Russia

The British Council Krasnoyarsk hosted a two-day workshop, from November 21-22, 2005, for subject teacher trainers from the Krasnoyarsk IPKRU – The Krasnoyarsk Institute for In-service Teacher Development. A wide variety of training areas were represented and 20 teacher trainers attended the workshop.
 
Science Across the World was offered as a focus for developing competences and skills in education. We looked, among others, at making presentations in class, developing discussions in class, carrying out surveys, using practical activities, analysing and presenting data. Two interpreters from the faculty of interpreting at Krasnoyarsk State University helped the communication along with their impeccable work in interpreting our sessions where necessary (a lot!). Thanks also to Olga for translating the handouts!

Focus on the skills as well as the facts!

    …post-its debate on Genetic Science…
 
… pros and cons of genetic science…

…investigating rubbish…
 
…presenting data in a diagram…

Programme:

As a direct result of expressed needs for communication amongst the participants in the group a Yahoogroup ‘Krasnoyarsk Schools’ was set up. 

A copy of the Science Across website was left behind to enable colleagues to work with their own trainees without internet access problems.

… marketing strategy for cosmetics…
 
A key question was raised in evaluating the two days of workshops. ‘How can teachers find time for these activities when they have such a heavy curriculum to teach?’ One answer offered was the 10% of the timetable which has recently been set aside in the region for investigative work such as that carried out in the Science Across programme.

Lida also presented an outline of a programme she offers in pre-service teacher training in Amsterdam which focuses on Science Across.

There is a challenge to colleagues to use the programme for their own needs, but there is also clear enthusiasm for Science Across and many colleagues were keen to take the programme forward in their own teacher training.

… presenting cosmetics…
 
We’ll be interested to hear how the colleagues get on and will certainly do what we can to keep in touch and support their work from a distance. We hope they invite us back again!

Science Across in Siberia

The British Council Krasnoyarsk hosted a follow up meeting for teachers of English in Siberia on Science Across the World with the theme ‘Taking the programme forward’ on Saturday 19th November 2005. 15 teachers of English at various levels of education from primary through secondary to tertiary University education in interpreting and language pedagogy were brought together to discuss the development of the programme in Siberia.

Half of the group had been introduced to the programme in June 2005 and the other half were newcomers with two colleagues joining us from Yuzhno-Sahalinsk in the afternoon with a view to maintaining links with networks in Eastern Russia. 

What makes the programme work?

Programme 

This workshop builds on the YAC week (Young Ambassadors for Chemistry) in Krasnoyarsk from 14th to 18th November, 2005 which produced the two Russian language packs ‘Talking about Genetics around the World’ and ‘Chemistry in our Lives’.

Participants were given an overview of the Young Ambassadors for Chemistry week successes and lessons learnt.

The teachers were also given examples of new activities for carrying out surveys in the classroom based on Science Across topics such as ‘Supertasters’ which, among others, involves participants measuring the number of tastebuds they have and preparing an Excel presentation of the results.
 
…investigating variation in the group…

Colleagues were asked to consider ways of working with colleagues in schools and institutions who do not work through the medium of English making use of the Russian language packs.

In addition, colleagues were given hands on practice of the ‘Domestic Waste’ pack, also available in Russian. In this final session colleagues had to investigate a bag of Russian rubbish as waste detectives and make a presentation on the identity of the person who made the rubbish.
 
…investigating rubbish…

…presenting findings…                 


Follow up

One key question which arose about putting the programme into practice was the restricted access to the internet and where there was access the restricted traffic available. In an attempt to alleviate this problem Science Across provided complete static copies of the programme website for colleagues to use and so bypass the need to download the materials for use in their schools. There is a clear need for supplementary training in IT and Internet use and this step goes some way to ensuring the long term development of the programme in Siberia.

An egroup has been set up named ‘Krasnoyarsk Schools’ in Yahoogroups to facilitate the communication among schools in Siberia working on the Science Across the World programme.

It’s very encouraging to see how much is going on in one region, a great deal of collaboration between disciplines, between different organisations and between different faculties within organisations. This is a useful model of integration for other contexts and on which we will be giving as an example for our work in other countries.

Many thanks to the British Council in Krasnoyarsk for hosting the event and taking care of us all!

YACs Siberia, Krasnoyarsk, 14-18th November, 2005

After a 24 hour journey into central Siberia we arrived drowsy and weary in the snow covered city of Krasnoyarsk for the third leg of the Young Ambassadors for Chemistry project hosted by Natalia Gapanovich and colleagues at the Teacher Training Institute of Krasnoyarsk.

The event opened formally with words from Dean Fadeev from the Pedagogical University, a representative of the local education authority welcoming such a project to the city and encouraging opportunities for interschool investigative research as well as welcoming words from Natalia Gapanovich.  
 

