Education, Training and Public Engagement
SSPC’s Education and Public Engagement programme is cutting-edge in best practice in teaching, learning and public engagement, yielding significant impacts through global partnerships.
Funded Investigator: Dr Orla McCormack, University of Limerick
Education, Training & Public Engagement Manager: Colm O’Hehir
Project and Public Engagement Officer: Dr Martin McHugh
SSPC’s Education & Public Engagement programme is broad and varied, targeting pupils, teachers, parents, grandparents and the wider public. We place a particular focus on working with female pupils, those from a disadvantaged socio-economic background, and those living in geographical areas with little access to STEM research and activities.
Through a variety of programs and initiatives, we strive to make complex scientific concepts accessible and engaging for all. Based at the Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, the SSPC EPE lab is designed to host workshops and schools to foster wider community engagement.
Top Tips for Designing and Managing a Public Engagement Laboratory. McHugh, M., Eren, E., Guralp, G., Hayes, S., O’Hehir, C., O’Sullivan, E., Zauers, A. & Tyndall, C. (2023) Journal of Chemical Education
Some highlights of our vast programme are our Teachers Continuous Professional Development Programme, our Transition Year Work Experience Programme, the SSPC Structured PhD and our Medicines In My Life Project. During Science week, SSPC featured in a special issue of Newsflash, a science magazine educating >6,000 primary school pupils.
Over the past 10 years SSPC has taken a leading role through the robust approach to utilisation of appropriate theoretical frameworks, research methodologies and evaluation. SSPC EPE draws on the domains of science education, public perception of science & intersectionality.
A major output of our activities in the EPE space covers 28 peer-reviewed publications, 20+ articles in Chemistry in Action and Science teacher journals in >650 secondary schools across Ireland and Europe.
Check out our latest collaborative Education & Public Engagement papers and book chapters
Global Impact
DIVERSITY IN SCIENCE FOR SOCIAL INCLUSION PROJECT
DiSSI is a three-year project funded by the Erasmus+ Social inclusion & common values programme, (€625,000) more here.
EDUCATING SCIENCE TEACHERS FOR ALL ESTA PROJECT
ESTA is a three-year project funded by the Erasmus+ Capacity building in Higher Education programme, (€1M) more here.
RAW COMMUNICATION & ENGAGEMENT (RACE PROJECT)
An EIT RawMaterials funded programme aimed at changing the way scientists and researcher connect with the public about the broad area of Raw Materials, visit the website here.
ACTION RESEARCH TO INNOVATE SCIENCE TEACHING (ARTIST PROJECT)
SSPC work package leader of a global consortium of 10 partners across 7 countries (€900,000).
TEACHING MYSTERIES WITH INQUIRIES INCORPORATED (TEMI)
A project valued at €3.1M with 13 partners across 11 countries, 500+ teachers in 9 countries.
Education and Public Engagement Research Bytes
Check out these 5-minute videos from Taylor Coyle NICB, Dublin City University, and Shubham Vishnoi, University of Limerick discussing their experience with Education and Public Engagement.
Taylor Jade-Allen
Dublin City University
Taylor discusses her experience with Education and Public Engagement. Taylor’s area of research is pancreatic cancer, often referred to as the silent killer. Many platform gave her opportunity to raise awareness of the disease and she chats about what helps most when trying to explain complex topics.
Shubham Vishnoi
University of Limerick
Shubham Vishnoi, is a PhD researchers in SSPC’s Modelling theme at the University of Limerick. Shubham received the University of Limerick’s President Volunteer Award (PVA)-2021, gives an overview on how SSPC is fostering public trust in science
A Day In The Life of a Scientist
Check out these 3-minute outputs of SSPC researchers, aiming to highlight their true day-to-day activities by filming from a first person perspective:
Ketan Madane
University of Limerick
Ketan Madane is an PhD student at the University of Limerick in SSPC’s Manufacturing Theme. Ketan is working on ways to improve processes that will save on production costs for industry and drug product quality for the patient at the labs in the Bernal Institute.
Maria Ferreira Monteiro
Trinity College Dublin
Maria Ferreira Monteiro SSPC Transformative Pharmaceutical Technologies PhD student at Trinity College Dublin who works in the area of the conversion of poorly soluble drugs to improve oral formulation for the patient.
John Downey
University College Cork
John Downey is a PhD researcher at the University College Cork, working in SSPC’s medicine theme and works in the area of protein science, improving the manufacturing of complex protein drugs that play many critical roles in the body.
Siobhán O’Flaherty
Royal College of Surgeons Ireland
Siobhán O’Flaherty is a PhD researcher based in the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland working in SSPC’s Molecule II theme in the area of Peptide chemistry/ green chemistry.
Aaron O’Sullivan
University of Limerick
Aaron O’Sullivan is a PhD student at the University of Limerick in SSPC’s Materials Theme. Aaron works in the area of nano-crystals, improving drug solubility for the patient at the labs in the Bernal Institute, University of Limerick.
Taylor Allen-Coyle
Dublin City University
Taylor Allen-Coyle is an SSPC PhD researcher based at the National Institute for Cellular Biology (NICB) at DCU. Taylor researches Pancreatic cancer as it has one of the lowest survival rates of all cancers because diagnosis usually occurs at a late and untreatable stage.
