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Projects

CitSci diaries

Citizen diaries as a method to capture citizens’ engagement in science projects

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Enhancing the engagement of citizens within science participation communities is a focus of attention for researchers and practitioners who want to amplify the impact on learning, science and society.

Overview

Citizen diaries are proposed in this collaboration as an alternative or supplementary method to pre/post surveys, retrospective interviews and activity observation, for capturing daily changes to motivation and participation.

The WTimpact project at the host institution aims to elucidate the factors that make Citizen Science successful as a knowledge transfer tool. WTimpact involves citizens in three monitoring projects in Berlin and Leipzig, carrying out their own measurements and observations in the field, share and evaluate their data, and exchange their results and reflections on them with other citizens as well as the researchers.

The aim of this COST action collaboration between the Institute of Educational Technology (IET) and the Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (IPN), will be: (a) to develop a methodology (settings, instructions, modes, time-frame, evaluation) for applying diary studies in citizen science as a way of capturing citizen engagement and (b) to pilot the methodology with samples (translated into English) from a field study taking place in Berlin.

The role of IET

Devising the research instrument and evaluating citizen experience is reinforced by combining the expertise and knowledge of the Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (IPN) in diary studies in formal education settings, and the IET expertise in tracking participant engagement in citizen science.

Research programmes

Funders

  • European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST)

Partners

  • Kiel University