Innovative teaching formats at the science-society interface

Background

There is an increasing awareness of the need for scientists to engage actively with society and produce knowledge that can inform societal decisions. Besides training researchers, another key channel for stronger engagement between science and society are teaching formats in which students learn to communicate to the public (e.g., through videos, podcasts, media posts, exhibitions, or service learning). Although innovative teaching formats for science-society dialogue are increasingly called for and even used, an overview and common understanding of best practices in the Swiss academic teaching landscape is lacking. Likewise, lecturers using innovative formats are not well-connected, which limits opportunities for experience exchange and learning.

Objectives

The goal of this project is to learn about and promote innovative teaching formats at the science-society interface. Our outreach activities aim for increasing the uptake of innovative teaching formats and improving their quality in Swiss Higher Education.

Activities

Following the success of the first cycle, the project now aims to translate the insights from the report into practice by supporting the implementation and institutional anchoring of teaching formats that engage students with societal actors at Swiss Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). These formats enable students to integrate perspectives from societal partners into their research and to communicate findings to different audiences, often through direct collaboration with stakeholders.

This cycle is organised around three main objectives:

1. Expanding the lecturer network

   Building on recommendations from the report, we will strengthen the network of lecturers working at the science–society interface. A workshop in Bern on 23 June 2026 will provide a space to exchange experiences and develop collaborations. Compared to the first cycle, the focus is broadened to include universities of applied sciences, teacher education institutions and international exchange with lecturers from European countries.

2. Creating a platform of science–society teaching tools

   The report also identified workload and time constraints as key barriers for lecturers wishing to adopt science–society teaching formats, specifically for early-career academics. We will respond to this by curating and structuring a set of tested teaching tools and drawing on outputs from the June workshop (e.g. role-play designs, stakeholder engagement methods or sample syllabi for podcast-based courses). These resources will be integrated into the existing open-access td-net toolbox, forming a central entry point to science–society teaching formats. The platform will bring together a range of approaches which will include simulations, service learning, arts-based methods, multimedia outputs and knowledge co-production with societal stakeholders.

3. Strengthening institutional support for science–society teaching

   The report stresses the need for stronger institutional support for science–society teaching formats within Swiss HEIs. We wish to address this by initiating a structured dialogue with key stakeholders. Therefore, we’re connecting lecturers, teaching innovation units, curriculum development offices, rectorates, Swissuniversities, student organisations and other relevant actors. Through targeted interviews and a stakeholder mapping, the project will prepare a second workshop to identify and prioritise feasible forms of support such as curriculum guidelines, incentives, funding schemes, training and external partnerships.

   The workshop will also present the emerging platform and collect feedback for its further development. Outputs will consist of concise, stakeholder-informed recommendations to support long-term institutional integration and potential scaling of the project.