Asking and Exploring Big Questions in Astronomy

提出和探索天文学中的大问题

• 批准号: ST/Y005848/1
• 负责人: Berry Billingsley
• 金额: $ 1.9万
• 依托单位: Canterbury Christ Church University
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2024 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ST%2FY005848%2F1
• 关键词: Asking; Exploring; Big; Questions; Astronomy

This 18-month project will enable sustained engagement with six primary schools in two nations: Northern Ireland and England. Students will interact with a series of four innovative workshop interventions in school to strengthen connections between schools and STFC science and scientists. Their activity will end with a showcase event where students from the 'wonder audience' present a science project to our partner and STEM networks. 600 students in Years 5 and 6 will carry out a series of accessible hands-on science investigations that build their understanding of Astronomy. The workshop investigations begin with a Discovery Bag of hands-on science activities and resources which have been shown to remove barriers of participation to science and inspire students from primary schools in socioeconomic deprived areas to feel included and get involved.Collaborating with STEM networks, local charities and our established school partners, we will recruit and build relationships with schools in deprived areas of England and Northern Ireland where there is documented low social mobility and with low levels of education, employment, health, and housing. To develop and test our approach we will work with schools in Belfast, Thanet and Canterbury. One school in the Thanet area will be a peer lead and mentor, supporting other schools with developing their pedagogical approaches, with the aim that all students whatever their ability and background feel included and build their understanding of STFC science.The methodology we employ begins with hands-on science, resourced via an innovative 'Discovery Bag' of science and Big Questions investigations. As such students engage directly with science activities and ways of thinking that are curiosity-driven and agentic, without the necessity for prior learning. For example, students experiment with making water droplets on a plastic lid to observe the properties and behaviour of water while generating their own follow-up questions such as 'Where does water come from?' and 'Is there water in space?'.

这个为期 18 个月的项目将使北爱尔兰和英格兰这两个国家的六所小学能够持续参与。学生将在学校参加一系列四个创新研讨会干预活动，以加强学校与 STFC 科学和科学家之间的联系。他们的活动将以展示活动结束，来自“神奇观众”的学生将向我们的合作伙伴和 STEM 网络展示一个科学项目。 5 年级和 6 年级的 600 名学生将进行一系列易于理解的实践科学调查，以加深他们对天文学的理解。研讨会的调查从一个包含实践科学活动和资源的探索包开始，这些活动和资源已被证明可以消除参与科学的障碍，并激励社会经济贫困地区的小学学生感受到融入感并参与其中。与 STEM 网络合作，当地我们将与慈善机构和我们既定的学校合作伙伴合作，招募英格兰和北爱尔兰贫困地区的学校并与其建立关系，这些地区的社会流动性较低，教育、就业、健康和住房水平较低。为了开发和测试我们的方法，我们将与贝尔法斯特、萨尼特和坎特伯雷的学校合作。萨尼特地区的一所学校将成为同伴领导和导师，支持其他学校发展其教学方法，目的是让所有学生，无论其能力和背景如何，都感到被包容，并建立对 STFC 科学的理解。我们采用的方法始于实践科学，通过创新的科学“发现袋”和大问题调查提供资源。因此，学生直接参与由好奇心驱动和能动的科学活动和思维方式，无需事先学习。例如，学生尝试在塑料盖上制作水滴，以观察水的性质和行为，同时提出自己的后续问题，例如“水从哪里来？”和“太空中有水吗？”。