28-30 April 2022
“Ștefan cel Mare” University, Suceava
Participants: 200 professors
250 pre-university teachers were invited to participate in the fourth edition of the National Conference of the “Education for Science” Community, dedicated to sharing best practices in teaching and promoting science and science careers in both formal and non-formal education. This year’s theme, “Gazing into the Future: Perspectives on STEM Education. Lessons from the Crisis,” focused on adapting to the crises of the past two years. The conference provided an opportunity for analysis and reflection on how science education has evolved over the past decade.
Selected teachers engaged in sessions with education and scientific research experts, practical workshops, debates, project presentations, and educational best practices, as well as visits to research laboratories and interactive exhibitions.
Over the course of the conference, 30 interactive workshops and presentations were delivered by specialists from Romania and the Republic of Moldova. These sessions allowed participants to reflect on how science education has been shaped by recent crises in the region and worldwide, as well as by technological and scientific innovations.
Participants also attended three roundtable discussions on current topics related to education’s role in driving community change. The themes of the roundtables were:
- Green STEM
- Bridging the Gaps Between Romania’s Smart Specialization Fields and STEM Education. Case Study: Bioeconomy
- What Adds Value to Schools and Learning Support Services, and How Can We Foster the Growth of Their Extended Community?
The INCDFP research team contributed with three interactive workshops and the Mobile Earthquake Exhibition.
Workshop I – Seismology: An Innovative Resource in Education
Trainers: Bogdan Zaharia, Dragoș Tătaru, Andreea Tolea, GeoEduLab (INCDFP), Iulia Armeanu
This workshop introduced participants to activities aimed at bringing the subject of earthquakes and seismological research closer to middle and high school students. Through hands-on experiments, attendees explored tectonic plates, the causes of earthquakes, seismic wave propagation, fault lines, and the effects of earthquakes on the Earth’s surface. Activities combined multimedia resources, online applications, and tools.
Using real-time data published online, participants engaged in activities to discover, download, and visualize seismic recordings from Earth and other planets. Practical activities and experiments were also proposed to complement existing Earth Science curricula, with a focus on earthquakes.
Workshop II – Basics and Demonstrations in Seismic Engineering
Trainers: Alexandru Țigănescu, Bogdan Grecu (GeoEduLab), Andreea Predoiu
The objective of this workshop was to explain how buildings behave during an earthquake. Participants explored concepts such as vibrations, damping, and seismic design principles—answering why some buildings withstand earthquakes while others do not. Participants designed and built models of earthquake-resistant structures, which were tested on a shaking table to simulate seismic events.
Workshop III – The InSight Mission: Mars@School – Mantle Convection Movement
Trainers: Alina Coman, Raluca Dinescu
This workshop presented ways to bring exciting topics from Earth and space sciences into classrooms and translate them into educational activities modeled after real research processes.
Interactive activities demonstrated how abstract scientific concepts can be made accessible to students, sparking their interest and capturing their attention. Participants tested classroom-ready activities to explain scientific concepts and explore methods of investigating the interior of a terrestrial planet.