Space awareness project: open source, classroom resources for space education

Paper number

IAC-19,E1,2,5,x50257

Author

Mr. Ramasamy Venugopal, South Africa, International Astronomical Union (IAU)

Coauthor

Mr. Pedro Russo, The Netherlands, Universe Awareness

Coauthor

Mr. Kevindran Govender, South Africa, International Astronomical Union (IAU)

Year

2019

Abstract

Space Awareness is an educational, outreach and developmental project with the aim of using the excitement of space to attract young people into science and technology and stimulate European and global citizenship.

Funded by a European Union Horizon 2020 grant between 2015 and 2018, the project developed and distributed 305 high-quality space related educational resources for primary school and secondary schools. The topics span different themes, selected based on an analysis of school curricula in Europe and Africa. They are linked to various domains in the space sector such as space sciences, earth observation, spatial geo-positioning and history/culture in space and astronomy.

Space Awareness resources were developed to overcome some of the limitations of online educational materials – these resources are linked to existing curricula, they have been tested at schools, and the materials have been prepared and reviewed by experts. The resources are available in a classroom ready format and have been translated into 11 languages. In addition, materials and resources are available that provide information on space-related careers and didactic teacher training, including four online courses.  

During three years of operation, the Space Awareness project reached over 200,000 people, including 31,000+ students directly and 5799 teachers. Beyond the end of the funding period, the materials developed are available on the website as well as other online repositories and can be used readily by teachers and students. Many of the resources and activities may also be suitable for informal education and outreach events. In this paper, I will provide an overview of Space Awareness resources and their relevance for both formal and informal education contexts.

Abstract document

IAC-19,E1,2,5,x50257.brief.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-19,E1,2,5,x50257.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.