Classroom In The Classroom Get Involved! Connecting With the Community by Heather Scott Education Update by John Percy and Heather Scott The Planetarium Education Connection by Nathalie Martimbeau Les planétariums : la communauté éducative par Nathalie Martimbeau file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/classroom.html [6/22/2003 10:38:14 AM] Get Involved Get Involved! Connecting with the Community by Heather Scott At the recent CASCA General Meeting, an open-forum style of discussion was held immediately after the Education Session. One topic which surfaced was the question of how to become involved with outreach organizations – which programs are available and where can I find contact information? Listed below are some starting points: websites of organizations which coordinate getting scientists out into the schools and the community. Most programs are quite flexible, and depend on how much you want to get involved. Some offer training sessions or pairings with a teacher, while others are less formal. A more extensive list – as well as ideas for talks, demonstrations and activities – will be posted on the Canadian Astronomy Education Website in the near future. There is something all of us can do to promote astronomy awareness in Canada – check out the links below for further information! Let’s Talk Science Area: National Main website: http://www.letstalkscience.uwo.ca/ Partnership Program: http://www.letstalkscience.uwo.ca/programs/partners/index.ihtml (from the website:) “The LTS Partnership Program is a national network of volunteers from the scientific research community who perform hands-on Science in the classroom and the community. Consisting primarily of graduate (master's and PhD) students, these volunteers are based at over 15 Canadian universities from coast to coast. The volunteers are trained in basic education theory and communication using a standardized training program, and are enthusiastic about bringing their knowledge and love of Science into the classroom or community group setting. One option available to volunteers is the "partnership" model, in which a volunteer is partnered with a teacher or class for the course of a school year, developing a personal relationship with the students and providing a positive role model. The many activities performed by Partnership Program volunteers include hands-on activities, Science fair mentoring and judging, Demonstrations and Lab tours.” file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/scott/getinvolved.htm (1 of 4) [6/22/2003 10:38:15 AM] Get Involved The following universities already have the Partnership Program available: ● Carleton University: http://www.carleton.ca/natsci/lts/ ● Dalhousie University: http://www.medicine.dal.ca/letstalkscience/index.cfm ● McGill University (bilingual/bilingue): http://www.medcor.mcgill.ca/EXPMED/LTSM/index.html ● McMaster University: http://www.science.mcmaster.ca/lts/ ● Memorial University of Newfoundland: http://www.mun.ca/scitalk/ ● Queen’s University ● Simon Fraser University: http://www.sfu.ca/~lts/ ● University of Alberta ● University of British Columbia: http://www.gss.ubc.ca/LTS ● University of Calgary ● University of Guelph: http://www.uoguelph.ca/CBS/lts/newLTSindex.htm ● University of Manitoba ● University of Ottawa ● University of Toronto ● University of Western Ontario ● University of Winnipeg: http://theory.uwinnipeg.ca/lts/ ● University of Victoria: http://www.engr.uvic.ca/~lts/ Scientists in School Area: Greater Toronto Area and Guelph file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/scott/getinvolved.htm (2 of 4) [6/22/2003 10:38:15 AM] Get Involved Main website: http://www.scientistsinschool.ca/ (from the website:) “Scientists in School is an incorporated, not-for-profit organization and registered charity that brings science to life for elementary classrooms through fun and exciting, "hands-on", natural and applied science and technology programs. By involving children throughout their elementary grades as "scientists" under the guidance of an enthusiastic scientist, our aim is to inspire greater understanding and interest in all young minds and to expose students to a variety of scientist role models, many of whom are female. A complementary aim is to provide mentoring for elementary teachers, both right in their classrooms and through teacher workshops, in order to enhance teacher capability and confidence in teaching science and technology using "hands-on" methods.” Innovators in the Schools Program Area: Saskatchewan Main website: http://www.discoverscience.ca/inn_sch.html (from the website:) “This national program was initiated in Saskatchewan to contribute to the development of positive attitudes in young people toward learning