‘Sidetalks’. This space will be available for conference attendees to gather and discuss topics and issues of currency and interest to the field. Sign up at the Sidetalks space for a time slot to introduce a topic or join an existing discussion. In addition, the Sidetalks space will host ASTC and CAISE-facilitated discussions and debriefs with conference attendees and panelists immediately following a small number of pre-identified sessions on Saturday through Monday. Sessions nominated for Sidetalks will be clearly marked on signage outside the session rooms.