Department of Sciences

Science classes have a special meaning in all levels of education and especially in Ellinogermaniki Agogi as they help students to better understand the laws governing our world.

Students come in contact with physical phenomena outside school life, at home, in the street, while playing and doing sports... This contact though with physical phenomena isn't systematic due to the fact that its order is coincidental and the child's primary aim is not to critically analyse and understand it. The way to face the phenomena isn't designed having in mind the reasons behind these physical phenomena and the learning objectives are not pre-set.

On the contrary in school life, the curriculum/ materials that the students are presented with are specially designed and organised having as a base the teachers desire to achieve specific learning objectives.

A basic aim of science lessons in our technologically advantaged era is to provide sufficient education and learning skills that will be useful throughout a student's life. To contribute to the development of learning skills like observation and critical thinking as well as to provide the necessary assistance for the creation of a critical view in relation to crucial but everyday problems that have to do with technology.

As we can see from the above, science classes should have a practical side. Science teaching should be closely linked with physical phenomena we come across everyday. According to the theory of constructivism, every student builds his/her perception of the world. The physical reality is one and given, the way thought that each of us attempts to understand it, is different. It develops as a process according to personal encounters and other people's perceptions. Thus at a schooling environment, more emphasis should be given at the development of the learning skills that would enable students to form these perceptions rather than the content of the learning material itself. We should provide students with the chance of personal authentic experiences that have to do with everyday observation. Furthermore, besides the practical side of it and the development at a class level the observation and interpretation skills in relation to the world around us, science teaching need to transmit to the students a certain methodology framework, a research system that is closely linked to sciences. The development of observation skills, the creation of a hypothesis and the research plan designed for the hypothesis in a systematic way are taught through sciences but are also useful tools in a number of other learning areas as well. The systematic way of a scientific inquiry is a useful tool for students generally.

In Ellinogermaniki Agogi the Guided Research Teaching model was chosen as the most suitable teaching model for the accomplishment of the above aims. This model uses in a number of ways experiments aiming at the transmission of elements of the scientific methodology to the students. Each physical phenomenon is reduced to a problem students are called upon to solve. With the term Research in the title, emphasis is given in the attempt to help students explore the research procedures according to their already existing knowledge, the means available and the methods according to their learning abilities. By what is said above we can see that research methodology can be understood even from a primary school student.
With the term Guided, emphasis is given to the fact that the learning- researching course that the students take is not random or free but it develops according to certain steps organised in a chronological sequence. The teacher's role is to organise the students work and coordinate their research initiatives according to this course of action, having as an aim the understanding of learning structures so that anything new can be fully understood.

One of the basic problems for the teaching of sciences is the lack of linkage between the three levels of education, as there is no continuity. In Ellinogermaniki Agogi, the teaching of sciences in each level is organised having in mind an overall learning plan, independent of the administrative separation of schooling into three levels. The learning content is formulated according to the students' age group and so is teaching. In each level, the learned content is used and linked to new material that is going to be presented to the students in the future.

The qualitative explanation of the physical phenomena comes before the quantitative and formalistic one. In this way, the teaching of sciences in Primary school is focused mainly in a systematic observation. Students don't face physical phenomena as random and are called upon to register their development through methodological observation. Students learn to organise their observations and to perform simple experiments.

Ιn Junior High School, teaching aims in the qualitative approach of explaining phenomena with a gradual introduction into the quantitative and formalistic approach.

In Senior High School, learning is established with the conclusion of quantitative approach and formalistic learning that is linked to phenomena whose qualitative explanation has been given at a previous educational level. Therefore students don't just learn formalism of by heart but really understand its dimension as mathematically condensing qualitative information.

The science classes being taught in Primary school as well as Junior and Senior High School are taking place in specially designed labs, fully equipped for teamwork.

Science classes are enriched during excursions. All labs are linked to the Internet. The development of the class is also supported by the department's publications.

A Whole-School Approach towards STEM
A Whole-School Approach, is the starting point of the development of STEM Learning Ecologies (inter-connected environments for STEM learning) to facilitate students learning, refers to a holistic, systemic, co-creative, and reflexive effort by all members of the school staff to meaningfully engage students and in general, the school community in complex challenges and problems. Holistic highlights the attempt to explore and address sustainability issues from multiple perspectives in an integrated and relational way. Systemic refers to considering key aspects of the education system simultaneously (formal, non-formal, and informal education, curriculum, pedagogies and learning, professional development, school-community relationships, school practices, vision, and leadership). Co-creative refers to the inclusion of multiple voices and stakeholders in the development of the approach within a given context either at a school or a policy level. At last, reflexive refers to the need for continuous learning, monitoring, evaluation, and re-calibration in response to an ever-changing world.

In the whole-school approach multiple themes can be simultaneously addressed within the overarching umbrella of key challenges (e.g. environmental issues and climate change, future missions to Mars, Nature-based solutions and innovation), not by reducing them to “learning tasks”, but as entry points to different ways of working and living, considering current global challenges. This is our well-documented and tested approach to transform the school into enabler of the whole-school approach to tackle sustainability challenges, introduce innovative topics and pedagogies, foster innovation, and strengthen collaborative and participatory learning and planning. A whole-school and interdisciplinary approach that includes students, teachers, families, and the broader community can help to create a cultural shift towards a better and more sustainable future. Hence, the creation of continuous learning paths that begin in primary education through to secondary is of paramount importance to ensure that young people are prepared to meet future challenges.

Figure 1: The key pillars for the development of the School Approach to STEM. They highlight the key opportunities and challenges for establishing the context of implementation for the introduction of STEM in school context.

Our approach is (see Figure 1):

• Relevant to the school’s mission; national educational priorities; community identity; as well as localised to the environmental priorities and regional needs.
• Resourced with expertise and support in STEM learning; physical resources and technologies to make the transition; and medium-term financing opportunities to execute plans.
• Reflective by capacity building, critical reflection and evaluation at all levels; develop systems thinking, creative problem-solving, digital and sustainability competences in its staff and students; striving to become a learning organisation.
• Responsive by embracing a flexible structure and adapting to local and cultural settings; teachers and students develop the capabilities to recognise complexity as well as the changing nature of global challenges and the key role of STEM subjects to provide solutions for a sustainable future.
• Reformative which means that the agenda is not simply one of adding isolated projects and themes to the curriculum but involves reframing the entire educational experience to support the overall STEM learning through integrated subjects and meaningful projects.

To achieve this, we have introduced a structured STEM learning continuum, through which students progress from exploration and discovery to analysis, design and problem-solving. Delivering such a continuum requires more than curriculum adjustment inside the school. It demands an integrated approach that connects the school with external actors able to provide expertise, data, tools, infrastructures and authentic challenges.