NUCLEUS
A boost for science teaching in Europe

Fifty of Europe’s science centres, top research institutions, universities and other organisations have worked together over the last months to create NUCLEUS, a major cooperation funded by the European Commission and the EIROforum. PENCIL, the project co-ordinated by ECSITE, the European network of science centre and museums together with EUN (European school net) will play a central role in animating “NUCLEUS”. The project aims to reach thousands of teachers over the next three years, either by directly involving them in activities or by providing them with new resources. This project that is the Commission’s largest single financial contribution in the area of “Science and Society” will comprises pilot projects that link schools, laboratories, science centres and academia, national and international teaching festivals, a major web portal, create a new international journal for science teachers and much more. All mechanisms that aim to bridge the gap between formal and informal education; research and the classroom. From that perspective NUCLEUS will become the start of a broader process that might include other components over time. NUCLEUS comprise the following organisations and their partners: ECSITE, the European network of science centres and museums and the European Schoolnet; the EIROforum and the University of Reading (UK), the Vienna Univesity of Technology and the CISCI consortium and the “Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris”.

The session at the S&S forum presented the partners and objectives of NUCLEUS:
Steven Parker
Presentation [ - 780 Kb]

Session convenor: Walter Staveloz, Executive director of ECSITE
- Presentation of PENCIL, pilot projects and academic contribution to transfer of best practices to the classroom. [ - 1.7 Mb]

Speakers:

- For ESTI, Isabelle Devaux-Béchon; (ESA Education department), will present the « Science on Stage » project and Russ Hodge (EMBL) the new International Journal for science teachers.
- For CISCI (linking film and Internet for science education), Prof H. Oberhummer from the VUT will present a showcase on cinema and science.
- For “SCIENCEDUC”, P. Lucas from « La main à la pâte » (invited) will present the network that focuses on the renovation of science education in primary schools. [ - 503 Kb]
- For PENCIL and the NUCLEUS web presence, Ulf Lundin, Director of European Schoolnet will demonstrate the pilot of the dynamic European Science Education Portal (ESEP). [ - 1.1 Mb]