Chemistry Experiments A European Approach Erasmus Project

Project Title

Chemistry Experiments A European Approach

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Natural sciences; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

The role of Chemistry experiments in the classroom during the Chemistry classes is of paramount importance. Due to the fact that national examinations doesn’t access or assess practical skills related to the work in the Chemistry laboratory, the role of the Chemistry experiments is decreasing in favor of problem solving or other theoretical skills of the secondary students.
In order to promote the role of the experiments and of the experimental works in the Natural Sciences classes and to increase the amount of this kind of activities in the teaching process, seven upper secondary schools joined forces together to create three pedagogical tools, in form of an Open Educational Resource, which promote this general aim.
Taking in account that many Chemistry experiments are presented by the on-line resources, via recorded videos, in a showy way not always complying with the pedagogical rules, there is a pedagogical approach on how a Chemistry video has to be recorded and what minimal information has to contain in order to fulfill the minimum requirements that makes a recorded Chemistry experiment a pedagogical tool (presenting the name of the experiment or of the depicted process, presenting the hazards related to the manipulation of chemicals -while using GHS symbols-, writing down the balanced chemical equation, explaining the experimental steps and the chemical process, describing the waste management).

One objective of the project was to create, by the involved schools, a collection of Chemistry videos, recorded with all necessary information (presented above) which makes the recording a pedagogical tool usable in the classroom. This collection contains 190 chemistry experiments and is made available on-line on a dedicated YouTube channel created within the partnership: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5isd3pO1xZY7bQ54uLmZIw.

A second aim of the project was to edit a Handbook of Chemistry Experiments which cover the theoretical aspects related to the recorded Chemistry experiments. The book was written in English and was translated in three other languages: Romanian, Greek and Turkish. The content of the published book goes beyond the chemical process itself presenting aspects related to the preparation of an experiment, the materials and equipment necessary to perform it, the hazards related to the use of different chemicals along with the waste management of the products, the proper reference citation, etc offering a tool for the Chemistry teachers working with the book or for the students who are asked to perform a certain experimental procedure in the laboratory. The English and Romanian versions of the book were printed on paper and distributed among chemistry teachers, both those attending the international dissemination conference held in Zalau on April 7th 2017 and those who live farer and received the book by post.

In order to cover the situation when on-line tools are not available, a software managing the created video database, making it available off-line, is the third end product envisaged for the project. The software was compiled to run under Windows OS as most of the target group are using this OS. The software was created with much more functionalities as previously estimated. Instead of having an application managing 190 chemistry experiments videos (.mp4 files) and 190 chemistry experimental pages (.pdf files) the partnership gave a “living application” which can be further developed by the end user. According to the user’s need the video and experimental database can be further expanded either with the user’s own video recordings or with videos chosen on the internet. The software has a powerful filtering capability searching the database through six different parameter making easy to navigate among hundreds of chemical demonstrations.
The six partners involved were covering a wide European area from five countries: RO (coordinating school), AT, GR, NL (2different schools), TR ensuring diversity, a proper experience sharing among the participants, a wide area for disseminating the end products allowing in the mean time interculturality and an inclusive approach while interacting during the project meetings.

The last project meeting was organized at the coordinating school where an international conference was held (07 04 2017), a dissemination event which allowed the joint team to start spreading the end products among the target groups: teachers of Chemistry in secondary schools and, as indirect beneficiaries, the students doing their secondary studies. Making available the joint result of the partnership in different ways a large coverage of situations is ensured on-line and off-line.

Offering the end products of the project as Open Educational Resource (both on the YouTube account and as hard-copy and on the European Commission’s dissemination platform) a greater extend of the experimental work in Chemistry, in the involved secondary schools is envisaged.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 141819 Eur

Project Coordinator

COLEGIUL NATIONAL “SIMION BARNUTIU” & Country: RO

Project Partners

• EKPEDEFTIRIA VASSILIADI
• ozel samsun egitim sentezi ins.tic.san.A.S
• Höhere Technische Bundes- Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt Dornbirn
• Lycée technique nationalisé St Louis
• Vereniging voor Christelijk Voortgezet onderwijs Rotterdam en omgeving, Christelijke Scholengemeenschap Comenius College
• Stichting Onderwijsgroep Galileï