Universe awareness for young children: Some educational aspects and a pilot project Cecilia Scorza, George Miley, Carolina Ödman, and Claus Madsen ZAH (Zentrum für Astronomie Heidelbeg der Universität Heidelberg) Astronomisches Rechen-Institut, Mönchhofstr. 12-14, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany, e–mail: cecilia.appl@astaria.de; Leiden Observatory, P.O. Box 9513 NL-2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands, e–mail: miley@strw.leidenuniv.nl, odman@strw.leidenuniv.nl; ESO, KarlSchwarzschild-Strasse 2, D-85748 Garching bei München, Germany, email:cmadsen@eso.org Abstract: Universe Awareness (UNAWE) is an international initiative for economically disadvantaged young children aged four to ten. UNAWE will expose children in developing countries and in underprivileged communities in Europe to the inspirational aspects of astronomy. UNAWE is also a network of Astronomy outreach/education professionals and volunteers worldwide. Here we discuss some aspects that will be taken into account during the development phase of the program and describe the Venezuelan pilot project. 36.1 Introduction Universe Awareness (UNAWE) is an international program that will expose economically disadvantaged young children between ages 4 and 10 to the inspirational aspects of modern astronomy [1]. Astronomy is a unique discipline for motivating and forming young children and imbuing them with an appreciation of both science and culture. Astronomy is also one of the oldest human activities, with cultural roots in many ancient civilizations. Universe Awareness is motivated by the premises that access to simple knowledge about the Universe is a birthright and that the formative ages of 4 to 10 years play an important role in the development of a human value system. This is also the age range in which children can readily appreciate and enjoy the beauty of astronomical objects and can learn to develop a feeling for the vastness of the Universe. Exposing young children to the wonders of the Universe can help to broaden their minds and stimulate their world-view. Universe Awareness is aimed at very young children because cognitive disparities among children that depend on background increase with age. UNAWE will focus on economically disadvantaged children because they are less likely to gain knowledge of the Universe by conventional means and are therefore the most needy. UNAWE is being developed as a “bottom-up” program that will carry out or participate in projects in several countries starting in 2009, designated as the International Year of Astronomy. Goals include (i) the production of entertaining material in several languages and cultures, (ii) organizing training courses for teachers and others involved in the
delivery of the program, and (iii) providing a network where teachers and other professionals can exchange ideas and experiences. During 2006 pilot projects were carried out to investigate the feasibility of UNAWE in Venezuela and Tunisia. 36.2 Diverse environments Young disadvantaged children, the target group for Universe Awareness, live in diverse environments, including isolated rural villages and the centres of large cities. Three types of environments have been identified, for which different materials and methods need to be developed. In a very basic environment, children would be exposed to very little schooling, with minimal or no infrastructure. Children in an advanced environment would typically all go to school with well–trained teachers and have regular access to the Internet. Some infrastructure would be present in an intermediate environment. Television would be widespread, the Internet would be available sporadically. The development of UNAWE will proceed according to the demands of active coordinators in the participating countries. UNAWE will assist professionals in each country in developing a programme suited to their special circumstances (environments, languages and cultures). In appropriate cases a modular programme will be developed, tailored to the ages and capabilities of the children. 36.3 Relevant educational aspects The emphasis of UNAWE is on inspiration and entertainment rather than on imparting dry facts. Songs, games, toys, and animated films will play a key role in the UNAWE programs. These will be developed by professionals with experience of children’s needs. UNAWE will also encourage twinning activities between countries sharing the same language. There are Spanish–speaking populations in many cultures, spread throughout countries located at various latitudes. Astronomical themes like the seasons, the orientation of the Moon, and the constellations can be discussed; myths, stories, and songs about the sky can be exchanged. In some cases the observations of the Moon and its relation to local calendars shall be exploited. It will often be essential and desirable to involve parents and community leaders in the process. 36.3.1 Astronomical framework Astronomical aspects of Universe Awareness that will be considered during the development of the program include the following: Awareness of the sky: Observing the sky is one obvious and inexpensive manner to convey the wonder of the Universe to young children. Looking at the Sun and the Moon, at the planets and stars visible with the naked eye, can be an excellent inspirational tool. In many environments simple observations require little effort. The Moon was a popular topic of
conversation with children in Venezuela. Stories about the Sun, the Moon, and the constellations will play a significant role. The wealth of mythologies and legends about the sky provides a source of entertaining stories for UNAWE. The inclusion of stories from different parts of the world will illustrate cultural diversity. Earth awareness: Awareness of the Earth is an important stepping stone to developing an awareness of the Universe. Convincing young children that the Earth has a spherical shape is important, but not trivial, because children believe what they see [2, 3]. The effect of gravity and the interaction between the Earth and the Moon could be mentioned in this context, when dealing with older children. Solar system awareness: The solar system is the next step in promoting a sense of vastness of the Universe. The program could exploit the diversity in shapes and colours of objects in the solar system.
