Public Engagement

Over the past 12 years, Dr Tansy Hammarton has been highly committed to delivering public engagement events and enhancing the culture for public engagement within her Institute and MVLS.

In the MVLS Engagement Awards she was an Individual Winner for Contributions to Public Engagement 2017 which celebrated the exceptional enthusiasm and commitment of staff. 

I obtained an RCUK academic/research fellowship in 2005 and as part of that, I was required to do some outreach work. 

I was given free rein to choose where I directed my activities, and as I’d always had a bit of a hankering after becoming a primary school teacher, and there was a government push at the time to promote science at the P7/S1 transition, I opted to work with upper primary pupils. 

I’d also been involved in an outreach project myself when I was around this age – I was a member of the young conservationists’ club Watch, and they sent out details of a ladybird project for members to get involved in.  I bred ladybirds in my kitchen for several months and wrote up my observations and sent them into Watch.  They forwarded them on to the scientist coordinating the project, Dr Mike Majerus at the University of Cambridge, and he later wrote me a personal reply congratulating me on my work and answering the questions I had asked in my write-up. 

The impact of this on me was immense – to think that my work had been sent up to Cambridge was already exciting enough, but to know that a Cambridge Don had taken the time to read it and write to me about it was amazing and hugely inspirational.  It was therefore important to me to continue the cycle and try to inspire and encourage some pupils myself.

The primary school visits and workshops I devised were such a huge success and so enjoyable for the pupils and the volunteers alike that I had to continue to run them every year. 

After a while I also decided to extend my activities to working with pupils of different age groups – Advanced Higher Biology pupils in response to a request from a teacher, labs at the Glasgow Science Festival for Higher & Advanced Higher pupils, a Science Club for S2 pupils, and even nursery visits for 2-5 year olds.

Having so many events on meant that I needed a lot of helpers, and coupled with the increased focus in recent years on PE, I got involved in developing training courses for postgrads, and then also incorporating PE and Science Communication into my undergraduate teaching.  Not only has this meant I have a much larger pool of potential volunteers to recruit from, but I think it has contributed to the culture change in attitudes to PE at the university and it has provided the skills and confidence for some students to go on and develop their own activities. 

It has also benefited my career path – my PE activities played a significant role in me getting promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2012, and have recently resulted in me being awarded the 2018 Peter Wildy Prize for microbiology education and outreach from the Microbiology Society.

Nursery science: Various interactive sessions for 2-5 year olds on topics such as ‘What is a scientist?’ ‘What is science?’ and ‘Germs’.  Activities included pouring plates & growing bacteria (mocked up with jelly & cake decorations), the importance of handwashing, the body’s defences (through images, a story I wrote and demonstrations eg blood clotting using Gellibaff), using a microscope, microbial arts & crafts and lab role play.  Feedback extremely positive from staff and children.

Primary science: Designed a university workshop for P6/7 pupils to link in with British Science Week.The workshop comprises 5 interactive workstations (bacteria, viruses & yeast, malaria, trypanosomes & Leishmania, worms and jelly cells) and is preceded by an interactive talk in the schools where pupils learn about bacteria, viruses and parasites and the diseases they cause and prepare for the University workshop (they streak plates +/- antibiotics after swabbing their classroom/themselves which we take away, seal & incubate for them to see what grows).  These workshops have run annually since 2006 and have now involved over 2500 pupils and teachers.  Feedback is excellent with many schools returning year after year. Each year, I recruit 50 members of MVLS & School of Life Science (students & staff) to help with preparing and delivering the workshops.  This provides valuable training in public engagement for those who take part, while giving pupils the chance to chat with & question research scientists. 

Secondary science:
Designed and delivered ‘Microbiology Disease Detective’ lab for S5-S6 pupils as part of Glasgow Science Festival annually since 2011, reaching around 500 pupils and teachers. This lab involves the pupils diagnosing either a parasitic infection or bacterial infection in a patient by reviewing the patient’s history and carrying out various microscopy, biochemical, molecular and immunological techniques.  Again feedback has been excellent and with several schools returning year on year.  Around 15 members of Institute staff and students are recruited to help out each year, again providing pupils with access to actual researchers and providing our staff and students with valuable training in PE.

Advanced Higher Biology parasitology labs. I designed the labs in response to requests from local teachers and there are now 4 x 30 min labs and talks available: 1. Dissection of the apicomplexan parasite, Monocystis, from earthworms; 2. Malaria talk; 3. Toxoplasma talk; 4. Trypanosoma brucei diagnostic agglutination lab. These workshops have run annually at the Gaelic School since 2008 and also ran at Douglas Academy from 2009-2012 reaching >700 pupils. In 2011, 6 teachers from outer Glasgow attended the Gaelic School workshops as CPD training so that they could run the labs in their own schools. 

2015 & 2017 Parasitology CPD training for ~40 Advanced Higher Biology teachers & school technicians from all over Scotland.  This included a talk on parasites to support the new Advanced Higher Biology curriculum & demonstration of Adv Higher Biol earthworm dissection & trypanosome diagnostic labs
Hosted laboratory visits & organised microbiology work placements  for secondary school pupils & have hosted Nuffield Schools’ summer students; in 2007, my Nuffield pupil was awarded a Gold CREST award for her work and was invited to attend the BA Science Fair in London to present her data.

2011: Image from my research displayed on the Clyde Walkway outside the Glasgow Science Centre as part of the Images of Science Exhibition

2010: Participated in Glasgow’s West End Festival Parade, carrying a giant 7 m long purple trypanosome parasite  and handing out comics about the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology

research.

Start small – it always takes far more time than you think to get an activity off the ground. 

Trial activities with willing volunteers wherever you can before doing them for real. 

If you’re new to public engagement, go along and help out with someone else’s event first so you get a feel for how to organise and run an event, get some experience at communicating with the public and get a feel for the type of event/activity/audience that works best for you.

Hands-on activities are great and allow you to establish a dialogue with your audience, but PE does not always have to be face to face – you can do a lot online today too.

Apply for Engagement Awards  - it’s good to get some recognition for what you do and perhaps more reseources if you win.

Dr Tansy Hammarton  - Staff Profile

Twitter @Hammarton_lab