[ASA] Nominations for IAU National Outreach Coordinator Team

[Virginia Kilborn]

Dear educators,

Please see the below opportunity to become involved in the International Astronomical Union's Astronomy education program, targeting astronomy educators - including primary and secondary school teachers and those in education research:

The IAU has recently founded its Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE), which aims to support and coordinate astronomy education by astronomy researchers and educators, aimed at primary or secondary schools worldwide, as well as  foster the use of astronomy as a stimulus for teaching and science education in general. The OAE is a joint project of the IAU and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany. The OAE is hosted by Haus der Astronomie (HdA), an astronomy education and outreach center also based in Heidelberg, Germany. More information on the OAE can be found on our preliminary website [https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/NJ3wCXLW2mUxQjVQh6ds1a?domain=astro4edu.org<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/NJ3wCXLW2mUxQjVQh6ds1a?domain=astro4edu.org>].

The OAE is tasked by the IAU with creating a worldwide network of National Astronomy Education Coordinators (NAECs), similar to the network of National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs) of the IAU Office of Astronomy Outreach. The NAECs are to be nominated by the National Committees for Astronomy or, in the case of countries without a National Committees for Astronomy, by the organisations who provide the National Member Contact for the IAU.

The NAEC team should consist of up to five experts in astronomy education. If possible, experts on both primary and secondary education, as well as on astronomy education research, should be included. NAEC teams should be diverse both in terms of gender as well as in terms of your country’s geographic regions, ethnicities and languages, where applicable.

Each NAEC team is meant to help the OAE document and analyze how astronomy is used in teaching in its country, identify existing relevant actions, organize professional development for teachers and develop readily accessible and high-quality educational material tailored to the specific needs of the country, and for specific groups and school levels.

Each NAEC team will be the interface between the OAE and the astronomy education community in its country, particularly creating a link from the IAU to teachers interested in astronomy and in using astronomy as a tool for teaching science in primary and secondary school. NAEC team members should be chosen so that, between them, they should be thoroughly familiar with all aspects of astronomy education in their country, and should be in touch with all major astronomy education stakeholders, and able to disseminate information from the OAE to their country’s astronomy education community.

If you would like to nominate for the Australian NAEC team, please send a brief 1-2 paragraph EoI stating your experience in astronomy education, and your reasons for interest in the committee.

Nominations should be sent to  icsu at science.org.au<mailto:icsu at science.org.au> by 28 August 2020.

The NAEC team will then be selected by the National Committee for Astronomy.

Kind regards,
Virginia


Prof. Virginia Kilborn

Dean | School of Science | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology

Swinburne University of Technology | Hawthorn VIC 3122 AUSTRALIA

T: +61 3 9214 4380 | E: vkilborn at swin.edu.au<mailto:vkilborn at swin.edu.au> | www: https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/AlgQCYW8Nocz7mE7FGYJKz?domain=bit.ly

Executive Assistant to the Dean T: +61 3 9214 8504

CRICOS number 00111D

 I respectfully acknowledge the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation and pay respect to their Elders past, present and emerging who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which Swinburne’s campuses are located. I also acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait nations across Australia, their Elders, Ancestors, cultures and heritage

[cid:716e1094-f4b4-46df-ac68-e3d6d8d3bb97]Proud supporter of the WATTLE Women in Leadership Program<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/pTCdCZY1Nqi36Ar6sKx6xu?domain=vkilborn.wixsite.com>

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