Effective Communication of the Results of Our Work in PER

What’s working, what we ought to know, and what we need to do better

G e t t i n g t h e w o r d o u t

Stephanie ChasteenUniversity of Colorado @ Boulder

Illustration: Tom Tomorrow

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Audio: David Kestenbaum & Marvin Marshak: Neutrinos

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Here’s a slightly different view of a face. Here is that same image right-side up. I hardly need to tell you, we are tuned to understand things that are familiar. Faces are familiar to us right-side-up. We don’t notice that there is something weird about it when it’s in this unfamiliar place. So, it’s always important to use familiar things to help people understand something new. We know that, we’re educators. So I want to play you a piece from the radio that does this really well, with something that certainly isn’t familiar to most people. I want you to listen to this, and listen especially for how he ties it to the familiar and makes us want to keep listening. What does this piece of radio have to do with science education? This is really scaffolding, just in communication form -- start where people are at. Here is an excellent example of scaffolding with something familiar to get to something really unfamiliar. Notice the nice use of metaphor and analogy as well.

My points for today

Good communication is important

We can learn from the science communication field

But more is needed

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The earth is warming

Data: IPCC, Opinion Research Corporation

Americans who believe that there is solid evidence of climate change:

Those who believe that it’s caused by human activity

57%

36%

Denver commuters who don’t drive alone!

31%

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Student-centered instruction helps students learn

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0.08 0.14 0.20 0.26 0.32 0.38 0.44 0.50 0.56 0.62 0.68

Fractio

n o

f Courses

traditional lecture! interactive engagement!

fraction of

courses !

normalized learning gain! less learning more learning!

Those who use at least one RBIS

Physicists who are aware of 3 or more RBIS’s 68%

Users of “peer instruction” who include peer instruction

27%

49%

Hake, “A 6,000 student study....”, AJP 66, 1998Dancy & Henderson, “Pedagogical Practices and instructional change of faculty,” AJP 78(10), 2010.Henderson & Dancy, “Impact of PER on the teaching of introductory qualitative physics in the US,” PRST-PER, 5, 020107, 2009.

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We have a similar problem to climate change scientists -- we have data that we think should effect behavior change, but that doesn’t happen.

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0.08 0.14 0.20 0.26 0.32 0.38 0.44 0.50 0.56 0.62 0.68

Fractio

n o

f Courses

traditional lecture! interactive engagement!

fraction of

courses !

normalized learning gain! less learning more learning!

How can we get our message across

neutrinos

climate change

and enable behavior change?

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Neutrinos:- message and information that we want to convey.- but no action required

Climate change-we want people to act based on this information. We want to persuade people.- Both issues are both cultural and scientific. So, apt analogy.- But unlike climate science, we don’t have an active skeptic campaign

- The ways to communicate well, and how this can lead to action, are all part of the science communication literature. Why do Americans keep buying SUV’s when they know about climate change? Why aren’t we taking advantage of this literature? They are struggling with many of the same things that we are.

a success story

Image by Tomasz SienickiWong & McMurray, Framing communication: Communicating the antismoking message effectively to all smokers. J. of Community Psychology, 30(4) (2002).

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Successful mass media campaignscientific information --> fewer smokers start, more qitLarge number of people (rather than individual doctors)Progress to be made (24% smoke)

Get message out PLUS investigate how smokers respond to informationThose with desire to quit vs those with no intention to quitGain vs loss: “quitting smoking will reduce your risk of lung cancer” or a loss, “not quitting smoking will increase your risk of lung cancer.” Positive frame --> those thinking about quittingNegative frame --> spur those not thinking about to action.

Implications for PER. We should be drawing on lit. And of course behavioral economics. Not that talk. Want to see that talk.

first, an outline of communication

message

audienceinformation

behaviorattitudes & beliefs

media & scientists

public

messenger

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Message: We often want to get engagement in terms of information, emotion, and behaviorReceiver = public, policy makersphysics teachers, policy makers, other researchers

Model 1:

public

media & scientists

message

let’s educate that ignorant public

scientific literacy (1960-1980’s)

information

Bauer, Allum and Miller, “What can we learn from 25 years of PUS survey research?” Public Understanding of Science, 16, 2007.

