What is Education and Outreach?

Involving scientists in education and outreach is a topic receiving considerable attention as the National Science Foundation and other funding agencies focus on the broader societal impacts of research that they sponsor.
In order to understand how to get involved in education and outreach, it may be helpful to define what we mean by these terms.

Education aims to increase understanding of a topic. Science education is usually equated with the learning that takes place in a formal (K-16 classroom) or informal setting (aquarium, museum, science center, etc.)

Outreach, on the other hand, focuses on raising awareness of a particular topic or issue. Outreach can take many forms (from contributing to a fact sheet to speaking to a rotary club) and may be targeted to many different audiences (from homeowners to policy makers).

Together these areas are referred to as Education and Outreach (sometimes written as E&O, E/O, or just EO). The education and outreach section of this web site will provide information on potential audiences for your research as well as possible delivery methods to help you to determine what types of E&O may be appropriate for your research.