1.5 EC
Semester 1 & 2, period 1, 4
52241PSS2Y
How would you explain your academic research to your neighbours at a party? How can you make laypeople understand, or even be interested in science?
Science communication aims to bridge the gap between academia and the outside world. Science communicators want to explain, spark interest or even convince their audience of the relevance of scientific research.
In this course, you will gain an understanding of the Science communication principles and write a popular scientific article. You will learn to write in a clear, understandable way about a research topic you are interested in. In this course we will focus on making a clear reader’s profile, how to apply writing techniques and narrative forms to make your explanations more accessible and appealing, read each other’s work and exchange feedback.
We will also discuss why some scientific topics, such as climate change, are controversial, and how to communicate effectively about these controversial topics.
Activity | Hours | |
Werkcollege | 28 | |
Self study | 14 | |
Total | 42 | (1.5 EC x 28 uur) |
Additional requirements for this course:
All sessions take place on campus; we do not offer hybrid sessions.
To meet the course objectives, participation in group discussions, peer feedback and student interaction is essential. Active participation during all four sessions is therefore mandatory. If you are unable to attend a session, contact the course coordinator prior to the session to discuss your options for passing the course. Missing more than one session will automatically result in a negative assessment (fail; “NAV”) of the course.
By being present and actively participating in group discussions and class assignments you are contributing to the learning environment as well as the learning process of yourself and others. The in class assignments and discussions enable and promote the achievement of the course learning objectives.
| Item and weight | Details |
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Final grade | |
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Final grade |
Students hand-in five assignments during the course. These assignments are marked together using a rubric. A 55% score on the rubric is required to pass the course.
Grades and a rubric are published per session; feedback can be discussed during sessions or by appointment with the teacher.
The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl
This course is part of the Professional Skills learning trajectory.
Be aware that students on this course are expected to have proficient English reading and writing skills (i.e. at least CEFR C1 level).
GenAI in Professional Skills
Artificial intelligence (AI), and specifically GenAI, tools are becoming commonplace in society. Although the tools are easy to access, using them effectively requires advanced skill levels. We think AI can be a useful tool, but can also hinder learning by offering ‘shortcuts’ rather than stimulating active learning.
Therefore, we believe that it is important to first learn skills such as writing, critical thinking, and self-reflection before leveraging AI tools to support these processes. We designed our exercises and assignments to be done without AI to achieve the best learning outcomes. During our courses we focus on the skills themselves, not on AI use. Furthermore, using AI requires additional, AI specific, skills as well.
We expect you to not use AI for Professional Skills courses, as these will likely subtract from your learning. If you believe you have a valid use case for (Gen)AI during one of the Professional Skills courses, please discuss this with your teacher first. Note that the use of (Gen)AI for exercises or assignments without the explicit consent of the teacher may result in referral to the exam committee.