The Astro Science Challenge: LIVE! Impact Report
UNSA
Inspiring the next generation of young scientists and space explorers
CONTENTS
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Background The Astro Science Challenge: LIVE! Facts and Figures Headline Findings Quotes Evaluation Methods Promotional Campaign Participant Information Participant Experience Concluding Reflections Future Developments Appendix - The Astro Science Challenge: The Basics
INFORMATION
unspaceagency.earth
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“The Unlimited Space Agency’s mission is to inspire the next generation of scientists and space explorers by creating interactive projects that combine storytelling, live performance, game design and digital technologies to significantly deepen children’s engagement with (and enjoyment of!) the learning experience.” JON SPOONER
UNSA Director of Human Spaceflight Operations
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Background Founded in 1997, Leeds based Unlimited is widely considered to be one of the UK’s most exciting and innovative arts organisations. The company specialises in telling stories for live performance for a wide range of audiences but, from the outset, has always pursued a specialist strand of creating interactive, informal learning experiences for children aged 7-11. Since 2007, the company has also developed a strand of work collaborating with scientists to communicate leading edge research to a (mostly adult) public audience. In 2010 these two specialisms led to a commission from Polka Theatre (one of the UK’s leading theatres dedicated to work for children) to “create a show to inspire children aged 7-11 in science” Mission To Mars. “Unlimited have been pioneers in combining theatre and science for adult audiences, fearlessly going where few other companies have gone before in exploring the metaphysical and everyday impact of scientific advances on our lives… Mission To Mars is great fun and if there’s a sudden interest in science in the coming years among the children of south-west London and beyond, it may well be traced back to Unlimited’s show for seven to 11-yearolds.” - The Guardian Inspired by their research with scientists and in particular an invitation to train as astronauts for three days at the European Astronaut Centre in Germany, Unlimited’s core artists created a series of interactive projects that extended the story world of the play to “get children DOING science”. The response to the project was overwhelmingly positive with adults and children alike universally reporting hugely positive impact on their engagement with (and enjoyment of) science learning. A series of awards were given for Unlimited’s work engaging children with science through storytelling including the 2011 National Charity Award in the Arts, Culture & Heritage category, the Sir Arthur Clarke Award for Achievement in Space Education and Outreach, the WISE Champion Award for inspiring girls and young women in STEM subjects and NASA’s “Best Mission Concept” award in their global competition “The Space Apps Challenge”.
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Background And in the process the company had accidentally set up its own space agency (!) as a way of telling inspirational stories about science through space exploration – the Unlimited Space Agency (UNSA). During their time researching at the European Astronaut Centre, Unlimited’s artists met with and interviewed Tim Peake who (at the time) was a new recruit to the European Space Agency’s astronaut corps. Over the following years, Unlimited’s Artistic Director Jon Spooner maintained and developed a relationship with Tim, who is equally passionate about inspiring children in STEM subjects and has supported and taken part in all of UNSA’s ongoing projects. In 2012 he accepted an invitation to become UNSA’s patron. “The Unlimited Space Agency is great. Their approach to inspiring children about science is rigorous, fun and it works! I’m proud to serve with them on their mission to inspire the next generation of scientists and space explorers.” - Tim Peake, astronaut Shortly after Tim became UNSA’s patron it was announced that he had been confirmed to fly on a mission to the International Space Station where he would live and work as a scientist for six months – the first British person to do that. It was immediately clear that UNSA would want to create a special project to celebrate Tim’s mission and further the agency’s mission to “inspire the next generation of poet-scientists and space explorers”. And thus The Astro Science Challenge was conceived… Made in collaboration with some of the UK’s most well known science organisations and with participation from Tim Peake during his mission to the International Space Station, The Astro Science Challenge is an app which combines film, game design, live performance and real-time interaction to make science learning FUN. The Astro Science Challenge was originally delivered through Makewaves (a well established, safe and secure social networking platform for schools) with over 10,500 children taking part in the first phase. The adventure was later developed into an app in 2016. Children sign up as UNSA Cadets and, by completing a series of six science based challenges, could ‘level up’ and become Agents of UNSA. Each time they complete a challenge the children are rewarded with a digital badge endorsed by one of our partners, each of whom have co-designed the mission with us. More information on completing The Astro Science Challenge and definitions for terminology used in this report can be found in the Appendix.
