Screen to science: How moving images impact scientific thinking in young Indian Audiences
1 START (Search for Truth and Return to Science), New Delhi – 110025, India.
2 CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (NIScPR), New Delhi 110 012, India.
Research Article
Open Access Research Journal of Science and Technology, 2026, 17(01), 068-076.
Article DOI: 10.53022/oarjst.2026.17.1.0064
Publication history:
Received on 10 May 2026; revised on 18 June 2026; accepted on 20 June 2026
Abstract:
Scholarly attention to assess how students interpret the messages presented through moving images and the scientific authenticity of the content treated in films in the context of India is louder than ever before. This paper analyses the impact of short science films themed on grassroots technological innovations and assesses students' comprehension and understanding of science in selected states of India. The paper also explores how students in 74 schools across India appreciate and respond to the scientific concepts and technologies presented and explained in short science films, analysing audience responses by gender and socio-economic background. The results of the analysis suggest that the films on grassroots technological innovations and the manner in which the technologies were presented through moving images positively influenced students' understanding of scientific concepts in both urban and rural educational centres. This paper also addresses the need to engage with scholarly research to establish the impact of short science films on a wider variety of audiences, and the criticality of assessing scientific authenticity while treating content for the production of science films in the context of India.
Keywords:
Creativity; Grassroots Innovation; Science Communication; Rural India; Science Films
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