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They recognized that there was a real lack of understanding of science among the publicSo we undertook scientific literacy campaigns.

the deficit model

“The deficit model assumes that the public are empty vessels waiting to be filled with useful information upon which they will rationally act.”

Nerlich, Koteyko, and Brown, “Theory and language of climate change communication,” Wiley Interdisciplinary reviews, 1, 2010.

science

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We know model = transmissionist.Usually use when talk about why lecture ineffectiveSci-com = “deficit model”And I argue we do this in PER, but

We know that people make choices for irrational reasons, but we keep trying to convince people with rational data. But (a) people’s heads aren’t empty, so information transfer doesn’t work, and (b) people’s decisions aren’t rational. There are several books about how we decide, based on cognitive psychology and behavioral economics. I think we can learn from this literature, but behavioral economics isn’t really what I want to talk about today. Rather, the deficit model doesn’t work because (a) people aren’t blank slates, and (b) once they are informed, that information doesn’t necessarily lead to action. Information on its own isn’t persuasive. That’s the behavioral economics piece.

“Typically, dissemination involves informing the faculty of the research-based innovation, convincing them of the need for the innovation, and providing them with new curricular materials. Although this model is intuitive, it is not based on data and has not

been shown to be effective”‐Dancy&Henderson

Dancy & Henderson, “Pedagogical Practices and instructional change of faculty,” AJP 78(10), 2010.

Henderson, Beach & Finkelstein, “Four Categories of Change Strategies...” Transitions and Transgressions in Learning & Education, accepted.

Example ideas of this mode: •“faculty typically lack knowledge about student-centered instruction”•“change takes time, we need to be patient”•“Once faculty are convinced, they’ll share with their colleagues.”

there is a deficit model in PER

Literature review (Henderson et al.; N=100)

“Disseminating pedagogy & curriculum”

30% of all articles~50% of all SER

RBIS & pedagogy

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We do this in PER. “If I just had 30 minutes of their time, they would understand.”Or, as Dancy says, - Develop and disseminate curriculum- Expect change- Wonder why change didn’t happen- Blame faculty- RepeatHenderson and others did a systematic literature review in the DBER, faculty develoment, and higher education literature. Ignoring the others, SER is pretty much PER. This was definitely one of the dominant modes of communication in SER. The types of ideas expressed in these articles show that we’re still fairly stuck in the dissemination mode in our communications, at least in written form. Not entirely, but wait for that.We need to get out of this dissemination mode.

Model 2:

public

media & scientists

message

public understanding of science

(1985-1990’s)

information

attitudes & beliefs

the public is insufficiently “in love” with STEM

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They recognized that a lot of the problem wasn’t that the public didn’t know much about science, but that they had a bad attitude. The public is insufficiently “in love” with STEM. So, they wanted not just to educate, but to seduce the public. The more information they have, the more they’ll agree with the experts. THe problem is, research shows that this isn’t true -- there isn’t a good correlation between attitudes and knowledge. Plus, this is schizophrenic. a deficient public can’t be trusted.

is there an attitude problem towards PER?

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We feel that there is a negative attitude towards PER and that we have to convince faculty that we are on their side.But the data doesn’t seem to support this. It may be that 20 years ago, faculty felt negatively towards PER. And maybe the old guard still does. But Henderson, Dancy and Turpen’s recent data shows that -- overall -- faculty are bought-in to PER based methods, and believe that more interactivity is important. Do we not trust faculty, like the media and policy makers didn’t trust the public? Do we see faculty as deficient?

Model 3:

public

media & scientists

message

we should educate them, and let them

participate

science & society(mid-1990’s to present)

the scientists’ & media

attitudes are the problem

information

behavioremotion

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We have the problem. THe public is being alienated by our prejudices. We have to determine what their interests are, and hear their concerns. We should let them participate in policy decisions. There is a movement towards dialogue and discussion, such as with community forums and science cafe’s.

