We can all communicate science.

A sneak peak into the article that shall go in the IOP Physics Communicators Group newsletter in January.

Coming from a state school I was determined to become a role model for younger students from underprivileged backgrounds. The feelings of doubt and lack of confidence in my ability were present throughout my time at the school as well as in others, but having progressed onto further education regardless of my educational background, I felt a desire to go back and show the younger generation sitting in those classroom seats I used to sit in that they can achieve regardless of their background.

“You are all stars you just have to initiate that fusion!”

Meriame Berboucha

Being the only female in my A level Physics classes, I, like many other females across the country felt like I didn’t belong in this male-dominated field. But I wanted other girls to feel like they belonged and so I set up a Science Club, the first of its kind, at my secondary school. I wanted it to be a field for their creative, scientific minds to grow endlessly where the boundaries by syllabuses and specifications were non-existent. The students have launched rockets, made hovercrafts and discovered the fun side of science. 

I couldn’t help but feel that I had more of an impact on the students than the teachers, but I soon came to realise that it wasn’t because of me, it was because I shared common ground with the students - we sat in the same classrooms. Undergraduates are an underused resource in the field of physics communication; the small age gap between undergraduates and school student’s means that undergraduates have a larger impact on the students, so maybe this is the way forward with physics communication? – more undergraduates returning to their schools to spread the word about the cool things they learn.

Enthusiasm is definitely contagious so whether you set up your own blog, let students shadow and contact you, become a STEM Ambassador or simply give a talk, make sure your audience knows how much you love your field of work!

So, make your work known, inspire the younger generation and together we can build a better future and who knows what we will discover. To me, Physics communication has its heart where I began … in the classroom.