There are a lot of moving parts behind the I’m a Scientist activity. Supporting all connections between students and scientists is a team of Moderators – and I’m one of them! You might’ve seen me in the form of a yellow text box, sharing tips in your Chat:

The Mod team are ready for any and all situations. We’ve seen it all – mixed abilities, students with additional needs, those already interested in a topic, those who aren’t (yet), even whole year groups. Our task is to make sure the Chats run smoothly and everyone enjoys the experience. Here’s a peek into how we work…

☕️ Before the Chat

Every morning starts with checking the live Chat rota, coffee in hand. From here, I can see Chat times and themes, and which schools and year groups I’ll be moderating for.
 
Before a Chat opens, I can message other Moderators, check in with the Head Mod, and see if there’s anything else I might want to know going into a class’s Chat. I read any notes and special requests made by teachers or the Schools Team in our office.
 
On busier days, I might spot a short overlap between the end of one Chat and the start of another. But fear not – we’re ready for this situation! We always coordinate to make sure each Chat has a Mod’s full attention throughout.

💬 Running a Chat

Once I’m ready to go, I open the Chat and make sure everyone else is too. I check that usernames are appropriate, follow up on any missing scientists. To kick things off, I share a simple guide to let everyone know how the Chat works.

Then, in short, my job is to ensure the Chat runs smoothly. This often means giving time reminders, sharing tips to help students get the most out of the Chat, and signposting where to submit follow-up questions and votes.

That said, every Chat is different. Some classes need more encouragement – that could be highlighting great questions, prompting students to read and respond to answers, and reinforcing positive behaviour.

Sometimes, an excitable class ask more questions than the scientists can keep up with. I can pause the Chat, delete repetitive messages, and reassure students that they can get more answers later via the Ask page. On occasion, we might need to remove messages or briefly suspend students whose behaviour goes against our House Rules.

🗃️ Outside of Chats

When the Chat ends, my work doesn’t! I submit a post-Chat report that details who attended, any key moments, and highlights good engagement. I attach the Chat transcript, ready to be sent to the class’s teacher at the end of the day.

Between Chats, I check through any new follow-up questions from students. Sometimes, a scientist’s profile or similar, already-published question might already have the answer – I can merge questions, or let a student know where to find answers. All of these questions are moderated before they’re sent to scientists or displayed on the Ask page.

Very rarely, something crops up that requires a more focused eye. Our dedicated safeguarding process helps us communicate with one another in these situations, whether it’s during a Chat or another part of the activity. In monthly Mod team catch-ups, we discuss our performance and processes. It’s a chance to examine any safeguarding issues, and keep everyone in the loop on the latest terms, memes, and social media trends to look out for.

After my final Chat has closed and follow-up questions have arrived on scientists’ dashboards, that’s my day done. I check the week’s rota for any changes then sign out for the day, ready for the next round of fast-paced, engaging interactions!

Meet the rest of the Mod team ❯