Co-creation in Citizen Science as a Form of Lifelong Learning for Cultural Heritage

Language(s) and language varieties, such as dialects are considered to be intangible cultural heritage. Since language is used by everybody, individuals, local communities and related associations can actively participate in its preservation and help conduct linguistic research. Citizen science is an approach to engage citizens as participants in academic research beyond being the mere subject of investigation. This may take the form of data collection or data analysis by participants. Co-creation as the most comprehensive form of citizen science aims at integrating citizens in all steps and decisions in the entire research process. This study investigates the role of co-created citizen science for lifelong learning, especially the acquisition of sticky knowledge and competence development. Among the benefits of (a co-creation approach to) citizen science related to lifelong learning are that participants acquire a better understanding of science and develop academic literacy. Since co-created citizen science usually addresses the concerns of participants, they may feel part of the process of discovery or problem-solving process. Through workshops or free learning material, participants can independently gain the required domain or procedural knowledge for a citizen science project. Moreover, learning has an added value if participants can see the value of their contributions to the advancement of knowledge (in academia) or evidence-based policymaking and if they can impart their knowledge to novice participants. In addition to knowledge co-production and the use of science to solve problems of public concern, citizen scientists may also develop competences that are necessary for informed decision-making and preservation of cultural heritage. Exemplified by a citizen humanities project asking citizens to raise (and answer) their own research questions, the combination of the acquisition of domain knowledge and academic literacy, including academic methods, academic reasoning and academic writing, are illustrated. Therefore, a combination of project-based and problem-based learning in co-created citizen science may enhance the acquisition of sticky knowledge.