Spark Interest in Physics among Young Generation - Commencement of XL-Project - Encouraging Physics Engagement Among the Youth - Launch of XL Initiative Commences
Article
Educators and researchers at the University of Dortmund are set to embark on a comprehensive, practice-oriented study aimed at attracting more young people to the field of physics and related disciplines. The university will collaborate with the Institute for School Development Research (IFS) in a five-year research program focused on exploring new strategies to bridge the gap between top-level research and social responsibility.
The project aims to promote educational justice, addressing the underrepresentation of girls and young people from non-academic backgrounds in fields such as physics, chemistry, and computer science. Additionally, the study will adopt interdisciplinary approaches to address the talent shortage in the natural sciences.
An intervention study is currently underway in selected schools, framed by an "excellence cluster." The project,selected as one of several, will receive federal and state funding for international top-level research starting in 2026. The research will cover fundamental physics for new technologies, while simultaneously fostering sustainable interest in more young people.
Specific interventions include working with positive role models from underrepresented groups, emphasizing the benefits of physics for personal life, and optimizing subject matter and language in textbooks for students. These strategies aim to address the self-image issues faced by many young people, who may view physics as unrelatable or inaccessible.
The study commences in ninth grade in 45 schools across Berlin, Bavaria, and Saxony-Anhalt. Researchers will track students' progress until graduation, with at least one follow-up survey planned afterwards. The results of the physics study could potentially be transferred to other subjects and integrated into teaching.
The TU Dortmund, universities in Halle, Regensburg, and the FU Berlin are among the institutions involved in the project.
- Physics
- Top-level research
- Dortmund
- Education
- Youth
- XL project
- German Press Agency
- The TU Dortmund, along with universities in Halle, Regensburg, and the FU Berlin, are collaborating on an XL project that explores the integration of health-and-wellness, technology, education-and-self-development, and science into a community policy, focusing on promoting vocational training in physics through positive role models for youth.
- As part of the XL project, the thriving research program at the University of Dortmund is organized around the objectives of enhancing educational justice and bridging the gap between top-level research and social responsibility, offering vocational training in physics and related disciplines through innovative strategies.