For example, GM foods there was a lot of public outcry. So with nanotech they created discussion forums. The jury is still out on whether the dialogue part is helpful.

But what we know is helpful is paying attention to our audience and what they need. After all, this is what worked in education, right? We researched student difficulties and gave education based on what we know they struggle with.

but why bother?conceptual change is hard

what can an article or a talk do?

create awareness

expose to new ideas

plant a seed

inspire

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We know how hard conceptual change is. Many instructors know about RBIS methods, but few use them, or use them properly. We need to work with departments on institutional structures, create sustained workshops that, over time, help instructors to reflect upon and transform their teaching. So, why bother to think about how we communicate in these articles and talks and other communication modes?

Well, I went to what I consider the Carl Sagan of PER. He’s been tremendously successful in getting some of our key messages across. This talk alone has been given about 400 times, and he sometimes gives is 2 or 3 times a week. So I asked him. Why bother spending all this time and energy doing what he does, giving talks and lectures?

So, the communication can help create awareness. And this works. When Dancy interviewed physics faculty, she found that many of them try PI because they hear Mazur talk and get excited to try it. They first find out about the method through a talk or a colleague, and then turn to written materials to learn more. So, this works. And because it’s worked, we need to keep doing it, but doing it even better.Think of Brian Greene’s Elegant Universe on PBS. DId that create a new generation of string theorists? No, that’s what’s called “edutainment”. It inspires and motivates. These people know how to do this well.

message

•credible•trustworthy•similar

•who are they?•affects message•needs research

Let’s focus on PER communication

PERmessenger

physics teachersaudience16

OK, so now I hope I’ve convinced you that there are a lot of similarities between science communication and PER communication. So I’ll talk now for a little bit about what makes effective communication, and how that relates to PER. And how we need to do better.

Messenger: This is our first hurdle. We could be seen as biased. This is why we’re so lucky to have Mazur. He’s seen as credible, friendly. He’s a Harvard prof. He started out like most instructors. He’s like a better version of every physics teacher, yet he’s not stuck up, he’s funny. He’s a great messenger. We can learn from him to be seen as trusted messengers.

Audience:Physicists (open or closed). Media. Policy makers. Climate change has done a lot of work surveying the public and finding out perceptions, then tailoring communication. Are they skeptical of social science? If so, in what way? Create research based brochures or talking points. Research-based communication. Let’s focus on talking to other physicists for now. This is a big area that needs research. What do physicists need from our communication? What are their ideas and beliefs? What do they struggle with in implementation? This is a huge area of research that is needed, and I’ll come back to this. But if we at least know more about our audience, we can provide a more targeted message. That is really the two-way part of communication -- finding out about our audience, just like we find out about our students in order to hone our education.

message

3 key

points

build from

familiar

no jargon

keep it simple

know your audience

metaphors, analogy,

examples

make it relevant

tell a story

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I’m going to go over some aspects of effective messages quickly, because you know these things already.

People have prior knowledge & beliefs

Scaffold understanding

Motivation is important to learning

Don’t exceed cognitive load

Make it relevant / connect to everyday life

Respect learners

These should seem familiar...

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But these shouldn’t be too surprising, you should see a lot of parallels with what we do. THis is just education translated into a mostly one-way form.

stories are so important

Audio: Christopher Joyce and William Eberhard, A Spider’s WebImage: Luc Viatour, www.lucnix.be

message

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Every master communicator knows the power of storytelling. We are very tuned into narrative, this is how we understand the world. Stories make it personal, and make us care, tapping into the emotional side of things. They help concretize data in experience. And, perhaps more importantly, stories give us a framework or a mental model on which to hang our understanding and memory.

Here’s an example of a story from veteran reporter Christopher Joyce of NPR. You’re going to remember this science better, he sets us up to understand what the wasp is doing to the spider, by creating a mystery. This is the story of a study.