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The Astro Science Challenge: LIVE! When the world was plunged into lockdown in March 2020, Unlimited Space Agency pulled up their space socks and re-launched The Astro Science Challenge. With school doors closing, they knew there would be families across the world feeling daunted by the challenge of juggling home schooling with working from home. In April 2020 The Astro Science Challenge: LIVE! (shortened to TASC: LIVE!) was launched. An 8 week astronaut training programme where each week, the UNSA team would release a Mission Briefing, share top tips with Team Leaders via email and social media, and livestream broadcasts each week from The (virtual) Space Shed with a group of very special guests: Liz Avery, Astronomer at Royal Observatory Greenwich Samantha Cristoforetti, European Space Agency Astronaut Dr Sophie Murray, Space Weather Scientist Prof Andy Newsam, National Schools’ Observatory Astrophysicist Andrea Boyd, European Space Agency ISS Flight Controller Libby Jackson, Human Exploration Manager at UK Space Agency Matt Cosby, Chief Technology Officer at Goonhilly Earth Station Kayla LaFrance, NASA ISS Flight Controller Suni Williams, NASA Astronaut The demand for creativity, curiosity and a much-needed focus for families in lockdown was clearly evident with just under 4,000 children (and counting) from across the world signing up as Cadets.
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Facts and Figures From April - June 2020
3998 new Cadets managed by 1904 new Team Leaders
2007 Badges awarded 13 live YouTube broadcasts including 9 interviews with Astronauts, Astronomers, Fight Controllers, Astrophysicists and more
16,000 views on YouTube with channel subscribers increasing by 190%
20,500 website sessions on our newly developed Astro Science Challenge website
3,800 email subscribers to the newly created TASC: LIVE! mailing list
111 t-shirts sold through our new UNSA online shop, hosted by sustainable printers and distributors
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Headline Findings Evaluation of TASC: LIVE! found the project to have been a vital focus for many families during the initial stages of the 2020 lockdown. 1. The challenge was launched at the perfect time, providing much needed structure for parents tackling homeschooling for the first time 2. Many children favoured engaging with TASC: LIVE! over completing the work issued by their school 3. The Missions inspired and stretched both the children and adults, with often the most challenging activities being the most rewarding 4. The children expressed strong preferences for practical ways of learning, enjoying Missions with new experiments and technology 5. Participating in The Astro Science Challenge not only teaches children new facts about space, but enhances their attitude to science, inspiring many to consider further study, and even careers, in STEM
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Quotes From the Cadets Spelling and grammar errors have been left intentionally “I have really enjoyed taking part in the astro science challenge! My favourite part was to make Tim Peake a balenced diet meal for his space walk.” “In Mission 6 we had to build and launch a rocket. I loved it. My favourite part was the coding and I would like to learn more about the atmosphere of the Earth” “I have loved all of the things we have done like the website building and the rockets it has been great fun…thank you for all of the amazing work you have sent us” “Taking part in the Astro Science Challenge has definitely made me more interested in astrology and the studies of space. I have learnt a huge amount of things in this adventure and my favourite thing I did was the Astro Coding Mission because that empowered me to make more programs and I even built 2 more websites after I finished!” “I love the astro science challenge it really fun. I really want to go to space now mostly the ISS… You make the Astro Science Challenge really fun and doing all of those live streams on youtube it make is it really cool and like it is not just cadets and the team who are doing it like the world are doing it!!!! I am really happy to become a agent soon!!”
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Quotes
From the Team Leaders “The resources and guidance you provided for each mission were fantastic… Thanks for helping us make some brilliant memories during lockdown” “A huge thank you to the whole team, you’ve worked so hard. I honestly don’t think you will ever understand how much difference you have made to us during lockdown. Also, the guests you’ve had on the space shed broadcasts have been of such a high calibre and so passionate and enthusiastic about their subject it’s been wonderful to see and so inspirational for kids.” “This has been a brilliant experience, even more exceptional during lockdown and its helped my son manage staying in and coping with his autism during the extremely difficult time. Thank you so much for providing this! We would love the space shed at our school!!” “We absolutely LOVED the project. I’m a teacher and currently a home Ed-er due to covid. The plans were easy to follow and we really enjoyed having a focus for each week. The kids loved the videos and mini Jon gets talked about a lot in our house!” “Great fun and made home learning interesting and exciting when children were struggling to focus. Made them feel part of something at a time when they felt isolated and missed the social support of school” “The Astro Science Challenge is one of the best things we have done in all our time of home educating. Thank you for doing it!”
