14th Scientix Projects' Networking Event:

Research into the classroom

The 14th Scientix Projects' Networking Event on "Research into the classroom" was held at TECHNOPOLIS in Athens, Greece, on 5 September 2018 from 9:30 to 15:30 Central European Summer Time (CEST).

Many European countries are lagging behind in international educational studies such as PISA and TIMMS, particularly in areas such as science, mathematics and reading. There is a strong need for innovative approaches to increasing the motivation of pupils towards STEM subjects and for offering teacher training into innovative ways of introducing science into the classroom. Additionally, there is still much work to be done in improving the image of scientists at the societal level. Initiatives that help demystify science and the scientific paradigms, and which connect pupils with real scientists can create a long lasting positive impact with regards to the poor image of scientists. Moreover, connecting schools with the world of research is an essential step in ensuring that the research sector will benefit from much-needed talent in its various fields and that students are thought to navigate the claims and counterclaims bombarding us in our everyday lives.

The 14th SPNE brought together project and organisation representatives activating in STEM education to discuss these concerns and explore best practices in bringing research into the classroom. The event ran in conjunction with Scientix Conference in Greece, which took place on 3 and 4 September.

30 participants joined the 14th Scientix Projects Networking Event, including experts, and project and representatives of organisation working on the topic, as well as researchers, teachers, policy makers, SMEs and other interested education practitioners.

The aims of this 14th Scientix Projects Networking Event co-organised by Scientix, GFOSS –Open Technologies Alliance, Jet Propulsion Theatre, EDU-ARCTIC and ERIS:

• To share successful experiences and initiatives of bringing research into the classroom.
• To discuss the importance of science outreach programmes in dispelling negative stereotypes associated with science and research.
• To define a set of recommendations of follow up actions on bridging research and classroom practice.

The organisers collected ideas, comments and general conclusions agreed between participants during the workshop. The results of the discussion will be published in a Scientix Observatory article co-authored by all participants. For more information on Scientix observatory papers, please see: http://scientix.eu/observatory

Presentations:

Welcome presentation by Scientix

Presentations by the co-organisers

• GFOSS – Open Technologies Alliance: Open Technologies and STEM education
• EDU-ARCTIC and ERIS
• Jet Propulsion Theatre

Guest presentations

• National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in the context of bringing research into the classroom
• Augmented and Virtual Reality in Education - Outline of the project
• Research into classrooms at different levels of secondary school
• PROBOT : Learning PROgramming and under standing sciences with roBOTs
• Using Mobile and IoT technologies to promote Science Education in the classroom
• Bring the reserch into classroom - A holistic experience, result of collaboration between school and university
• Improving equity in STEM
• Organ donation debate
• Research - based Learning and Tinkering to improve student engagement and understanding
• APC Microbiome Ireland - Budding Biologists

Disclaimer:

This event is supported by the European Union’s H2020 programme project Scientix 3 (Grant agreement N. 730009), coordinated by European Schoolnet (EUN). The event is the sole responsibility of the organizers and it does not represent the opinion of the European Commission (EC), and the EC is not responsible for any use that might be made of information contained. GFOSS – Open Technologies Alliance is a non-profit organization founded in 2008, including 36 Universities and Research Centres. JPT is a Permanent Laboratory of the Arditodesìo Theatre Company for the theatrical creation connected to science, the people of science and the scientific tale.