science and mathematics. This program complements the Core Curriculum Initiatives of Saskatchewan Education to make science and mathematics more realistic and exciting. Goals of the program include increasing the awareness of science and technology, expanding the knowledge of the careers available, and encouraging the enrollment of students in secondary mathematic and science courses.” Scientists and Innovators in the Schools Area: British Columbia Main website: http://www.scienceworld.bc.ca/newsite/education/students/sis.php3 (from the website:) “Scientists & Innovators in the Schools is a program that helps address British Columbia's need for more scientists, engineer technologists and technicians as well as to promote students' interest in these areas. Our goal is to inspire students with exciting interactive presentations by real scientists. The program is offered to grades K-12 anywhere in B.C.” Scientists and Innovators in the Schools Area: Nova Scotia file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/scott/getinvolved.htm (3 of 4) [6/22/2003 10:38:15 AM] Get Involved Main website: http://www.dal.ca/~sits/ (from the website:) “Scientists and Innovators in the Schools provides a range of services for Nova Scotia school teachers of all grade levels. Our services include: classroom speakers and demonstrators, Science Club advisors, Science Fair judges and advisors.” Canadian Association of Women in Science (CAWIS) (bilingual/bilingue) Area: National, based in Nova Scotia Main website: http://www.dal.ca/~stanet/database/cawis.html (from the website:) “We are a chapter of the national organization dedicated to promoting equal opportunities for women in science, engineering, and technology and to encourage girls' and women's interest in science and the pursuit of science careers. Scientists 'adopt' a school or class for a year and work, in close cooperation with teachers, to enhance the students' understanding of science, what scientists do, and the contributions that science makes to society.” Heather is the CASCA Education Coordinator, combining both a background in Astronomy (HBSc. and MSc.) and Education (BEd.). She currently teaches high school Physics and General Science at Ridley College in St. Catharines, Ontario. Heather R. Scott Ridley College St. Catharines, ON [email protected] file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/scott/getinvolved.htm (4 of 4) [6/22/2003 10:38:15 AM] Education at the CASCA General Assembly 2003 Education Notes Education at the CASCA General Assembly 2003 There were several contributed poster and oral papers on education presented at the recent CASCA general meeting. Authors N. Martimbeau, H.R. Scott, J. Percy, D. Turner and K. Spekkens, presented on topics such as Project Astro in the United States, the Ask an Astronomer website (http://curious.astro.cornell.edu), resources for first-year undergraduate astronomy, the CASCA education website and partnerships with organizations in an effort to combine resources. The oral presentations included one by invited speaker Mars Bloch, President of the Science Teachers’ Association of Ontario (STAO) and Coordinator for Science and Technology of the Toronto District School Board. Her talk, entitled “Astronomy – A Black Hole for Teachers!” discussed the current Pan-Canadian curriculum, upon which science programs are based, and some of the issues teachers are having with it. She presented three facets of the curriculum – the intended curriculum, the implemented curriculum and the attained curriculum, underlining the importance of professional astronomers in the education community, and how we can contribute back to the classroom. For full details and abstracts, go to http://astro.uwaterloo.ca/casca03/english/viewposters.php (for posters) and http://astro.uwaterloo.ca/casca03/english/programme.html (for oral presentations). After the oral session, time was devoted to an open forum-style question- and-answer period, where the audience could discuss any of the topics presented that afternoon, or question the speakers directly. There were a few concerns expressed about the logistics of the Education Website, and other ideas regarding outreach were discussed. Some of the audience file:///C|/kings/public_html/astro/ecass/issues/2003-js/classroom/percy/education.htm (1 of 3) [6/22/2003 10:38:15 AM] Education at the CASCA General Assembly 2003 displayed interest in getting involved in outreach, but mentioned having trouble finding information. Finally, it was brought up that in order to reach even more students, the teachers should be targeted - teacher workshops or “astronomers in the classroom” should be pursued. Information the development of such workshops, as well as where to find information