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Evaluation Methods The evaluation of TASC: LIVE! has been collated through a variety of methods. The UNSA team consulted with independent evaluator Mita Pujara to determine data collection methods appropriate to the audiences engaging with the adventure. A survey through Wufoo was devised, which presented unique questions based on whether the user was completing it as a parent/ guardian, teacher or participating child. It also presented the opportunity to upload the Cadet’s final Mission 6 task, which was to write a letter to Tim Peake, Jon Spooner or Mini Jon reflecting on their experience of The Astro Science Challenge. The aim of the survey was not to test the Team Leader or Cadet on their learning as part of the adventure, but to gain insight into their engagement, the Cadet’s understanding and interest in science in school and at home, and to understand the extent to which their participation had inspired and created opportunities for enhanced engagement in STEM study and future careers. In total, 54 surveys were submitted, providing quantitative and qualitative data which will be unpacked within this evaluation. Some surveys were completed by multiple Cadets and therefore based on the number of Cadets who completed all 6 Missions, we believe the survey participants represent approximately 56% of total Cadet Graduates. It should be remembered that many more Cadets took part in the adventure but may not have finished all the Missions by June 2020. Of the 54 surveys, just 1 was completed by a teacher and they were subsequently found to have completed the challenge with their own child, rather than their class. This demonstrates the extent to which TASC: LIVE! was picked up by parents who were homeschooling, rather than schools. Adding further to data collected through the surveys, UNSA collected insights from email and social media communications during and immediately surrounding the 8 week programme as well as analytics from the app’s internal analysis system, the Apple App Store, Google Play and Google Analytics.
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Evaluation
Promotional Campaign On April 15th 2020, UNSA publicly announced the launch of TASC: LIVE! beginning April 27th 2020. All communications encouraged parents, teachers and carers to sign up to a dedicated mailing list which would give them the information they need to get started and provide a regular method of contact between UNSA and the Team Leaders during the real-time run through of the challenge. Team Leaders joining the challenge at a later date had access to the archive of emails so they could catch up at any time. Social Media The primary method of attracting participants to TASC: LIVE! was through promotions via UNSA’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts. Performance statistics and insights between April - June for each platform are shown below: Facebook Announcement post received 42,000 views and 1,300 reactions, comments and shares - 52% of surveyed Team Leaders found out about TASC: LIVE! through Facebook Page likes grew by 136% Predominantly female audience (71%) aged 35+ (80%) 82% of audiences based in the UK, with significant clusters in Germany, France, Australia, US and Austria Average weekly reach was 13,900 and average weekly engagement 1,300 By far the most active and engaged channel throughout the challenge for Team Leaders – social network of choice for parents. Later in the challenge, the platform was established as the ‘VIP’ forum for postbroadcast discussion Twitter Steady growth of 21% throughout the challenge Used primarily to engage with organisations and STEM professionals, along with some personal accounts of teachers and parents Instagram 35% growth in followers Not seen to be hugely effective in the TASC: LIVE! social media campaign as audiences seem to respond best to photos rather than graphics. As with Facebook, audience is predominantly female (65%), though younger age group than Facebook with 59% aged 35+
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Evaluation Impact The highly successful social media campaign, especially via Facebook, translated into significant traffic and increase in following for the dedicated mailing list, the Astro Science Challenge website, UNSA YouTube channel (home to the weekly broadcasts) and app downloads. Mailing List 3,806 subscribers during the campaign (200 later unsubscribed) Average email open rate of 40% (exceeding the industry average of 26%) – open rates were at their highest at the start of the campaign averaging at 77%, levelling off to 25-30% around Mission 4 62% of subscribers were highly engaged and often opened and click links in the emails Top locations for subscribers were Bristol, Sheffield and Newbury Website 20,553 sessions and 15,189 users on the website in the duration of TASC: LIVE! 3.4% of visits were referrals (primarily from Facebook), 96.6% were google/organic searches On average, 65% would visit just one page on the website before navigating away YouTube channel Huge growth of 190% in subscribers As with other platforms, audience is broadly female (61%) and 35+ (58%) The channel received 16,100 total views during TASC: LIVE! Most viewed Mission Broadcasts by watch time were: Week 0: Lift Off Live from The Space Shed with Suni Williams Live from The Space Shed with Samantha Cristoforetti Live from The Space Shed with Liz Avery Live from The Space Shed – Graduation
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YouTube analytics evidenced a significant drop in views after the first broadcast Week 0: Lift Off. While communicated to be the first broadcast for Cadets and their Team Leaders, this primarily covered information and technical help for the Team Leaders. Learning from this lack of clarification will be taken forward into future iterations of the challenge. As the interviews progressed, viewings rose again and continue to do so after the close of TASC: LIVE! The efforts in promoting the opportunity to parents and teachers during lockdown ultimately led to 3,998 new Cadets signing up to the challenge.
