Young Scientists in European Regions

Project summary

"Young Scientists in European Regions" will be an innovative science-learning and teaching-project. With the help of the project we want to top up the theoretical education of pupils of the secondary stage of basic schools (Germany, Austria) and of lower classes of the grammar school (the Czech Republic) with the practical education, with the discovering of our three regions from the natural scientific and sociocultural point of view (picking up of samples, terrain work, excursions into natural parks, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, production plants) and with the comparison with partner schools. We want younger pupils to do their first steps in research work in a laboratory and to learn how to present and to share results of their work (in new pupils´portfolios, in the electronical way, with the help of media and modern technologies), we want younger pupils to get information about Europe and important structures of the EU. Always with a team of 30 pupils we will focus on the field of nature, we will look for relations among theoretical education, work in a laboratory and practice. For our two-year project we have chosen another research topic for every year(„water and land“ and „forests and biosphere“), when we will pick up samples, examine them in laboratories, we will have a look at the relation with practice and job choice, we will compare results of all three countries and will start new pupils´portfolios. We will show the pupils common strategies of learning in the way that we will plan, carry out, evaluate and present experiments, we will carry out professional excursions. We will organize 6 short-term-pupils´meetings, 3 short-term-teachers´meetings in each of the three partner schools and countries. We will strengthen the profile of the teaching profession in the way that with the help of both the practical and the professionally orientated teaching and with the help of the communication in a foreign language we will strengthen competencies and self-confidence of teachers and we will also strengthen the profile of partner schools. We will use modern technologies (mobiles, notebooks, small measuring laboratory device) for the work in terrain and for new impulses into teaching and we will reach the goal that both teachers and pupils will like the cooperation with various partner schools and various regions and that they themselves will explore the mutual effects of the three regions of the EU. In this way we want to adopt methods of open education and innovative practice in the digital age. In this way we want to contribute to the sustainable future of Europe.