Natalia read a special letter to the participants stressing the importance of communicating Science to young people and for young people becoming competent Science communicators themselves.  The letter was all the more important as it was countersigned by Academician O. M. Nefedov, chairman of the National Committee of Russian Chemists, Member of the IUPAC bureau, Supervisor of the Chemistry College of Higher Education of the Russian Academy of Science and Academician N. P. Laverov, Vice-president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Supervisor of the College of Rational use of Nature of the Russian Chemistry-Technological University, D. I. Mendeleyev and N. P. Tarasova, Member of the Russian Academy of Science, Member of the Committee of Chemical Education IUPAC, Headmaster of the Institute of Chemistry and problems of the steady development of the Russian Chemistry-Technological University, D. I.  Mendeleyev.

 
43 teachers came from all parts of the Krasnoyarsk region for the 5-day YAC workshop and a significant element in the first day’s programme were presentations from colleagues on their school contexts and Science Education in their areas.

  
Young Ambassadors for Chemistry is funded by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (website) through the committee for educational projects.  The main aim of the YAC project, as you may already know from postings on previous events around the world, is the popularisation of Science and raising the public awareness of Science by employing young people as ‘Ambassadors’ of Science.  In this context, students of the participating teachers mediate between the public and the Science activities explaining what is going on, answering questions and also gaining valuable feedback from the public on their opinions on what they witness happening in front of them.


Russian language materials

 
Of particular significance in Russia is the preparation of the Science Across the World materials ‘Chemistry in our Lives’ and ‘Talking about Genetics around the World’ in the Russian language.  Natalia and her daughter, Katya, get special thanks for this tremendous achievement.  This brings the tally to Spanish from Argentina YACs, Chinese from Taiwan YACs and now Russian from Siberian YACs.  These materials will be on the Science Across website very soon, if they are not there already.


Partners
British Council Russia (http://www.britishcouncil.org/russia.htm), both in Krasnoyarsk and Moscow, were extremely helpful in realising this event.  If it were not for their organisational support this project could not have taken place.  Mendeleev University, Moscow through Doctor Natalia Tarasova, IUPAC colleague of Lida’s and an integral part of the initial negotiation of this event.  The Local Education Authority in Krasnoyarsk deserves thanks as well for their support for putting the event on in the city.  GSK – GlaxoSmithKline part funded the event.  BioRad contributed a DNA extraction kit for us to use as a prize for the teachers and Cognis provided detergent material for the cosmetics workshops.

Day 1

Intro SAW

Say No to Drugs Theatre

Teacher context presentations

Day 2

Hands on Science Across

Variation – supertasters

Post its debate

Day 3

SAW Website

Cosmetics workshop

DNA sweets

Day 4


Preparing for YAC Day


Organisation – Ballons, decorations, cosmetics, DNA models

YAC Day


80 children, teachers, parents, Uni students, colleagues from the TT Uni, primary theatre on Science



… all taking part in Cosmetics and DNA Workshops 


… with official speeches, Songs, presentations, Science Theatre, Prizes



    
Closure and goodbyes



… there was a song and dance about having to close…

Outcomes
Natalia, Marina, Svetlana, Angelina have agreed to help the future development of the Science Across programme in Russia.  This is a good sign, there is tremendous interest in the programme, which meets demands for interschool collaboration in Russia and for the development of communicative competences in Science Education.

Whatismore, the very collaboration necessary in getting the project to work on the ground is no small achievement.  Many thanks to partners, the British Council in Russia for the communication between their offices in Moscow and Krasnoyarsk in coordinating our travel from the UK and Holland to the Krasnoyarsk.  Many special thanks to Marina and colleagues at the teacher training University for their hospitality as well as the colleagues who interpreted for us (Sveta, you’re a star!).  Another significant characteristic of this event is the collaboration between English and Science teachers in two working languages, as well as their commitment to carrying out collaborative work together back in their schools.


… the old man of Stolbi contemplates the future of YACs in Russia…

This initative is part of a long term series of workshops with teachers in Krasnoyarsk and in Siberia and the next step will be these teachers cascading what they have learnt to colleagues in neighbouring schools.  Lida and I both look forward to being involved!

Science Across the World, Russia (1-8.6.2005)

The British Council in Russia organised two two-day workshops for colleagues in Yuzhno-Sahalinsk and Krasnoyarsk on the Science Across the World programme with a special focus on Climate Change.

I was very happy to be going to Russia, despite the trip half way round the world it entailed, as my own undergraduate degree is in Russian and this is the first time I’ve had the chance to go back there to work with teachers.

