Triennial Reports 2009-2011(12) M to Z
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COMMISSION 46 ASTRONOMY EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT Education et Développement de l’Astronomie Newsletter Supplement National Liaison Triennial Reports 2009-2011(12) M to Z Commission 46 seeks to further the development and improvement of astronomical education at all levels throughout the world. _____________________________________________________________________ PLEASE WOULD NATIONAL LIAISONS DISTRIBUTE THIS SUPPLEMENT IN THEIR COUNTRIES This supplement is available at the following website http://astronomyeducation.org (this is a more memorable website than the “official” one http://www.iaucomm46.org to which the “unofficial” one links directly) TRIENNIAL REPORTS FROM NATIONAL LIAISONS The triennial reports from the C46 National Liaisons have been collected into this supplement, and cover the three years up to the end of 2011, though many reports (including my own for the UK!) were prepared several months into 2012, so might contain information straying into 2012. This is not a problem. Each report has required more or less editing, at the very least to attain a modest uniformity of style, though I’ve kept editing to a minimum. A few reports were received in plain text in emails, so modifiers of the basic Roman alphabet characters (e.g. á, ç) will have been absent – I hope that I’ve put all of these back. If there are any mistakes or obscurities please let me know as soon as possible and I will make amends. To enquire about specific points in a report please contact the National Liaison directly. Barrie W Jones National Liaisons Program Group Chair [email protected] MEXICO Overview. Mexico is a country where only 52% of the youngsters between 15-19 years old are enrolled in secondary education. It has 110 million inhabitants and there are about 200 professional astronomers. Elementary (primary) education. Throughout the country, astronomy education at elementary level is not very satisfactory, in that only very basic concepts are presented, and mostly they lack practical examples for illustration. Secondary school. The same conditions apply to secondary school education. Programs have been updated, but it has meant a further reduction of science courses and consequently a reduction of the importance of astronomy at the very basic level. Upper high school is the last opportunity to receive overall education and in some schools, it is possible to teach basic astronomy concepts. College level. This level in Mexico is already highly specialized, there are about 50 institutions that offer physics programs, in some of them astronomy can be learned as part of the optional courses. Graduate programs in astronomy. There are 3 fully established graduate programs in astrophysics with a total enrollment of 120 students. In addition some physics and engineering programs occasionally prepare students in astronomy. Astronomy lectures for general public. This activity is well established and in some of the large cities there are regularly scheduled conference programs. Observatories and planetaria. There are 2 large optical observatories, 3 small optical observatories; the Large Millimeter Telescope is now in operation. There are 38 planetaria in Mexico, distributed over the whole country. In these planetaria there are also additional public lectures and astronomical activities. Related activities. There is an Astronomical Olympiad that is in its eighth edition. It has attracted the attention of young people and it has been growing in interest. Star parties. There have been several nationwide star parties (April 2010, February 2011, and the one scheduled for November 2012). On December 2011 a simultaneous observation of the moon attracted observers to gather more than 2000 telescopes in more than 40 sites to set a new Guinness Record, that superseded one set in 2009. The Venus transit of June 2012 was very widely publicized in the media. It caught the interest in some sections of the population. It attracted the general public, as well as students either to observe it (directions to protect their eyes were very well advertised in advance), or by following the web sites of professional observatories. Silvia Torres-Peimbert [email protected] NETHERLANDS The Netherlands Research School for Astronomy (NOVA), incorporating the astronomy departments of the universities in Amsterdam, Groningen, Leiden, Nijmegen and Utrecht, together with the Netherlands Astronomical Society (NAC) are actively engaged in promoting astronomy in primary as well as secondary education. NOVA is also responsible for the national outreach, operating the national Dutch astronomy outreach center NIC (NOVA Information Center), which employs both an education officer and a general outreach/press officer. The NOVA Outreach website (www.astronomie.nl) has an ever increasing popularity. Target groups are primary and secondary schools, the press, and the general public. Lots of educational materials such as the ESA/ESO practical exercises (www.astroex.org) are available through this website; there's also an image bank, a semi-popular encyclopedia, a prize-winning interactive Black-Hole website, and information about the university astronomy education. Teachers can subscribe to the NOVA electronic Newsletter. Social media are gradually becoming more important. All NIC activities are overseen by the Minnaert Committee, consisting of several knowledgeable representatives of the Dutch astronomy departments. Excellent contacts exist with the Outreach and Education officers at the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, ASTRON, in Dwingeloo, the Netherlands Institute for Space Research, SRON, in Utrecht, the national Dutch ESA/ESERO education at the NEMO Science Center in Amsterdam, and the Dutch UNAWE (Universe Awareness) effort in Leiden. Also, amateur groups and observatories are in the loop. Each year the national Dutch Astronomy Olympiad for high school students is organized, by one of the astronomy departments. The winner usually gets a free trip to the La Palma observatory, to carry out an observing project. Astronomers in Groningen won a national science communication and education contest. Their project "Discover the invisible universe", focusing on infrared radiation and infrared astronomy, was carried out during 2009. An infrared photography contest for high school students, meet-and-greet performances of the reborn William Herschel, and hands-on infrared experiments were part of the project. The Discovery truck, which took those experiments to dozens of schools and city squares throughout the country, was also present at the kick-off of the IYA2009, at UNESCO in Paris. Both the Groningen Kapteyn Institute and the NOVA NIC operate a (traveling) mobile planetarium, for school visits, science weekends, etc. These planetaria are a major success. The Blaauw observatory, operated by Kapteyn Institute astronomers since 2010, offers monthly public viewing nights and edutainment lectures for the general public in the northern Netherlands. Nijmegen also offers public viewing; Leiden and Amsterdam will shortly follow. The project "Keys to the Stars", where a performance by the professional Grieg piano duo is being accompanied by an astronomical video (and a short lecture) has been a success, since its inception in 2009. A dozen performances in concert halls throughout the country have been given; these will be continued, hopefully also abroad. A committee involved in a major revision of the high school physics curriculum finished its work; astrophysics and geophysics are new topics which will be taught as of 2014. The Groningen Kapteyn Institute offers an interactive astronomy webclass, which can be taken by interested high school students, two times one month every year. The Dutch government and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences continuously invests into the quality and quantity of science education at all levels, from preschool to university. Teacher CPD and Inquiry Based Learning are important elements in these efforts, including general science for elementary education as well as astrophysics for maths and physics in secondary education. All major universities offer science hubs supporting elementary education since 2010. Several Dutch staff astronomers are actively engaged in these efforts. Peter Barthel [email protected] PORTUGAL Overview In the period covered by the present Report, the activities in astronomy continue to increase in all the areas: school education at the different levels, promotion of astronomy through several strategies, research projects and research programmes and active participation of professional astronomers in the more advanced international organizations. The good conditions for a direct contact between astronomers, both professionals and amateurs, and students, teachers and the public in general were maintained, with a large increase in the number of opportunities for such events. This is due not only to the introduction of new astronomical topics in school curricula and of astronomy teaching at more universities, but also to the organization of new amateur astronomical groups and to the activity of the Portuguese Astronomical Society, all strongly devoted to the dissemination of knowledge. Elementary school At this level, astronomy is included in the disciplinary areas of environmental studies (1st cycle) and physical and natural sciences (3rd cycle). It is associated with the subject “The Earth in Space”, with the aim to allow young students to understand the position of the Earth in the Universe and its relation to the