There are 17 “Ciência Viva na Escola” clubs that will be created with the support of European funds mobilized by the Algarve Operational Program – CRESC Algarve 2020, to support the promotion of scientific literacy among young people in primary, secondary and professional education, announced this Tuesday, 3 August, the Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR) of the Algarve.
The Scientific Literacy of young people in Portugal was assessed as a problematic aspect compared to the average of other OECD countries and, although the conclusions of the Pisa reports show significant improvements in the indicators, «it is essential to develop strategies to enhance results in the future», he says. the CCDR of the Algarve.
In the Algarve region, the indicators are even less favorable, with “a lower prevalence of young people entering higher education in the STEAM areas (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics)”.
In this context, the Clubs, which will operate in the main groups of schools in the Algarve region, will be supported in various activities that contribute to the enhancement of knowledge in scientific and technological areas, and experimental teaching of science or for the production of specialized technical content.
Also activities that contribute to the holding of meetings, seminars and workshop, study visits and other forms of sharing knowledge, experiences and good practices between clusters of schools, or non-clustered educational establishments, will be supported.
In addition to the Ciência Viva na Escola Clubs, the Algarve Operational Program worked to get the involvement of the three Ciência Viva Centers in the Algarve (Faro, Lagos and Tavira), in partnership with the University of Algarve, in a project to develop digital teaching resources.
This project aims to « ensure access to quality digital educational resources and collaboration tools in digital environments that promote innovation in the teaching-learning process, stimulate creativity and innovation, allow distance monitoring of the classroom and online collaborative work, not only by young people integrated in general secondary education courses, but also by young people in vocational education», adds CCDR do Algarve.
The Algarve Operational Program has already allocated more than 1 million euros from European Funds to these projects, 80% of which from the European Social Fund and 20% from the Social Security Budget.
The funding will be awarded in the form of a non-refundable grant and will cover, for 24 months, the costs associated with the functioning of the Clubs and the production of digital teaching resources.
The expected impact of these measures should translate into «an improvement in the scientific literacy indicators of young people in the Algarve, and in the growth of vocational options for STEAM professional areas, strengthening the demand for sectors of economic activity that contribute to the diversification of the regional economic base. », concludes the CCDR of the Algarve.
This is a project supported by the Algarve Operational Program - CRESC Algarve 2020, in collaboration with Ciência Viva – National Agency for Scientific and Technological Culture, and the General Directorate of Education.
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