1. Programs for Bulgarian High School Teachers and Education Outreach at CERN
RECFA Visit to Bulgaria
Assoc. prof. Plamen Iaydjiev Institute for Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Energy, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Zornitsa Zaharieva CERN - European Organization for Nuclear Research

2. Bulgarian National High School Teachers Programs @ CERN
Part of the National Programs for High School Teachers at CERN
CERN’s web-site:
Teachers from Secondary schools (students age - 14 to 19 years old)
538 participants for the period 2008 – 2016
Physics Teachers program – 9 editions, launched in 2008
Engineering and IT Teachers program – 3 editions, launched in 2014
Warmly welcomed in 2014 by the Education Group at CERN and CERN’s DG as it was the first CERN program targeting engineering and IT teachers
It is based on the format of the Physics Teachers programs, but focuses more of the engineering and IT achievements at CERN
In 2010 – 1 additional program organized for ‘Directors of High Schools with Mathematics and Natural Sciences Profile’

3. Organization of the Bulgarian National Teachers Programs
Since 2011 the programs are officially supported by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science
INRNE – BAS is responsible for the lecturers from Bulgaria and CERN
The programs are organized in close collaboration with CERN’s Education, Communications and Outreach Group
Each program is over a 5-day period and delivered in the native language (Bulgarian)
The program includes 4 modules:
Lectures and discussions with Bulgarian scientists, engineers and IT specialists
Visits of CERN sites and facilities, e.g. CMS, ATLAS, SM18, CERN Control Centre, Linac2, Lear, IT Data Centre, etc.
Visits of CERN Exhibitions: Microcosm and Globe - Universe of Particles
Usage of CERN’s S’Cool Lab facility for hands-on experiments, e.g. Building a Cloud Chamber

4. Impact and Direct Results from the Teaches Programs
The teachers become the ambassadors of the modern science at school by:
Enriching the school curriculum with the latest achievements in physics, engineering, IT
Motivating their students to be more proactive during the classes in natural sciences, engineering and IT
Organizing at school – exhibitions, presentations, poster sessions, clubs ‘Friends of CERN’ and many other activities…
Motivating the students to continue their university education in the fields of natural sciences, engineering and IT
General public outreach - more than 300 national and regional media publications about CERN
Further development of the teachers’ qualifications
Building professional networks amongst the teachers for exchange of best teaching practices

5. Bulgarian High School Visits at CERN
~ 2300 secondary school students from all over Bulgaria have visited CERN during the period – 2016
Between 6 and 12 groups of students visit CERN every year
A program of 1.5 days is prepared for each group by the Bulgarian community at CERN in collaboration with CERN’s Visits Service

6. Virtual Visits and Videoconferences
Several virtual visits and videoconferences have been organized since 2014
Very high level of participation for each event
Example: in December 2016 during the last organized virtual visit
18 schools from all over the country participated
1000 students reached simultaneously
During 3 hours period several CERN sites were visited, e.g. CMS detector, LHC tunnel, SM18
Q&A session with the students was held in dedicated virtual rooms with the help of 20 Bulgarian scientists and engineers

7. Bulgarian Education Outreach Activities at CERN
Started with the Physics Teachers program (2008) and progressed with School visits (2010), Engineering and IT Teachers program (2014), Virtual visits and videoconference (2014), National High School Students Internship Program (2017)
We are very happy and honoured that Bulgaria has been selected in 2017 as one of the 5 pilot countries for the new High School Students Internship Program at CERN
The success of the Bulgarian outreach activities is due to the excellent collaboration, great enthusiasm and support from:
The Bulgarian community at CERN
The Education and Outreach Group at CERN
The Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science
All collaborating with CERN Bulgarian institutes and universities, and mainly: the Institute of Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Energy, the Sofia University St Kliment Ohridski, the Institute of Robotics
The National Astronomical Observatory and Planetarium - Varna