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Evaluation
Participant Information The Cadets Through the survey, UNSA learnt the following about the Cadets who participated in TASC: LIVE!: On average, there were 1-2 Cadets on each team Supported by Admin analytics which shows an average of 2 Cadets per team While the adventure is aimed at 7-11 year olds, participating Cadets were aged between 4-15 years old. 73% of Cadets were aged between 7-10, with age 8 being the most common representing 27% 57% of Cadets were identified as male, 42% as female and 1% nonbinary Cadet ethnicity was identified as the following – 81% White British, 5% Mixed, 4% White Scottish, 2.5% Mixed Chinese/English, 1.3% White Other, 1.3% Irish, 1.3% Mixed White, 1.3% Chinese, and 2.5% preferred not to say 3% of Cadets identified as D/deaf or disabled 16% of Cadets identified as having additional learning needs
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The Team Leaders UNSA also learnt the following about the Team Leaders: 78% of Team Leaders had become homeschoolers due to COVID-19 and 20% already homeschooled All Team Leaders were aged between 30-49 (60% in their 40s, 40% in their 30s) 87% of Team Leaders identified as female 6% identified as D/deaf or disabled No Team Leaders identified as having additional learning needs Team Leader ethnicity was identified as the following - 81.5% White British, 5.5% Mixed/Multiple Heritage, 3.7% Irish, 1.9% White Australian, 1.9% North American, 1.9% Latinamerican, 1.9% Chinese / South East Asiana and 1.9% preferred not to say The majority (42.5%) of Team Leaders identified their occupation as ‘modern professional’ Using the IMD for England and Scotland, approximately 22% of Team Leaders and their Cadets come from between the most deprived and 5th most deprived deciles.
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Evaluation Context and Analysis On the whole, the survey results match the informal observations the UNSA team made through interactions with Cadets and their Team Leaders via email, social media and the live broadcast chat function. The team size average of 1-2 Cadets is to be expected with many children completing the challenge with their parents and sibling(s) if applicable. In communicating with Team Leaders, the UNSA team encountered many families taking part in the challenge together, giving context for why the age bracket has expanded past the usual target age group of 7-11. 14% of Cadets were aged under 7 years of age, suggesting perhaps a lack of opportunities for primary school children to explore and take part in science activities. While UNSA would like to see an equal divide between female and male identifying Cadets, 42% identifying as female should be celebrated. In 2019, only 26% of students graduating with a STEM degree were women and this is reflected in the workplace, with only 24% of STEM workforces identifying as female. The survey shows success in introducing and inspiring girls from a young age to explore STEM subjects, hopefully improving gender equality for future generations. As a rule across all UNSA activity, 50% of guest interviews and activity in The Space Shed (both live and digital) must be with female professionals. By young girls and women seeing themselves represented in respected positions and occupations with organisations worldwide, UNSA hope to send a message of encouragement to young Cadets, showing them the possibilities for their own ambitions. With regards to gender identification of Team Leaders, the vast majority being female gives indication of the allocation of homeschooling duties during the pandemic and perhaps the main household income earner. With 42.5% of Team Leader households holding ‘modern’ professions (e.g. teacher, nurse, physiotherapist, social worker, musician, police officer (sergeant or above), software designer) and 16.5% in ‘traditional’ professions (e.g. accountant, solicitor, medical practitioner, scientist, civil / mechanical engineer), it can be deemed that the majority of participants come from intermediate to higher socio-economic backgrounds. This is supported by the data taken from the CDRC Index of Multiple Deprivation map and Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation which shows 78% of Team Leaders and Cadets live in 6th decile and above areas. In analysing this data, it should however be remembered that this survey represents a sample of participants, those of whom were able to put aside time to feedback on the experience, especially during such a high-pressure period. This could have some impact on the reliability of the results and potentially pose the question of whether all participant groups are represented in the data.
