#SciComm (articles)

Science center or museum exhibits are an amazing means of demonstrating scientific ideas while providing visitors with a unique experience. Paying attention to every detail about them is crucial; from the design, through prototyping, to execution, and then maintenance.

Interaction is such a keyword while looking for success in different life settings. While learning through books, videos, and such could be good for acquiring knowledge, interaction creates a channel between the sender and receiver. Through this channel a flood of information could be better delivered and absorbed, especially with children who are still unable to know their way, literally and metaphorically.

Intending to raise innovators, well-equipped with knowledge, and have a well-rounded educational background that would help them with the nature of future jobs, educators have been developing different methods to spark interest and passion in learners to learn more about different subjects, to be able to choose the pathway they want to pursue. That is because, even if they would like to pursue a career in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, they will also need a baseline of different skills to adapt to their academic or professional careers.

While educational institutions that deliver formal and informal science education play a key role in science communication and enriching people interested in science with knowledge, this does not mean these institutions are the sole places where this could be done. In other words, science cannot be confined within four walls.

Learning strategies are not created equal and so are their outcomes. This means that effort is not the only important factor in the learning process and should be exerted in the right direction, within the right strategy, to get better outcomes. Therefore, teaching learners to use effective learning strategies on their own is as important as teaching teachers to implement that in their teaching process.

Setting goals is the one sure way to get to what you want, even if it is difficult and requires strenuous effort. However, just as goals differ in their specification, they differ in achievability, which is determined by the framework they are set within.

You may remember the broken bridge that you created while still a child to carry a huge truck, till it came into pieces. You might have tried another one, with better construction to be more solid; once, twice and more. To be more aware and confident with your construction, you might have used your senses to explore the physical properties of materials, took things apart then put them together to figure out how things work.

What makes us like some places and willing to visit them many times but feel estranged from others is the feeling of belonging that some spaces provide while others lack. Schools and learning environments are no exception; if a learning space engages its visitors, makes them feel welcomed and that they belong to it, better results would be achieved. Yet, how could this be that important to the enrichment of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields?

Every journey has its unique good, bad, and hard times; the journeys of female scientists in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) are always a source of inspiration. Even though some of these journeys may intersect at some points, each one remains special with its challenges and outcomes.

Dr. Atheer Awad has recently been honoured as one of 15 innovators from the MENA region under 35 by MIT Technology Review, for her outstanding and highly-impactful work.