Yuzhno-Sahalinsk


Yuzhno-Sahalinsk is the main city on a remote Island on the Pacific coast of the Russian Republic and the British Council here in collaboration with BP is investing in training for teachers specifically in the Science Across the World programme for its opportunities for linking schools, teachers and students with partners in other countries around the world. English teachers are also being pushed to adapt ‘profile’ options for their students in humanities or science subjects in English to supplement their regular lessons. Vlada Lapshina is the British Council centre coordinator in Yuzhno-Sahalinsk and the host for this event.

Vlada outside the teacher centre

The two-day programme

Colleagues were introduced to the Science Across the World programme and the range of topics available in the programme.
 
They were presented with a number of packs and exchange forms from the programme with a special focus on Climate Change.

These materials included: Biodiversity around us, Global Warming, Renewable Energy.

Participants browsed the website searching for answers to the web quiz they were given to do and to begin the process of registration. Subscription is free for all teachers in the Russian Repulblic.

A number of the group needed to create an email address for themselves in order to sign up to the Science Across programme. Many thanks to Evgenii and Aleksei, the institute techinicians, for their help in this process.


As a result, all of the group had an email address, completed the quiz and signed up to the Science Across programme in the space of an afternoon.

Sunset in Ohotskoe 

I had the fortune to meet Evgenia Kaibara (kaybsn@bp.com), a former member of the British Council development team in Yuzhno-Sahalin, now assistant to the regional director for links with the community at BP in Sahalin. It’s an interesting coincidence that BP is supporting British Council work in Sahalin since many of the Science Across materials offered in the programme were created under the sponsorship of BP. Science Across the World is funded today by GlaxoSmithKline and much of the success of our work depends upon identifying effective partnerships with local organisations and institutions. I look forward to cooperating with these partners and colleagues in Sahalin in the future.

Yuzhno-Sahalin Follow-up:
- Vlada to look into Middlesex University kits for summer schools (solar power, rockets, robots)
- Colleagues consider YAC activity for their students (Poster competition on climate change)
- Colleagues using Science Across project in schools
- Colleagues sharing the science Across project with other colleagues
- ASE Science Year CDs (Vlada to look into buying them for the centre)
- Colleagues to investigate ELTeCS for contacts and possible discussion on mini materials writing project and funding
- Keith to report on 2 days in Sahalin and post to FACTWorld website, and ELTeCS list
- Keith to invite colleagues to join factworld group

Krasnoyarsk
Teachers from all around the Krasnoyarsk region came together for a two-day workshop to coincide with the British Council ZeroCarbonCity Exhibition campaign in the city to run over two months in the city.

Krasnoyarsk main square and the Yenisyei river

Krasnoyarsk was celebrating its 377th birthday while I was there.

The teachers included primary, secondary and university teachers interested in integrating science themes into their language teaching.

Colleagues worked on the Science Across themes related to Climate Change and created Biodiversity maps of Russia.





Colleagues signed up to the Science Across programme and many of the group created emails on the spot to be able to register with the programme.

BC office, Krasnoyarsk

ZeroCarbonCity Poster

Colleagues looking round the ZCC exhibition

I met with Natalia Gapanovich from the Science department of the University in Krasnoyarsk and Irina Titarienko manager of the British Council centre to discuss the coming of the Young Ambassadors for Chemistry in November later this year. It looks like an ideal location for a Science Celebration event like the YACs programme offers. It will be great to come back already having met so many teachers and knowing how keen they are on developing Science and Communication in their teaching.

Exploring information gap activities for Science

Krasnoyarsk Follow-up

- Keith invites all the colleagues to join up to the factworld network of teachers
- Keith posts report on Russia SAW to ELTeCS and factworld lists
- Colleagues introduce Science Across the World into their teaching
- Keith informs colleagues of future visit details – YAC Krasnoyarsk, November 2005
- Colleagues share the Science Across programme with other colleagues in their schools
- Discussion started on translation of SAW materials into Russian
- British Council Krasnoyarsk to look into the possibility of further meetings to coincide with the YAC week in November:
- for teacher trainers from disciplines other than ELT to discuss the opportunities of introducing Science Across into other subject teaching areas
- for colleagues from other regional cities in Siberia to disseminate the practice and experiences of colleagues now signed up to the Science Across the World programme
- Olga Kuznetsova of the Pedagogical Institute in Krasnoyarsk to investigate introducing translation of the Science Across the World materials into the Russian language in the curriculum of the undergraduate students’ programme


Krasnoyarsk group

Science Across the World is growing in Russia and many colleagues are enhtusiastic about the programme not only as teachers but also for supporting with translation and spreading the word. This network is bound to grow. It’ll be a pleasure being involved.