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Evaluation While the representation of ethnic minority backgrounds among participants holds similarities to most recent Census data for England and Wales, UNSA strives to improve opportunities and access, especially building on representation of Asian and Black children who are seldom represented in this data. With regards to Cadet disability, the percentage falls well below the national average of 18%, highlighting an immediate area for concentration and improvement.
Participant Experience Participation Statistics The demand for TASC: LIVE! in the pandemic lockdown was evident with 3,998 new Cadet sign ups between April – June 2020. However only 733 (18%) went on to complete the first Mission. 18.5% of those who completed the first Mission, proceeded to complete all six and graduate. The number of Badges awarded for each Mission are as follows:
Mission 1: 733 Badges Mission 2: 412 Badges Mission 3: 303 Badges Mission 4: 251 Badges Mission 5: 172 Badges Mission 6: 136 Badges
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Evaluation Some participants joined the challenge later than others and therefore completed the Missions after the official end of TASC: LIVE! A further 60 Badges were awarded in the months following the challenge. With low conversion rates between sign ups and Mission completion, it is evident that an element of the sign-up process, complexity of technology and/or Mission content has dissuaded potential participants from taking part in TASC: LIVE!. This will be explored further in the Cadet and Team Leader Experience. Cadet Experience The following information has been gathered using the Cadet surveys. 98% of Cadets said they would recommend TASC: LIVE! to a friend, rating their experience on average 4.75 out of 5.
Overall Cadet Experience: 4.75/5
The following picture shows the words used by Cadets to describe their experience. The bigger the word, the higher the frequency in which it was used.
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Evaluation When asked about what could have improved their experience, Cadet’s told UNSA “More time spent around the ISS and how it works” “More practical experiments” “Make it longer so it doesn’t end so quickly” “Include some craft/making activities” The Missions Favourite Mission:
1.5%
Spaceship Earth
10%
Space Weather
10%
Fit for Space
28%
Astro Coding
3.5%
Living in Space
47%
Build & Launch a Rocket
“I got to build a rocket that actually flew” “It was fun to learn about rockets and then see them take off” “Started us off on a really fun coding adventure” “I enjoyed building my own webpage” “I liked learning the coding language, we liked seeing the changes to the code on the webpage, I then built my own page”
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Evaluation The least favourite Mission with 1.5% of the vote was Mission 1: Spaceship Earth, which potentially provides some explanation to the drop off in participation after the first Mission. The Cadets were also asked to vote on the most challenging Mission:
3.5%
Spaceship Earth
21%
Space Weather
13%
Fit for Space
49%
Astro Coding
5.5%
Living in Space
8%
Build & Launch a Rocket
Mission 4: Astro Coding holding nearly half of the votes was an unsurprising response, being a subject that often the Cadet and Team Leader have little or no experience with. Of all Missions, this particular one generates the most Team Leader enquiries. UNSA have found the willingness of the Team Leader to prepare and learn beforehand directly impacts the Cadet’s enjoyment. While it is known to be the most challenging, it has also proved itself to be the most rewarding, with many Team Leaders directly contacting UNSA to say how much they enjoyed it once they learnt the basics. “I was so worried about this mission but the resources have been fantastic and we are actually coding!! It’s brilliant and the girls are loving it!! Thank you so much. You have introduced coding to us in a brilliant way.”