The relatively modest size of the Earth compared to its
neighbours often comes as a surprise to young children and awakens their environmental conscience. The Milky Way and other galaxies: The zoo of diverse and exotic objects in our galaxy provides a treasure of beauty and fascination for stimulating children’s wonder, a possible source for exciting adventure stories, and a tool for the development of cognitive skills. The message that the Sun is just a typical star in our galaxy of more than a billion stars and that galaxies come in various beautiful shapes and sizes is obviously inspirational for older children. The effect of gravity on interactions between celestial bodies is one of several phenomena for which the elegance of rational thought could be demonstrated inspirationally to older children. 36.3.2 Didactical approaches and complementary activities Each of the topics described above could be approached in different didactical ways and using different approaches. These include the use of (i) direct observations, (ii) myths, stories, games, and songs about the Sun, Moon, and constellations, (iii) hands-on activities, (iv) interactive educational software, and (v) joint projects involving class twinning. Several participants in the Universe Awareness network are studying these possibilities in more detail. 36.4 The Venezuelan pilot project After contact with the Venezuelan UNESCO National Commission, one of us (CS) went to Venezuela in January and March 2006 to conduct a limited pilot project that incorporates some of the methods described above. Venezuela is multicultural owing to its heritage and colonial history. Because of its geography, some communities are very isolated; thus a range of urban and rural environments
are present. There is considerable support in Venezuela for new educational initiatives and the importance of preserving the country’s cultural legacy is widely recognized. This atmosphere contributed to favourable conditions for the pilot project. Venezuela also has a large community of professional and amateur astronomers. The pilot activities were based at the Centro de Investigaciones de Astronomía (CIDA) in Mérida. The activities of the pilot project were advertised efficiently through the Venezuelan UNESCO ASPnet network of schools, which has coordinators throughout the country. One of the key ingredients of UNAWE is the training of coordinators and people involved with its implementation. As part of the Venezuelan pilot project, 87 teachers from all parts of Venezuela attended two teacher training courses in Mérida. The training included several of the topics described in section 3.1. The teachers built a kit to take back to their schools with the materials brought to the workshops and collected playful activities linked to the cultural roots of the country. Children were involved in the teacher training and their participation contributed to enrich the experience. Figure 1 Teacher training in Mérida Two representatives of an Amazonian Ye´kuana indigenous village traveled from the southernmost province of the country to attend the first teacher course. They explained their lunar calendar and astronomical traditions. The participants learnt about the importance of certain constellations in the Ye’kuana culture. The ceiling of Ye’kuana houses depicts the Milky Way, and their hunting season is determined by the annual appearance of the constellation of the “Danta” (tapir) in the night sky. They celebrate solar and lunar rituals. The morning and evening stars (both Venus) play a part in the running of their daily lives. In addition to the teacher training courses, several schools were visited. Children of various ages reacted enthusiastically after exposure to several of the topics mentioned in Section 3. Finally, ad hoc contacts were made with children in a remote coastal village. They were excited by pictures of the Moon, planets and galaxies and entertained by a game that demonstrated the “dance of the planets.” Figure 2 Children at the UNESCO associated school “Flor de Maldonado” in Mérida 36.5 Conclusions and further work
It is clear that every region in which the Universe Awareness philosophy is adopted will require its own approach to implementing the program. Aspects that need individual attention include the relation of UNAWE to belief systems and the balance between reality and fantasy. The further development of the Universe Awareness program will be challenging, but the pilot projects have demonstrated the importance of a program such as Universe Awareness in inspiring and stimulating young children and their teachers throughout the world. More information about the Universe Awareness program can be found on http://www.unawe.org/ Acknowledgments The Venezuelan pilot project was kindly supported by the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) and the Centro de Investigaciones de Astronomía” (CIDA). References [1] G. Miley & al. Universe Awareness for Young Children, The Messenger, 121, September 2005, ISSN 0722-6691 [2] S. Vosniadou & W. F. Brewer, Mental models of the earth: A study of conceptual change in childhood, Cognitive Psychology, 24, 535 – 585, 1992. [3] G. Nobes, D. Moore, A. Martin, G. Butterworth, G. Panagiotaki, and M. Siegel (2003) Mental models or fragmented knowledge? Children´s understanding of the Earth in a multicultural community. Developmental Science. 49 (1) 74-87. Comments Stewart Eyres: Much of the pedagogic research is warped by the exposure of young children to formal schooling. I would be interested to see if children who have not benefited from formal schooling absorb understand concepts differently. Toshihiro Handa: Do you use Web cameras located at many places to understand “the Earth is global”? Watching images through the Web cameras helps to understand it. There are at least three Web cameras, called “I-CAN,” with which you can observe constellations. I recommend using them when the Internet is available. John Mattox: Software twining sounds like what in the pre–Internet era in the U.S.A. we called penpals. Can you elaborate on your plans for this? Cecilia Scorza: Indeed. The plan is to use e–mail between children in areas with computer infrastructure, largely to discuss the appearance of the sky.
John Mattox: Sounds like a great idea! Kala Perkins: Children can, it seems, understand much more than the pedagogic literature credits them with. A 5th-6th grade group with whom I worked, on request for “quasars & black holes� from the teacher after the presentation, said the multifrequency universe was their favorite part of the presentation.