Education -

Citizen science in Education

Through citizen science, students help scientists answer questions they cannot answer on their own. Meanwhile, students gain a deeper understanding about the world. When we engage in citizen science, we make and share observations, analyze data, begin to formulate questions, and experiment, all while advancing important areas of scientific research!

Note: Participants need to be 13 or older to upload project data on their own.

What is Citizen Science?

Why bring citizen science to the classroom?

Citizen science is public involvement in authentic scientific research.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Committee Designing Citizen Science to Support Science Learning recommend citizen science as an effective way to support science learning and found that citizen science in education may also be an effective strategy to engage underrepresented populations in the process of science.

One of the most important aspects of the SciStarter mission is to make it simple, accessible, and fun for people of all ages to jump in and get involved in real world science. An initiative by SciStarter is to serve as a resource for learners and educators in both formal and informal learning environments.

Pro Tip: Bring Citizen Science to Your Classroom

Start with the free Foundations of Citizen Science⁠ tutorial. Guide your class through it together to explore what citizen science is, why it matters, and how millions of people help scientists answer questions through small acts of science.

Then share your customized sign-up URL. Students who create an account through your URL automatically advance to completion of the Foundations badge, and their accounts are associated with your school.

Next, create a SciStarter List⁠ to select and share projects and track participation.

At the end of the school year, request a report showing accounts associated with your URL and the projects participants saved or joined.

Email info@scistarter.org to request your customized sign-up URL.

Visit the Resources tab and the FAQ section below for more details.

How to Use SciStarter as an Educator

Step 1: Create Your Account

Visit SciStarter.org/login to create an account and sign up for the newsletter. The newsletter will keep you updated on new projects and events that may be of interest to you and your students.

Step 2: Find Affiliate Projects

Each project on SciStarter has a project page. See, for example, the project page for Stall Catchers here. Stall Catchers, along with many more projects, is a SciStarter Affiliate.

Affiliate projects are labeled with this symbol:

SciStarter Affiliate projects help you track and monitor the progress of your learners. Every time a student participates in an affiliate project, they will get credit for a “contribution” on their SciStarter dashboard. No project data is shared, just the frequency and amount of participation. Visit SciStarter.org/Affiliates to learn more about how affiliation works.

Step 3: Create and Populate a List

Each SciStarter project page has an option to be saved to a list. You can create new lists from project pages as well. These are shareable lists of projects in which you can add more instructions for students and view a stats page that displays participation frequency of your learners. Learn more about lists on our blog.

Visit your Lists in your dashboard here. This is where you will find the share link and the option to add notes to each project within a List.

Step 5: Track & Support Learner Progress Across Projects

Once a learner has accessed your List, their participation will display in the “Stats” view on the List page. This view is only available to you as the List owner.

Step 6: Discuss and Reflect

After you and your students have participated in citizen science, you can reflect on what you accomplished, together. These are questions that SciStarter and other partners have posed to students in the past.

After participating in this project, what other citizen science project would you be interested in joining and why?
Describe how the data you collected during this project will help contribute to the scientist’s research question or goal.
How do you think the data you collected could benefit someone you know personally in your family and/or community?
Explain two things that you learned from participating in this research project.
What would you do differently next time if you participated in this same project again or joined another research project?

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

When we engage in hands-on, authentic real-world science, we make observations, begin to formulate questions, experiment, and ultimately construct deeper understanding about the natural world. Citizen science is an excellent way to address the Science Practices of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS):

Asking questions (for science) and defining problems (for engineering)
Developing and using models
Planning and carrying out investigations
Analyzing and interpreting data
Using mathematics and computational thinking
Constructing explanations (for science) and designing solutions (for engineering)
Engaging in argument from evidence
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information

Sometimes, citizen science opens our eyes to how little we actually know about the world. The merits of engaging in citizen science abound, benefiting both participants and researchers.

Visit the other tabs on this page to learn more: Training Modules, Projects by Grade Level, and Resources. If you have questions, reach out to info@scistarter.org for support.

While working on citizen science projects, students are not ‘playing’ science, they are doing it.

– Nathaniel Bourne, AIG Specialist, Students Discover

UC Davis Center for Community and Citizen Science

As part of this exciting initiative, we’ve asked researchers at the UC Davis Center for Community and Citizen Science, to share suggestions and resources from their research on youth-focused community and citizen science (YCCS). With all the great potential for learning through citizen science, the researchers at the Center for CCS conducted case studies to find out when, and under what circumstances, this happens for youth.

The in-depth case studies of diverse YCCS projects were designed to examine environmental science agency – which is a person’s ability to use experiences in citizen science and environmental science to make positive change in one’s life and community. They found this deep and broad learning was associated with particular practices on the part of both youth and educators.

Click Call to Action

The SciStarter Project Finder is the perfect starting place for educators interested in integrating citizen science into curriculum – there are hundreds of projects suitable for all ages that also include teaching materials. To go further, the UC Davis Center for Community and Citizen Science has developed a guide – with examples – for thinking through project selection when environmental science learning is an important goal.

Free Self-Guided Training Modules

Icon image for digital badge "Foundations of Citizen Science"

Foundations of Citizen Science Training Tutorial

Prerequisite for most follow-on training modules

Complete this self-guided tutorial to learn more about what citizen science is and how to participate. You’ll even earn a digital badge for your LinkedIn profile!

Get Started

Citizen Science Champion

Learn to introduce citizen science to your community, gain the skills and resources to support local citizen science initiatives, and earn a downloadable Citizen Science Champion certificate upon completion. Optional: apply to become a SciStarter Ambassador and earn a digital badge.

Get Started

Citizen Science for K-12 Educators

Learn best practices and resources to bring citizen science into your K-12 classroom. Earn this badge by demonstrating foundational citizen science skills and turning curiosity into classroom impact.

Get Started

Teaching in Higher Education with Citizen Science

The “Teaching in Higher Education with Citizen Science” tutorial and badge are designed for faculty within higher education institutions to support demonstrated proficiency in incorporating and implementing citizen science programming into their professional practice.

Get Started

Projects by Grade Level

The below list of projects have been selected for the education hub for various reasons. From educator guides to unique topics, all provide an opportunity for students to dig deeper into the content and make a real difference, regardless of grade level. All of the below projects can be done remotely and most are SciStarter Affiliates.

Don’t see what you need? Reach out to Info@SciStarter.org to request a new resource.

Note: Participants need to be 13 or older to upload project data on their own.

An "S" in a circle surrounded by 6 lines to connected circles

Affiliate Projects

Most of the projects below are SciStarter Affiliates. Affiliate projects allow you to track the progress of your learners. After choosing a project, visit the project page to find instructions on how to ensure your participation is tracked. This often requires using the same email as the one used to create a SciStarter account. Note the videos associated with certain projects for specific instructions.

Use this link to find Affiliate projects with classroom materials.

Create SciStarter accounts to make full use of Affiliate project tracking.