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Evaluation “MummyStar was very nervous about AstroCoding so kept putting it off. However we gave it a go this morning and I don’t know what I was worried about- Cadet TobyStar loved the idea of designing his own website…Thank you so much for making the topic accessible to even me!” Mission 2: Space Weather was voted the second most challenging at 21%. Again, many Cadets and Team Leaders commented on how it was a new subject and took longer to understand. Impact The survey aimed to understand the position of each Cadet on exploring/ studying science before and after participating in TASC: LIVE! The results told UNSA the following about the Cadets: Cadets with a prior interest in science:
Yes - 88% A little - 6% No - 6%
Participating in TASC: LIVE! inspired them to pursue STEM subjects:
Yes - 68% No* - 32%
Participating in TASC: LIVE! inspired them to try new experiments:
Yes - 77% No - 13%
Participating in TASC: LIVE! inspired them to consider a career in STEM:
Yes - 70% No* - 30%
*The majority of Cadets who answered no also added in the text box that they were already interested in STEM subjects / careers.
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Evaluation UNSA asked the Cadets what they felt they had learned during TASC:LIVE! They could tick as many options as they wished.
New facts about space
98%
That science can be fun
77%
How to do new science experiments
How to use new technology
68%
62%
That science can be part of other 62% subjects such as English, Maths and Art
New jobs I could do in the science industry
To work hard with others
60%
47%
That girls can do science, just as much as boys
43%
To ask a lot of questions
43%
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Evaluation Team Leader Experience The following information has been gathered using the Team Leader surveys. Getting started Highlighted in Participation Statistics, The Astro Science Challenge got a staggering number of sign-ups upon the launch of TASC: LIVE!, however only 18% of new sign ups proceeded to complete a Mission. To explore the potential reasons for this, UNSA asked Team Leaders about how they approached the challenge - what devices they were using, how they found the sign-up process and getting started with the Missions. This is what they learnt: Just over 50% of Team Leaders used both a desktop device (laptop or PC) and Apple/Android phone or tablet to complete the challenge. 30% of Team Leaders participated using just a desktop device. 10% more participants used Apple products over Android. App download statistics show 70% of total downloads were on an Apple device 100% of Team Leaders said it was easy to sign up, however improvements were suggested. 93% read the ‘How To’ document. 3.5% were unaware that this existed. Team Leaders gave an average rating of 4.6 out of 5 for the Mission Resources.
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The Astro Science Challenge requires Team Leaders to use both an Admin Dashboard (recommended for use on desktop or tablet) and help Cadets navigate the app (available on all devices and desktop). The app is where Cadets read about their Mission, submit their work and collect Badges. The Admin Dashboard is where Team Leaders can manage the process - create Cadet accounts, find the resources for each Mission and see the submitted work before awarding a Mission Badge. During the sign-up process, participating adults can often feel confused by the process of setting up individual Cadet and Team Leader accounts, especially if the welcome email is not read carefully. While all surveyed Team Leaders agreed that the signup process was easy, their suggestions for improvements provide some evidence for the low sign-up to participation conversion rate: “I was slightly confused by the difference between the app and website but soon sorted it” “Slightly clearer instructions regarding selecting usernames (I initially got mixed up between team leader and cadets)” “The process for registering ‘team members’ was confusing, I accidentally registered myself and an automatically named cadet before I worked out how the system worked and this caused problems with password access”
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Evaluation To try and combat the confusion around using the Admin Dashboard and app, UNSA created a comprehensive ‘How To’ document explaining the system and also how to use the Mission Resources to suit their Cadet’s individual needs. It is recognised that this could be considered as a long and complex document, especially for parents tackling homeschooling and looking for a quick educational activity with minimal preparation time. With a small percentage of Team Leaders having not realised there is a ‘How To’ document, it’s possible that many new sign-ups did not register this on the website or in the welcome email. Another reason for the drop between sign-up and Mission participation could lie with the complexity of the Mission Resources. These are available to download from the website and also within the Admin Dashboard. Each Mission has three Activity Plans with supporting PowerPoints and any additional documents required for the tasks. As the challenge was originally created for teachers and their classes to complete, the Resources include mention of curriculum requirements. To make the most of each Mission, UNSA recommends that Team Leaders look through the resources ahead of starting the activities with the Cadet(s). The Resources were rated an average of 4.6/5 with great praise for the variety of material, however the suggestions for improvement did highlight the complexity and volume of information as well as the strain on their time: “Sometimes the resources were in different places and it got confusing. They were very useful though… was fun for the cadet but time consuming for me.” “Have a version simplified for home use.” “When we have other kids and a job it was a little time consuming to work out what we needed to do on a couple of tasks, particularly the coding.” “Perhaps do a ‘non-teacher version’ for parents? To remove the educational vocabulary” “There was a lot of information! So I didn’t read much of the how to pack but wished I had when I sat down with the kids to do a session. Maybe break up the info a bit” To address the matter head on, UNSA asked the Team Leaders their opinion on why some may have signed up but didn’t proceed. The vast majority of responses supported the observations made above, suggesting other Team Leaders may have a lack of time, energy and confidence to meaningfully prepare and understand the complexity of the system and resources. “I think it looks when you first start like it is a lot of hard work. Which it can be depending on the students involved. But I soon realised I could tailor the work for each individual child (age 9 and 12) so it meant they could learn and explore at their own pace.”
