Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events
Space education not only plays a key role in helping young people understand the natural world and their impact on the planet but is also vital in ensuring that future generations can make meaningful contributions to the space sector at all levels. Positive perceptions of the space sector can lead y...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2021.750952/full |
| _version_ | 1818998051250896896 |
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| author | Joseph Roche Joseph Roche Laura Bell Mairéad Hurley Aaron M. Jensen Aaron M. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Brendan Owens Grace D’Arcy Jorge Rivero González Pedro Russo Pedro Russo |
| author_facet | Joseph Roche Joseph Roche Laura Bell Mairéad Hurley Aaron M. Jensen Aaron M. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Brendan Owens Grace D’Arcy Jorge Rivero González Pedro Russo Pedro Russo |
| author_sort | Joseph Roche |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Space education not only plays a key role in helping young people understand the natural world and their impact on the planet but is also vital in ensuring that future generations can make meaningful contributions to the space sector at all levels. Positive perceptions of the space sector can lead young people to take roles where they can contribute to new knowledge, develop new technologies, and tackle societal challenges. As the relationship between science and society is tested by global events—such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic—scientific trust and accountability have become topics of frequent and public debate. The way in which young people engage with space education and perceive their potential involvement with the space sector is of greater importance now than ever before. This paper describes a two-year European space education project that was carried out before and during the COVID-19 global pandemic. An evaluation of the project activities showed that young people are generally enthusiastic about space, but their perceptions of the European space sector—and their connections to it—are less positive. Recommendations are made on the challenges facing the space sector and how it needs to adapt to better support the development of a more inclusive space education community. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T21:55:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0f1a1fef71c94e609934a2abec296fc7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-284X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T21:55:23Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-0f1a1fef71c94e609934a2abec296fc72022-12-21T19:25:28ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Education2504-284X2021-11-01610.3389/feduc.2021.750952750952Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education EventsJoseph Roche0Joseph Roche1Laura Bell2Mairéad Hurley3Aaron M. Jensen4Aaron M. Jensen5Eric A. Jensen6Eric A. Jensen7Brendan Owens8Grace D’Arcy9Jorge Rivero González10Pedro Russo11Pedro Russo12School of Education, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandScience Gallery Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandSchool of Education, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandSchool of Education, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandResearch and Operations Department, Institute for Methods Innovation, Dublin, IrelandCONNECT Research Centre, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandResearch Department, Institute for Methods Innovation, Dublin, IrelandAdvanced Visualization Lab, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, United StatesScience Gallery Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandScience Gallery Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, IrelandLeiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, NetherlandsLeiden Observatory, Leiden University, Leiden, NetherlandsDepartment of Science Communication and Society, Leiden University, Leiden, NetherlandsSpace education not only plays a key role in helping young people understand the natural world and their impact on the planet but is also vital in ensuring that future generations can make meaningful contributions to the space sector at all levels. Positive perceptions of the space sector can lead young people to take roles where they can contribute to new knowledge, develop new technologies, and tackle societal challenges. As the relationship between science and society is tested by global events—such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic—scientific trust and accountability have become topics of frequent and public debate. The way in which young people engage with space education and perceive their potential involvement with the space sector is of greater importance now than ever before. This paper describes a two-year European space education project that was carried out before and during the COVID-19 global pandemic. An evaluation of the project activities showed that young people are generally enthusiastic about space, but their perceptions of the European space sector—and their connections to it—are less positive. Recommendations are made on the challenges facing the space sector and how it needs to adapt to better support the development of a more inclusive space education community.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2021.750952/fullspace educationscience and societysocial inclusion of youthscience communicationpublic engagementinformal learning |
| spellingShingle | Joseph Roche Joseph Roche Laura Bell Mairéad Hurley Aaron M. Jensen Aaron M. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Eric A. Jensen Brendan Owens Grace D’Arcy Jorge Rivero González Pedro Russo Pedro Russo Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events Frontiers in Education space education science and society social inclusion of youth science communication public engagement informal learning |
| title | Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events |
| title_full | Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events |
| title_fullStr | Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events |
| title_short | Perceptions of the European Space Sector: Youth Engagement With Space Education Events |
| title_sort | perceptions of the european space sector youth engagement with space education events |
| topic | space education science and society social inclusion of youth science communication public engagement informal learning |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2021.750952/full |
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