Dr Niall Smith Cork Institute of Technology Blackrock Castle Observatory Experiences from CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory GLORIA Community Open Day May 15 th 2014

Why STEM and why astronomy? Target audience What we do at CIT-BCO Case Studies –Radio Messages to Space –TARA optical telescopes Conclusions Outline of Talk

Knowledge-based economies require STEM Numbers taking STEM at third level is insufficient to fill the jobs of the future (and now!) –20% of population in Asia study STEM at university –7% in US –2% in Europe Astronomy has three advantages –inspirational to everyone to some degree, especially the young –it exists in all cultures in some way –requires people across all the skills Why STEM and why astronomy?

To increase interest in STEM related careers at a time when technology is increasingly commonplace in society To develop inquiry-based education that can reach directly into existing educational systems To improve the baseline understanding and acceptance of scientific methods amongst the general public Build science/innovation/creativity capacity on a global scale What’s the Global Challenge? Teachers Students Communities

What’s the Target Audience? Age Rate of return to investment in human capital Preschool programs Schooling Job training School Post-school Programs targeted towards the earliest years “Strong case for funding interventions in early childhood for disadvantaged children” (Heckman 2007) Parents

Blackrock Castle Observatory (Cork, Ireland) Particular interest in STEM education Over 100,000 visitors to science centre annually Over 50,000 schoolchildren have availed of our workshops (at primary and secondary level) Accredited to provide Continuing Professional Development to teachers to use “space” in the classroom Significant feedback from a wide and varied cohort

“ The user selects the exoplanet to which a real radio signal is beamed via a 1m radiotelescope Watch live via a web interface Messages can be tracked subsequently using a unique user id Case Study I – Message to Space

Gathering the Gathering the Gathering

Case Study I – Message to Space

Sending a message to space provides a unique context for discussion - what are stars and planets? - how far away are the stars? - how do you make a radio telescope? - what might alien DNA look like? Case Study I – Provides a Unique Experience The same questions can be discussed according to the user level. The complexity of the data you receive depends on the user level. engineering data / sensor data Flexible, scalable and very cost-effective

Case Study II - TARA VISION To facilitate inquiry-based learning and cultural discussions using a global array of (small) optical telescopes Telescopes: Ormondale Elementary School, CA, USA CIT-BCO, Cork, Ireland (Pune, India – planned) Based on feedback – SIZE of telescope is NOT of primary importance

Case Study II - TARA Modes of Operation Live Imaging (“see” the telescope move) Scheduled Distributed approach to “ownership” Local expertise provides curricular support Local expertise provides cultural context Berkeley “multiverse” and school district in San Francisco CIT-BCO in Cork (University Pune / Fergusson College in India)

Facilitating Live Imaging

The TARA model Telescope Array Local expertise Curriculum Culture Local expertise Curriculum Culture Cultural exchanges Science exchanges Local expertise Curriculum Culture

First Results from California

Why is Global Cooperation Important? USER Customised Web Interface Ground-Based Telescopes Student/TeacherPublicResearch Primary / Secondary / TertiaryParentsTOO / Time Series Language Culture Complexity Focus “60% of earth’s population will be on internet by 2015” Atomium Culture Conference, Dublin, March 2013 This demands global cooperation

Conclusion – Now technologically possible to bring live data into the classroom, the science centre, etc. Size of telescope is NOT the key factor Control has much more impact on the user Activities are vital to end-user engagement Telescopes can be sited where the hardware expertise resides Very cost-effective access model for poorer communities Data can be customised to the target audience Can target a global audience The experience is centred around inquiry / debate / uniqueness Encourages discussion across cultural and discipline boundaries Digital meets Physical

Thankyou