Mazur is expert at this. I asked Mazur why he thinks his talks are so successful. Tell story of his demos. .Joyce + Mazur = inspire curiousity. Setting up a study so we’re curious to hear the results will do a lot to keep our attention during the rest of hte talk.

Why do people want to hear his talk in person? A lot of communication research has found that in person communication is more impactful than media. Dancy, Henderson and Turpen also found that social contacts were most important (in person or face to face) for someone to try an innovation.

prior beliefs

• Evidence of effectiveness from personal experience

• Dissatisfied with traditional lecture

• It’s important for students to be actively engaged

message

Why do faculty try peer instruction?

- Dancy, Henderson & Turpen faculty interviews, analysis in progress20

Faculty are trying things that sound like good ideas because of their prior beliefs about what good teaching is.We need more information about those prior ideas so that we can fit our messages in with those beliefs and mental models. . We want to cue productive mental models with our communication In fact, a lot of the successful communications in our field are probably successful because they do fit with these previous models.

Q: What are physics teachers mental models?

framing

message

“Many scientists believe...”

“A threat worse than terrorism”

“What Would Jesus Drive”

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The words we choose and the ideas we highlight help the audience to interpret our information. It also helps to tap into certain types of mental models. And it influences the persuasiveness of the message. Anti-climate = doubt. “threat worse than terrorism” frames it as a violent issue“What would Jesus Drive” is a campaign that frames environmentalism as a religious, stewardship issueTHe frame that is most effective will depend on your audience. And I just want to remind you of the smoking example I used before. This is a great example of framing an issue -- smoking is framed as a health issue, as a social problem, as dirty. And this completely changed the way that the population viewed smoking. And of course, that positive or negative frame is also a frame. The way we frame our messages changes the persuasiveness of our message.

Q: What are the frames that we have used?

but... is data & information important?message

“Knowledge is Power ”‐FrancisBacon

Corollary:LackofKnowledgeislackofpower

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The deficit model doesn’t work so... do we want to include information? To include data? Yes, of course we do. Our message still includes facts and information. We don’t want to be all “spin”, but rather to provide some information so we can have informed conversations with faculty.BUT, data backs up our arguments, is not an argument in itself.

what role does data have?message

background

supporting details (data)

results & conclusions

scientist model

journalist model

bottom line

key details (data)

back-ground

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But the question is ... what role data plays. Where we bring it in. As scientists, we generally give the background to our field, give some supporting details about our study, and build up to the grand finale -- the results.Journalists follow the opposite structure. They start with the bottom line, the so what. Then they’ll provide some important supporting details. Now, I’m not saying that this is how we should give our colloquia. But I think it’s something to keep in mind

“Data does not appear to be a convincing factor but is used to justify using the

innovation to others”

- Dancy, Henderson & Turpen, in progress

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So....We can create messages to get faculty

excited about using PER techniques

BUTAlmost half of faculty use an RBIS for only semester

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Mazur is incredibly effective at getting our message out because he’s a good communicator and uses these principles of good communication.And data indicates that this type of communication has been relatively successful in getting the word out.People get fired up when they hear Mazur talk, and they want to go out and try his ideas. We can do this locally. BUT . Faculty report knowing about RBIS’s but most don’t use them, or stop using them. Almost half stop using an RBIS after one semester. 30% of users stop using peer instruction. 50% stop using cooperative group problem solving.

Faculty get fired up when they hear Mazur talk, but then they go out and try to implement it and it all goes to hell. Getting a faculty to use your technique isn’t the end of the story.

what goes wrong?

image from http://www.pandemiclabs.com/blog/viral-marketing/does-your-advertising-agency-get-it/

we need to know & communicate about the challenges of implementation

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Faculty decide to use something, it doesn’t work, and they blame themselves or blame the method.But run into difficulties and challengesWe need more information about how to implement something in a local contextWe need to study secondary implementations to know what faculty come up againstWe need more informaation about what challenges people face in implementationAnd then we need to communicate about those challenges as part of our messageMaybe we’re afraid that they won’t try the technique if we tell them there might be challenges. But getting someone to try something doesn’t seem to be the big hurdle. It’s getting them to keep using it.

