European Association for Astronomy Education

The European Association for Astronomy Education or EAAE[1] is a non-profit European organization for the promotion of science education in general, and of astronomy in particular.[2]

European Association for Astronomy Education
Formation1995
TypeAstronomy Education Organization
Membership
teachers from 26 European countries
Websitewww.eaae-astronomy.org
Representatives for the foundation of the European Association for Astronomical Education in Athens on November 25, 1995 .

The Organization was founded on November 25, 1995, in Athens, as a result of the Declaration of the EU/ESO workshop on Teaching of Astronomy in Europe's Secondary Schools that was held at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Headquarters in Garching in November 1994.[3]

Structure

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The Professional association|Association gathers the General Assembly for strategic decisions, and an Executive Council as the operational management. There are also National Representatives with a role on promoting the EAAE and its activities in their countries.[4][5]

Working Groups

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Catch a Star is a contest organised as a collaboration between EAAE and ESO.[6]

International activities are promoted through the activity of three Working Groups.[7]

  • Working Group 1 "Collaborative Projects" intends to promote collaborative work between teachers and students of different countries by creating specific science project activities for schools.[8]
  • Working Group 2 "Catch a Star" promotes school research projects about astronomical objects through a contest.[9][10] The previous contests have been organized as a joint venture with the European Southern Observatory (ESO).
  • Working Group 3 "Summer Schools" promotes teacher training about Astronomy Education. It provides an opportunity for teachers to learn about simple educational materials for their classes.[11]

Partnerships

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The EAAE has had a long term collaboration with the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in many projects, including "Astronomy On-Line"[12] or "Catch a Star" [13] and has also collaborated with the European Space Agency (ESA) and with the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) on the organization of Physics on Stage and Science on Stage.[14] Like most major organizations, since 2009 the EAAE has grown in social networks and has now mirrors of the "EAAE News" [15] on Facebook,[16] Twitter[17] and Portal to the Universe.[18] The EAAE has also collaborations with The European Planetarium Network (EuroPlaNet) and with the Euro-Asian Association of Teachers of Astronomy (EAATA).

See also

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References

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  1. ^ European Association for Astronomy Education, EAAE
  2. ^ Reichen, M. (2006). The European Association for Astronomy Education (Abstract), JAAVSO Volume 35, p.255 (PDF)
  3. ^ Declaration of the EU/ESO workshop 1994
  4. ^ European Association for Astronomy Education Homepage
  5. ^ EAAE National Representatives
  6. ^ "Catch a Star 2015 Contest Winners Announced". Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  7. ^ General Assembly, Madrid, 2009
  8. ^ Working Group 1-Collaborative Projects
  9. ^ Working Group 2-Catch a Star
  10. ^ "Catch a Star Project"
  11. ^ Working Group 3-Teacher Summer Schools
  12. ^ West, R.(2006). The "Astronomy On-Line" Project (Abstract), JAAVSO Volume 35, p.256 (PDF)
  13. ^ "Catch a Star Project"
  14. ^ Science on Stage Project Partners Page
  15. ^ EAAE News blog
  16. ^ EAAE News on Facebook
  17. ^ EAAE News on Twitter
  18. ^ EAAE News on Portal to the Universe
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