ArticleMicrobial biotechnology2025
'Science Fun Days': Opportunities for Connecting Primary School Pupils With Nature and Microbiology.
Article in Microbial biotechnology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Bakteriopolis: Introducing Microbes to Society.Microbial biotechnology · 2026Review
- Eco-Microbiology: A Frugal-Circular Framework for Biosafe, Low-Cost Practical Microbiology in Secondary Education.Microbial biotechnology · 2026Review
- A literature-informed Delphi framework for pediatric medication science books.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026Article
- Impact of a large-scale interactive and immersive science pop-up shop about infection and hygiene on visitors and volunteers.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- 'Science Fun Days': Opportunities for Connecting Primary School Pupils With Nature and Microbiology.Microbial biotechnology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Microbes are essential for the functioning of life on earth, yet a lack of awareness of their positive activities persists in society. In the UK, microbiology is scarcely taught before secondary education. Therefore, we organised 'Science Fun Days' for primary school pupils (aged 9-11 years) in 2024 and 2025, with the aims of increasing their microbiological awareness and, more generally, promoting positive attitudes towards science and nature. Over 450 pupils attended a Science Fun Day hosted at the University of Essex, which involved hands-on activities in the laboratory and outdoors. Pre-event and post-event surveys were completed by 307 and 305 of these pupils, respectively, from across seven schools. The surveys revealed that, after participating in a Science Fun Day, the proportion of pupils who would like a job in science increased from 29.6% to 41.9% in 2024 and 21.8% to 32.9% in 2025. Pupils from schools located in areas of high deprivation rated their desire for a science career significantly higher overall than pupils from schools located in low deprivation areas. Surveys also captured a post-event increase in the percentage of pupils that know what microbes are from 68.7% to 88.0% in 2024 and 49.3% to 79.1% in 2025. Gender differences were minimal and included higher overall perceived confidence in science lessons by male-identifying students; however, female-identifying students reported similar levels of confidence as their male-identifying peers in the post-event survey. Our results support the value of extra-curricular excursions to boost children's understanding of microbiology, enable positive attitudes towards science, and encourage science-related career aspirations.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.