So, it is important to communicate well.

But we don’t just need to repeat our

message louder

1. Our message is incomplete

2. And we need more than just a message

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Why aren’t things working? We typically think, well, we need a better website, or more workshops. But that’s assuming that our message hasn’t gotten across. To some degree, it has. Faculty are bought into the idea of interactive engagement. They know about hte strategy. They have knowledge and beliefs about these strategies. What’s missing?

one is that our message is incomplete. As I said, we need to include the challenges and common difficulties as part of our message.

image from http://www.seniorsworldchronicle.com/2009/08/usa-professors-john-baldwin-68-and.html

there is a time for telling

but we need deeper engagement to change ideas

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Just like there is a time for lecturing to students, there is a time for communicating via messages, for conveying information, as we have been doing.But just like with students, if we want to change ideas, we need some room for deeper engagement.

The next generation of PER-Communication

physicists

PER

messageme

communities

policy

follow-up

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Just like science communication finally realized that they needed to engage the public more deeply in science through science cafe’s, etc, so do we need to find our next generation of communication.

Provide ongoing support structuresCreate follow-up opportunities. One-shot PD doesn’t work -- effective PD includes opportunities to continue to engage, to share problems and solutions, and get assistance in implementation.Build communities that help new users -- professional learning communities and communities of practice (CAE, modeling, teacher institute)And of course the other contextual factor is policy. Departmental support and encouragement is a big factor in people trying something new, by Dancy data. Plus, instructors don’t know when what they are doing is working or not. We all know the importance of feedback in changing student behavior. Faculty also need meaningful data, and student evaluations aren’t it. Providing meaningful evaluation measures on student learning is a key policy change.

we don’t need to speak louder. we need to speak better.

1.We should consult the research in science communication and behavior economics to find how it relates to PER.

2.Developing effective communication strategies for specific audiences is important in getting the PER messages across.

3.We need to broaden our message to include implementation challenges and go beyond communication to create communities and support structures for PER-reform efforts

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1. health campaigns, climate change, and other science communication has information that we need. Why not consult with experts in those fields to write white papers for our practitioners?

2. We need more audience research and more development of effective messages and talking points for our community. What works? What speaks to people? What can we glean from the communication literature to more effectively hone our messages and become excellent communicators?

3. People have gotten the message that PER exists, and that interactive engagement is good, and we need to now focus our message on implementation. How can others get the gains that developers have? We need research to inform this message, and we also need to form structures - like modeling or CAE - that give teachers a safe “home” where they can work on their practice.

We don’t just need to speak louder. We need to speak better.PER is a leader in science education research. If we begin to do research-based communication to fully communicate our message, do it well, and to use that communication to draw people into a broader support structure, we can lead the SER community in this important work.

Thank you!

Many thanks to Melissa Dancy for useful discussions, to both Dancy & Henderson for their valuable work, and to the PER group at CU-Boulder, and my many mentors in science communication including those at the Exploratorium & NPR (particularly Paul Doherty, David Kestenbaum & Richard Harris).

Upcoming: Learning About Teaching Physics.

PERTG-funded podcast on PER for teachers. Check http://blog.sciencegeekgirl.com.

I’m interviewing at FFPERPS! Come talk to me. Upcoming podcasts on lecture demos, PI, is lecture evil? and how tests help you learn

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“Instead of making them feel...to adopt research innovations because the researchers know best, these instructors would like the [PER] community to recognize that they have valuable experiences and expertise and work with them to improve teaching and

learning”

Dancy & Henderson, “Pedagogical Practices and instructional change of faculty,” AJP 78(10), 2010.

Henderson, Beach & Finkelstien, “Four Categories of Change Strategies...” Transitions and Transgressions in Learning & Education, accepted.

teaching is context-dependent and adaptation is necessary

time & effort are required to change instruction

we are advisors, and respect the expertise of teachers

sam

ple

idea

s

dialogue model in PER

literature survey

you are here

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We are moving in this direction in PER and it only took us 20 years instead of 40.