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European Project “Mass”

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MASS: Motivate and Attract Students to Science: Sharing best practices in the use of attractive and effective tools and methods of science education to make teaching science more relevant and accessible to students, with the focus on sustainable development.



The overall aim of the project is to identify and disseminate best practises in the use of attractive and effective tools and methods of teaching science at the classroom level. 

We want to increase the number of educators who will be confident and successful in teaching science topics in the sense that they will make them more relevant and accessible to students. 
We identified three major challenges which will stimulate the progress in teaching science attractively and effectively. These shape areas for the work of three working groups which will collect, analyse and transfer the best practices throughout the project.

1) Science through digital learning

Majority of today´s generation of learners use digital devices, internet applications or social media on daily basis, mostly for communication and entertainment. The project will share experience on how using such tools and media can link students to science and make science education more meaningful.

2) Early Inquiry

Inquiry has proven to be an effective method to attract children to science and increase their learning, especially in young age. We will analyze barriers of using inquiry-based methods at schools and show successful incorporation of these methods to the science classroom practice, with the special focus on primary schools learners.

3) Low Achievers in Science

Science is a setting where we learn important lessons about real world; that is why it must be delivered to every child. We will collect, pilot, adapt and share practices that deal with attracting low achievers to science and help them develop some of the key competences that are basic-life skills at the same time.

The project outcomes will comprise of studies, best practices, training modules and hands-on lessons which will be developed in all three of the above mentioned areas and broadly distributed and shared through conferences, media and networking both on international level and on national level in all of the participating countries.

Aims

  • Collect, analyze and share good practice in science education with the focus on investigating the main components of natural environment (Earth Science)
  • Analyze the connection between specific characteristics of learners and method of teaching as each working group suggests (see the points below)
  • Implement the lessons learned in particular background in other countries throughout the piloting stage, and generate even more experience in each researched area through this reviewing process
  • Compile a dissemination package on each researched area that would assist teachers and multiplicators to spread the knowledge and ensure growing number of people involved
  • Investigate the interconnections and common patterns among working groups´ findings that might be crucial for the overall experience in science education, with the special focus on the selected key competencies
  • Build a viable and sustainable network for sharing good practices in science education methods that proved to be attractive for the young learners
  • Reach out to the vast audience through both online and face-to-face interaction with key players on national and international level

European Success and Discrimination of MASS

The program MASS “Motivate and Attract Students to Science: Sharing best practices in the use of attractive and effective tools and methods of science” has been selected as a “success story” by a panel of experts from the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture of the European Commission.

“Success stories” are finalised projects that have distinguished themselves by their impact, contribution to policy-making, innovative results and/or creative approach and can be a source of inspiration for others. The selection of the project as a success story was made on the basis of rigorous criteria regarding its quality, relevance and results.

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