Use of the Café Forum concept for embracing diversity and broadening

scholarship

Ian DouglasPGR Lead for Medicine, Dentistry &

Health

What is the PG Café Forum?• Origins - collaborative project between the

Postgraduate Society and Science Brainwaves• The Café Forum concept offers the opportunity for

students to gain experience presenting their work. – Good communication is essential in all areas of life and work– Effective communication about research to the general

public is of increasing importance. • For postgraduate students, (both research and taught)

– run by students– to share and discuss their research in an informal,

supportive environment – to a cross-disciplinary and non-specialist audience

Aims

• Aims– to develop the communication skills of

postgraduate research students – to encourage students to identify the broad

benefits of their research– to gain an appreciation of the public

understanding of science and other disciplines– to increase awareness of other postgraduate

research undertaken in the university

https://sites.google.com/a/sheffield.ac.uk/progress/postgrad-cafe-forum

http://www.pebblepad.co.uk/sheffield/viewasset.aspx?oid=1108&type=webfolio&pageoid=2811

Web site information

Presentation and evaluation

• Presenters are expected to communicate the big-picture context of their research to an audience from beyond their own subject areas.

• Presenters should use visual representations of research to convey their ideas but with minimal text

• Each session – 2 or 3 presentations ~ 15 minutes– Followed by audience questions and lively debate

• Presenters receive confidential feedback via audience participation devices

Example presentation topics• Consciousness and point of view in Jane Austen’s fiction• Spatial coincidence between protected areas and mining

activities• Do voices and previous experiences mediate infant

attention to faces?• Nature-inspired robotics and artificial intelligence• Improving the performance of medical gloves• Lost urban rivers beneath our feet, and what to do with

them• Using fluorescent fruit flies to investigate planar cell polarity• Investigating the mechanisms of oral cancer cell binding

during metastasis• eGovernment: what is that all about?

Peer EvaluationAudience evaluation using key pads for presentation quality, content of presentation and whether the presentation was pitched at the right level.

Recording presentations

• GEO– Forum presenters are strongly encouraged to

take advantage of the University's Global Educational Outreach facilities. [The student has all rights over the recording.]

– The GEO provides free teaching resources to schools and colleges to help inspire young learners.

Is the audience diverse?

• 2011-12• 38 registered (26 as DDP module)

• 2012-13• 45 students registered (31 as DDP module)

2011 - 2012

Faculty No.

Med, Dent & Health 12

Social Science 3

Arts & Humanities 3

Engineering 9

Science 8

2012 - 2013

Faculty No.

Med, Dent & Health 2

Social Science 5

Arts & Humanities 5

Science & Engineering 7

NB 3 registered but did not attendNumbers are presenters

Number of participants per department 2011-

2012

Department No. Attendees

DEN 6*

MED 6

APS 1

BMS 3

MBB 1

PHY 2

PSY 1

AAP 1ELL 1

HST 1

CIV 4

MEC 2

CPE 2*

COM 1

ARC 1*

INF 2In 2012-13 session - 4 PGT students from Engineering attending

Attendance :- Staying power and commitment

Feedback from participants on PG Café Forum

• An online survey sent out to all attendees •Opportunity to feedback/ comment on each session via

a comment box

Feedback from participants on PG Café Forum

Feedback from participants on PG Café Forum

Future goals• Expand awareness throughout the University• Improve venue and AV technology

– Investigate video recording for podcasts• Improve adherence of presenters to guidelines for

delivery to a general audience• Invite guest speakers

– e.g. PG Alumni - to address the employability agenda• Dr Andrew Madden: Did a PhD help prepare me for setting up a

business? • Dr Gavin Boyce: Applying research skills to business

• Encourage more PGT students to attend

Discussion• Would such a forum concept add value to the PGT

experience?– If so, how would it work best/be rolled out?

• Faculty level?• Groups of cognate departments?

– Would it encourage PGT to PGR transition?• As well as broadening scholarship, should aspects

relevant to employability be included?– "Experience in a specific research field must be

complemented by effective communication skills …” (Andersen Consulting)

– "Postgraduate students tend to become focused on their subject area and don't emphasise their transferable skills which actually make them more employable." (Esso-Exxon)