International Particle Physics Masterclasses – Current development to expand scope and global reach

Abstract

The International Particle Physics Outreach Group (IPPOG) is a network of scientists, science educators and communication specialists working across the globe in informal science education and outreach for particle physics. IPPOG’s flagship activity is the International Particle Physics Masterclass programme, which provides secondary students with access to particle physics data using dedicated visualisation and analysis software. Students meet scientists, learn about particle physics, accelerators and detectors, perform physics measurements and search for new phenomena, then compare results in an end-of-day videoconference with other classes. The most recent of these events was held from 7 March to 16 April 2019 with thousands of students participating in 332 classes held in 239 institutes from 54 countries around the world. We report on the evolution of Masterclasses in recent years, in both physics and computing scope, as well as in global reach.