Distance learning practice features among presentations at CALRG Confererence 2021

"Rather than consequences in-and-of-itself COVID-19 has made visible the digital inequalities already present in the UK. "

"Going into the pandemic half a million UK kids did not have access to both a decent device nor broadband – despite many proposals and programmes this figure has not greatly fallen. Many digital health services were not accessible via devices owned by older users, nor has Zoom addressed issues of loneliness for many people. "

"Digital inclusion 'is everyone’s problem but no one owns it'. It cuts across government departments, local and national government, education, health, and the work of the charity sector. Solutions need to address policy, access, skills, efficacy and capabilities and therefore needs these groups to come together to deliver local solutions and interventions. There are great examples of this from all round the world that can be drawn upon."

"The biggest benefit we’ve seen is the potential to help re-shape community members’ dispositions towards STEM - emphasising how they think of STEM, what it looks like in everyday settings, and who can engage in it. When we take these hyperlocal approaches, community members who previously had not seen STEM as relevant to their lives began to see ways that they could engage in STEM and ways in which it was pertinent to their day-to-day lives and responsibilities.

Additionally, STEM in these contexts has a different look and engagement style - often being much less formal than people typically think of STEM environments. Instead of Bunson burners and flasks, youth are using mixers and ovens, thinking about how they can use science to perfect dishes. For some who are used to more formal learning environments and approaches to STEM, such environments can help them recognise science when it’s happening in these informal ways. In each of these cases, the benefits of such dispositions are that community members expand what it looks like to do science and who can engage in it, opening the door for those previously disconnected to see ways they can contribute uniquely to science."

"Yes! That has been one of the most exciting parts of the Science Everywhere project. In this space, we’ve had researchers working alongside community volunteers and youth to engage in science experiences relevant to the community. When we first began the project, we were really focused on youth dispositions towards science, which of course are really important. What we observed over time was that the adults’ dispositions were beginning to shift as well, having many additional benefits for youth and the community more broadly."

"I believe... that the true benefit is the development of a virtuous cycle of science learning and community development that persists beyond any one project and that has the potential to reach large swaths of the community. As community members see the value of science in their communities and daily lives, they begin to think of their own new endeavours and activities that leverage science to advance the community."