From EU-HOU to ESERO through Astronomy by Claudia-Mariana Cocosila

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<< 13-15 August 2018>> | << Vienna >> << Global Hands-On Universe (GHOU) Conference 2018 >>
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From EU-HOU to ESERO and
SCIENTIX
Promoting STEM Education
Prof. Claudia-Mariana COCOŞILĂ
Colegiul Naţional Ioniţă Asan - Caracal
ROMANIA
Global Hands-On Universe ( GHOU ) Conference
Vienna – 13-15 August 2018

Scientix has received funding from the European Union’s H2020 research
and innovation programme – project Scientix 3 (Grant agreement N.
730009), coordinated by European Schoolnet (EUN). The content of the
presentation is the sole responsibility of the presenter and it does not
represent the opinion of the European Commission (EC) nor European
Schoolnet (EUN) and neither the EC nor EUN are responsible for any use
that might be made of information contained.
Scientix, the community for
science education in Europe

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http://scientix.eu

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Scientix is a project coordinated by European Schoolnet,
http://www.scientix.eu/home , which promotes and supports
pan-European collaboration between STEM teachers, education
researchers, decision-makers and other professionals.
.
Scientix Ambassadors - members of the
Scientix Teachers' Committee – promote
and popularize Scientix among preschool
teachers, primary school teachers, and
sciences teachers and mathematics in
secondary education in Europe.

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Over the past ten years, it has been found that in the world there is an ever-lowering interest of the
young generation in studying STEM disciplines and that in the near future there will be fewer specialists
to cope the accelerated pace of economic and environmental change (See European Commission Eurydice
report 2012). The exception is represented by Asian countries where STEM education starts at primary
level and is done with specialized teachers.
Ways to Attract the New Generation to STEM Education:
1. promoting and using active teaching methods based on exploration, investigation, hands-on
experiments and the interdisciplinary approach of these tools;
2. Presenting and promoting STEM careers models ( see CERN, ESA, ROSA, NASA, or the
European SPACE AWARENESS project http://www.space-awareness.org/en/careers );
3. organizing events or campaigns to popularize, as well as attracting partners from different
economic domains, such as the World Space Week (www.worldspaceweek.org/), which takes place
between 4 and 10 October each year, the European Researchers Night, taking place on the last
Saturday of September each year (https://www.noapteacercetatorilor.eu/) or SCIENTIX Campaign
STEM Discovery Week , April 2018 (http://www.scientix.eu.events/campaigns/sdw18) and so on.
I will show you how, following international trainings where I have participated, I have applied
active teaching methods of STEM education both in the classroom and in extracurricular activities.
In continuation, the trainings are marked with digits and the examples of activities performed with the
students are marked with letters.
The Need to Prioritize STEM Education

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1. EU-HOU-Bringing frontline astronomy in the classroom
la Université Pierre et Marie Curie–Sorbonne Universités, Paris, 2011

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2. High School Physics Teacher Programme (HST) at CERN
Geneva, 2013
Dr. Piotr Traczyk (Univ. of
California, Los Angeles )
With Nobel laureate Jack Steinberger
(miuon neutrino's discoverer)

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3.The ESA/GTTP Teacher Training Workshop at the European Space
Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), Noordwijk,
the Netherlands, 2015

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3.The ESA/GTTP Teacher Training Workshop at the European Space
Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), Noordwijk,
the Netherlands, 2015

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The European Space Education Resource Office — ESERO Romania uses the
fascination of space to encourage teaching and learning STEM subjects. ESERO is part of
ROSA and ESA (Romania is an ESA member).
At ESERO I have improved my knowledge of astronomy and space science.
5) ESERO training provided by ROSA

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a) Faulkes Telescope Project
I enrolled our high school in the Faulkes Telescope Project, students being
able to see the sky online, and identify galaxies or other celestial bodies with
robotic telescopes.The Faulkes Telescope Project is an educational partner of the
Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network (LCOGTN) and provides
free access to robotic telescopes and a fully supported educational program to
encourage teachers and students to engage in research-based science education.

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b) World Space Week
I organized WSW at our college from 2011 to 2017 (Event ID: 16445, Exploring the Cosmos,
2015, Discover the Cosmos, Event ID: 8934; 2016 ID: 11379, see www.worldspaceweek.org/ ).
Students presented ppt, posters and / or drawings about the solar system or / and the outer
space, they observed solar spots through the Galileoscope, and watched NASA and ESA films
about satellites, outer space or about life and research on ISS (International Space Station) as
well as on STEM career models, for example the career of Romanian astronaut Dumitru Dorin
Prunariu ( Dumitru Prunariu – Wikipedia ).

