Physics Department News
University of Warwick hosts first ever Orbyts conference, empowering secondary school students through research
A collaboration of physicists (led by Dr Marina Lafarga Magro and Yoshi Eschen) marked a milestone by holding the first ever Orbyts conferenceLink opens in a new window at the University of Warwick on 20th of June this year.
Orbyts partners scientific researchers with secondary schools (GCSE-level) giving students a chance to conduct research alongside experts in the field. The programme aims to address diversity issues within science and inspire the next generation of researchers through hands-on experience.
With Orbyts hubs at other universities, the Warwick team established a Warwick hub. To launch the programme, the team reached out to postgraduate researchers within the Astronomy and Astrophysics group, gathering interest and supporting them in developing a research project tailored for school groups. The team members were partnered with four schools – two in Coventry, one in Nuneaton, and one in Austria.
Over a six month period, students participated in weekly sessions led by their allocated researchers. The sessions typically began with an introduction to the scientific background and research goals, followed by students diving into real life research.
Yoshi, a member of the organising team and PhD student in the Astronomy and Astrophysics Group says:
“I love doing outreach and thought Orbyts was a great way to reach students and get them engaged in science. The students got the opportunity to experience research themselves over half a year including some challenges and successes (just as in real life). Our aim was to work with schools with underrepresented groups and from the feedback we received, the programme seemed to have a positive impact on the students that took part. The teachers seemed really pleased with the engagement and enthusiasm and want to work with us again next year.”
The programme ended with an engaging conference showcase hosted in collaboration with the University of Leicester at the Department of Physics at the University of Warwick, where students presented their findings through oral and poster presentations. The conference welcomed over 30 students in person plus around 10 students online and featured keynote talks from our academics - Tim Pearce, Don Pollaco, Ally Caldecote (who also did a demonstration on the day) as well as Simona Nitti from the University of Leicester hub. Looking ahead, the team hopes to reach more schools in the local community with future projects.
Image shows students and researchers looking at poster presentations on the concourse.