Science education through university extension: an account of experiences with children from the HEAD project

Instituto de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde

Abstract

University outreach, by integrating teaching, research, and extension, constitutes a privileged space for civic education and the democratization of scientific knowledge. This report describes workshops conducted with neurodiverse children from the HEAD project, within the scope of the Extension Workshop course in the Biological Sciences program at PUC Minas, aimed at promoting scientific literacy through active learning methodologies. Across six in-person sessions, strategies such as gamification, hands-on experimentation, a visit to the Museum of Natural Sciences, DNA extraction, and microorganism sampling were utilized, continuously mediated by undergraduate students who encouraged hypothesis formulation and critical thinking. The results demonstrated an increase in the children’s engagement, curiosity, and sense of agency—with experimental activities, in particular, proving effective in fostering their autonomy.