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Evaluation “The work involved taking the missions and simplifying to suit the age level, and working out what was achievable by the boys. Not being a teacher means this was easier the more I did it, but initially took more preparation. Those working wouldn’t have time to do this.” “I felt that I needed to be involved with most of the missions, so if you were trying to work too it would have been tricky. I felt it was a commitment but a commitment I enjoyed and found extremely interesting.” “I undertook this prior to homeschooling materials being issued by the school. When the school got into gear, it was challenging finding time to do some of the tasks” Impact The survey also strove to understand the impact of participation on Team Leaders. With 78% having just started homeschooling for the first time, UNSA asked about the impact on this. 58% said that participating in TASC: LIVE! had improved their confidence as a homeschooler. When asked how the challenge had affected their homeschooling, the most popular answers centred around: Cadets being more engaged with the challenge over work provided by their school Giving structure to their homeschooling week Providing new learning for the Cadets Bringing something entertaining and different into their weekly plans Facilitating quality family time “it’s been excellent having brilliant tasks, lots to learn in a variety of ways, the opportunity to ask questions and be interactive with Jon Spooner and the scientists each week. especially for a child who is very in to stem and space and hasn't enjoyed his topics at school” “It was fantastic to have a focus and a structure, as my child's school has been fairly relaxed about setting work and my child has a lot of energy to channel. She loved the sense of accomplishment and we both found the "graduation ceremony" unexpectedly emotional.” “Provided an ideal break from the monotony of what was sent from school, and filled essentially a whole day per week. I was lost with what to fill that time with the first week after the challenge was completed” “Helped focus the children with home learning, identified areas that they were particularly interested in, which then guided/ inspired additional learning. Very helpful to have maths/ english/science activities.” “It’s been incredibly useful for my space mad autistic 9 yr old!!! He’s loved doing all the tasks and it’s been great to see him working through everything.. he’s extremely proud to have completed all the missions” “It has saved my sanity!!!!” “It brought us together as a team.”
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Evaluation Overall experience 100% of Team Leaders said they would recommend The Astro Science Challenge to a friend. The following picture shows the words they used to describe their experience. The bigger the word, the higher the frequency in which it was used.
When asked about ideas for how to improve the experience, just over 50% had nothing to add. Of those who gave feedback, the following suggestions and themes were identified: Simplifying instructions and Activity Plans for Team Leaders Clear signposting to Resources Clearly differentiate activities by age range and ability Improve the functionality of the app – especially in removing format and size restrictions for submitting work Create more spaces for Cadets and Team Leaders to interact with each other Slow the pace of completion (TASC: LIVE! focussed on one Mission per week)
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Concluding Reflections The evaluation of TASC: LIVE! provides strong evidence of UNSA creating a meaningful experience with lasting impact for families during the first lockdown in 2020. In return for hard work and time invested by both Cadets and their Team Leaders, families across the UK participated in an experience that provided structure to their new homeschooling schedule, learning and inspiration, quality family time and entertainment during a highpressure period of great change and uncertainty. Cadets were inspired and challenged by the Missions, enthusiastically submitting their work for UNSA broadcasts each week. In many cases, the Missions that challenged them the most, proved also to be the most rewarding. Their work taught them new facts about space and for the majority, this led to researching areas outside of the allotted tasks and trying new experiments. Importantly for UNSA’s mission, participating in the challenge taught many Cadets about new jobs in the science industry, emphasising that these can be pursued by both boys and girls. For 70% of Cadets, participating in TASC: LIVE! has encouraged them study STEM subjects and consider a pursuing a career in this area. A successful social media campaign brought the opportunity to potential participants stretching vastly beyond UNSA’s original targets. However feedback and insights suggest the complexity of the sign-up process and preparation time required of Team Leaders meant that many families, especially those tackling new and existing work and personal pressures, chose not to proceed with the Missions. The issues highlighted must be addressed to enable wider participation. UNSA are grateful to have been able to continue delivering experiences and learning for children through such a difficult time.