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c) National Contest of Experiments for Students"Scientist
for a Day, in memoriam physicist Neda Marinesco “
In 2012 and 2013 I organized the " National Experimental Contest Scientist for a Day in
memoriam physicist Neda Marinesco“, where pupils presented their own experiments in the
form of a didactic movie or ppt. It was a great experience in which students were able to develop
their creativity and scholarly abilities, seeing "doing science" means something else, perhaps
more beautiful, than solving difficult problems such as those of IOAA or IPhO. In addition, the
contest provided us with an exchange of beneficial experience in which students learned one
from each other, developing their interdisciplinary skills, which is welcomed because, in real life,
events do not take place following a discipline or another but rather take place in a complex,
transdisciplinary context.
On the second edition, some of my students managed to build a functional robot and others
managed to make animations, unusual things for them till then and even for the schools in our
city. One of first prize was obtained by my students with the film Viewing Electrostatic Field
Lines ( https://youtu.be/5I01NzUcToQ ).
At the same time, the students met a number of academics and scientists, of whom we
mention only Astronomer PhD. Magda Stavinschi, former Director of the Astronomical Institute of
the Romanian Academy, Physicist PhD. Florin Buzatu, IFA Managing Director, and University
Professors : PhD Radu Constantinescu, Vice-Rector of the University of Craiova, PhD. Mircea
Rusu, Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest, PhD. Florea Uliu, Faculty of Physics,
University of Craiova.

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c) National Contest of Experiments for Students"Scientist
for a Day, in memoriam physicist Neda Marinesco “

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d) Eratostenes Experiment
I have organized and conducted at our high school in the last 4 years, both in spring and autumn equinox,
the Eratostenes Experiment, which is part of the ISE (Inspiring Science Education) and ODS (Open
Discovery Space) projects. In this interdisciplinary experiment, which requires knowledge of mathematics,
physics, astronomy, geography and ICT, several classes of students took part. By measuring the shadow of
the gnomon at equal time intervals, in the noon at the equinox, students
were able to determine the meridian of the place and the angle required to calculate the circumference and
the radius of the Earth, with a fairly good approximation. They compared their results with those obtained
from other schools on the same meridian and once again they have convinced themselfs that the Earth has
a spherical shape (approximately).

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d) Eratostenes Experiment

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e) Cassini - Scientist for a Day Contest
My students participated in the international contest organized by NASA and ESA,
Cassini-Scientist for a day, where they received several awards and mentions from 2009
to 2015. Here are some of the diplomas:

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f) Inspiring Science Education Project
The students prepared by me have participated with some hands-on experiments at the Inspiring
Science Festival from the InspiringScience Education Project ( ISE 2016) where two girls of the 6th
grade have won the First Prize and they have qualified to the National Phase of the ISE Experimental
Contest.
( http://portal.opendiscoveryspace.eu/en/activity/echilibrul-furculitelor-843531 , Motor electric ,
http://portal.opendiscoveryspace.eu/en/activity/reflexia-totala-843500 ).

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g) International Cosmic Day
h) Beam line for school
I have participated with students at International Cosmic Day 2014, 2015 (organized
by DESY, http://ippog.web.cern.ch/ , Fermilab, QuarkNet) and Beam line for school
(organized by CERN in 2014, see https://youtu.be/3VIQYazhV9c ).The Beam line for school
contest for high school students around the world was launched on the occasion of the 60th
anniversary of CERN. There were 455 matches from all over the world. The winning team spent
a week at CERN to experiment with their proposal at proton synchrotron. I have formed and
trained a team of students from Ionita Asan National College (my school), Buzesti Brothers
National College and Carol National College in Craiova City.

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i) EUROPEAN RESEARCHERS' NIGHT
I have participated with a group of students at the European Researchers’ Night both in
Bucharest (2013, 2016) and at the University of Craiova (2014, 2015), where I presented a ppt
about outer space and the solar system and some hands-on experiments. In 2015 I was also a
co-organizer in Craiova. In Bucharest, the student prepared by me took a mention at the
national contest organized by the Faculty of Physics. Students were able to see many kinds of
exciting experiments and robotics.

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j) Visits to the University of Craiova
I made visits with my students at the University of Craiova, at the
Astronomical Observatory of the University of Craiova in 2014 and 2015. Also we
watched the sun eclipse at my school only with eclipse glasses.

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Besides additional performance training, for the National Physics Olimpiad, National
Astronomy and Astrophysics Olimpiad (ONAA ) or National Earth Sciences Olimpiad, where my
students have achieved good results, I have devoted many extracurricular training courses to all
my local, inter-county, national and international projects and contests at which my students
attended. Many of them follow technical universities or medicine. I think I guided their first steps
towards a STEM career.
Even though not all students are able to excel at STEM disciplines, I think that the
youngsters' orientation towards such careers depends only on the teacher's dedication and
mastery.
I am grateful for the international programs¹ for teachers and for the organizing agencies²
because I had the opportunity to improve my knowledge and transfer my experience to my
pupils . My hope is that one day, some of them will be the generation of the future on Mars.
¹ Global Hands-On Universe (GHOU), EU-HOU, HST ( CERN), GTTP, ODS, ISE, NUCLIO,
² CERN, ESA, NASA, ROSA, ESERO, European Schoolnet
Instead of conclusions

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No, I have not finished yet...
4) Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy ( HESA) Program
at US Space & Rocket Center
I look forward to return to school to share with my students and my colleagues the
wonderful experience at the US Space & Rocket Center ( astronaut training and STEM
education). It was awesome!

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4) HESA

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Thanks for your Attention !
Boring Lecture ?

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