I’m a Scientist: engaging with our future scientific stars about animal research

Late in the last school year, the National Mouse Genetics Network’s Public Partnerships Working Group started working with the school engagement platform, I’m a Scientist, Get me out of here, with the establishment of a new Animals in Research theme, in which 10 members of staff within the Network volunteered to take part.

I’m a Scientist is a student-led STEM enrichment activity that connects school students with scientists in energetic real-time text-based chats. Schools from around the country can book a chat on a theme of interest to their students, who can then engage with scientists near and far. In fact, our volunteers, who themselves are spread around the country, have already answered questions from students in all four nations of the UK, in schools as far apart as Antrim, Fife, Tyneside, Cardiff, and East Sussex!

Importantly, this reflects a key priority of the MRC’s recently developed public partnerships strategy: to diversify the range of people with whom the MRC research community partners. Our work with I’m a Scientist does this not only geographically by, for example, connecting a data wrangler based at the Mary Lyon Centre with a class in Fife or Cathy Fernandes, a member of the MURIDAE Cluster and Professor at King’s College London, with a school in Leeds, but also through the kinds of schools prioritised by the programme.

Of the schools participating in I’m a Scientist, 47% are more than 30 minutes from their nearest major research higher education institute, which makes them far less likely to receive visits from scientists. Forty-five percent of participating schools fit within the project’s widening participation criteria based on measures like the proportion of children receiving free school meals or the pupil premium, or the relative deprivation of the location of the school.

The establishment of a new I’m a Scientist theme on Animals in Research gives schools the opportunity to book chats in which they can specifically engage with scientists about research involving animals, to find out about the wide range of research questions being answered, as well as how our animals are cared for and are only used when there is no alternative. Importantly, the National Mouse Genetics Network is not the only organisation involved in this new theme, meaning that a wider community of researchers working with animals is represented. It is also not the only theme on which our volunteers can answer questions, as they can also join chats on any other area of expertise. Indeed, they have also been engaging in chats themed around Psychology, AI, and Computer Science!

It’s also key that taking part is fun for our volunteers and they develop communication skills, while seeing their research in a new light, thanks to the insightful questions posed by the students:

Cathy Fernandes: “I have thoroughly enjoyed taking part in ‘I’m A Scientist’. I wish I had this opportunity when I was at school! It is inspiring to get a glimpse into the way they see and approach science, and their ambitious thinking about potential research studies – our future scientific stars are out there!”

Dale Watt, a Senior Scientific Officer at the CRUK Scotland Institute and member of the Cancer Cluster: “I have been enjoying engaging with the ‘I’m a Scientist’ project; it has been great fun answering challenging questions from the young people taking part and hopefully helping them gain an understanding and interest in the varied work a “Scientist” does.”

Lisa Leinhos, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford and member of the Congenital Anomalies Cluster: “At times, I found it a bit overwhelming due to the sheer volume of questions from the students – but, that’s what makes it exciting! Their enthusiasm is infectious, and it’s incredibly rewarding to see such curiosity and passion for science. It’s great to think that in just 30 minutes of my spare time, I could help spark an interest in STEM in a way that’s unlike any in-person interaction with school groups.”