Future Development Beyond TASC: LIVE! UNSA kept all content online, communicating to audiences that while the real-time run through had finished, new teams are welcome to join the challenge any time. Cadet sign ups have continued to increase, with more and more families engaging with the Missions, Resources and YouTube broadcasts. UNSA have continued to release Live from The Space Shed interviews, including one with NASA administrator Charlie Bolden. The team are currently preparing to resume live touring,
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Future Development giving participating families the opportunity to meet the UNSA team and see The Space Shed in person. The challenge will continue to remain free to access for families at home, however TASC: LIVE! marks the beginning of UNSA’s plans to significantly upscale their delivery of The Astro Science Challenge, bringing it into schools nationwide. The learning achieved from this Impact Report will inform alterations to the strategy, processes and resources taken forward for new Cadets and their Team Leaders. The following areas for review and improvement have been identified: Sign-up process: reduce the complexity of setting up Team Leader and Cadet accounts, providing clear step-by-step instructions upon first contact with new Team Leaders. Also to improve visibility of the ‘How To’ document, exploring possibilities around audio or video run throughs to replace the long-form document. Resources: Improve visibility of the resources, providing these in multiple formats to suit variations in software and chosen device. Explore the possibility of creating an alternative abridged version of the Mission Resources, removing teacher-focussed vocabulary, for families who are limited on time and capacity. Also to explore feasibility of altering Tasks by age range and ability. App functionality: Provide clear messaging on the use of the app, investigating ability in changing submission restrictions on file format and size. Live broadcasts: Ensure in future iterations of the challenge that there is a clear distinction between broadcasts aimed at Cadets and those that are tailored to Team Leaders. It is hoped that these changes will improve opportunity and accessibility to participate for many children, especially those from ethnic minority and lower socio-economic backgrounds and also for disabled children – community groups which have been hit the hardest by the effects of the pandemic and remain underrepresented in STEM. The pilot of TASC: LIVE! in schools, currently planned for 2022, will focus on engaging these groups. UNSA are delighted to be able to continue developing the The Astro Science Challenge and are excited by its ever-growing potential to help UNSA fulfil its mission to inspire children in science and help train the next generation of scientists and space explorers.
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Appendix The Astro Science Challenge: The Basics MISSION
There are six Missions which have each been co-designed with a Mission Partner (e.g. The Science Museum) and can be accessed by Cadets once they have completed the previous Mission
ACTIVITY
Each Mission has three Activities – one Science, one Maths, one English. Each Activity is designed to be delivered in one lesson of whatever length of time chosen and is described in the downloadable Activity Plans
TASK
A Task is what the children have to do in response to each of the Activities in order to earn their Badges
BADGE
On successful completion of all three Tasks, children can claim the Badge associated with that Mission. Each Badge is officially endorsed by one of the Mission Partners
EVIDENCE
Evidence is what the children upload to the app to prove that they have completed each Task. This might be a simple written report, it might be accompanied by photos or even a short video. They decide!
CADET
Every child who signs up to take part becomes a Cadet of UNSA. They will always be referred to as Cadets throughout the Missions until they become an…
AGENT
Cadets can Graduate and become an Agent of UNSA by completing all six Missions and earning all six Badges
TEAM LEADER
Whether you’re a teacher in a classroom or a parent running this at home, you are in role as the children’s Team Leader to help them get the most out of this experience a and have the most fun possible!
For further information on how The Astro Science Challenge works, UNSA have put together a handy “How To” document for Team Leaders, showing them how to sign up, download the resources and use the Activity Plans to complete the adventure with their Cadet(s).
PARTNERS
CONTACT
Unlimited Theatre EMAIL
hello@unspaceagency.earth ONLINE
theastrosciencechallenge.com unspaceagency.earth unlimited.earth TWITTER
@unspaceagency
FUNDERS