| The
IV Meeting of Focal Points of the IANAS Science
Education Program was hosted by the Mexican
Academy of Sciences. The meetings took place
at the Radisson Hotel. Sixteen Academies were
represented. The Mexican Academy was a magnificent
host.
Meeting
Results
Juan Pedro Laclette – President of the
Mexican Academy of Sciences, welcomed the attendance
1. OEA-FEMCIDI PROJECT
Michel Bergeron, Director of the Department
of Science and Technology of the Executive Secretariat
for Integral Development of OAS, said a few
words on behalf of the OAS.
Jorge E. Allende, coordinator of the OAS-FEMCIDI
project, made a power point presentation with
instructions and details of the project.
1.1 Resolution
A resolution to incorporate the countries of
Dominican Republic and Guatemala to the FEMCIDI
Project was approved by the council. The Presidents
of both Academies, present in the meeting, requested
this incorporation and it was unanimously approved.
Therefore, they actively participated in the
meeting.
1.2 During this part of the meeting the following
topics were discussed
1.2.1 Whether to confirm or modify the activities
programmed for 2007.
The Program Council approved several changes,
maintaining the total budget of US$63,700 already
allotted by FEMCIDI. These changes are reflected
in the annexed execution plan forms (See Annex
3.).
1.2.2 Definition of the activities to be presented
to FEMCIDI in February 2008.
The proposed activities amounted to a total
of USD144,000 distributed as presented below,
which will be requested to FEMCIDI.
Total Request by Item
1.1
|
Primary School |
25,000
|
1.2
|
Secondary School |
|
1.3
|
Exchange |
9,600 |
1.4
|
Experts to other Countries |
15,500 |
1.5
|
Requests experts |
6,000 |
2.1
|
Strategic Planning |
9,000 |
3.1
|
Generation of Modules |
11,000 |
4.1 |
Inter American Conference |
25,000 |
4.2
|
Web Forum |
5,000 |
4.3
|
Focal Points Meeting |
5,000 |
4.4 |
Regional and Subregional
Workshops |
27,000 |
5.1
|
lnternational Evaluation
|
6,000
|
|
Total |
144,100 |
2. Activities of IANAS Science Education
Project (SEP) supported by IAP
2.1. Activities carried out from September
2006 to June 2007
The Academies presented the activities developed
from September 2006 to June 2007. These activities
were locally financed.
2.2. Activities to be carried out from July
2007 to December 2007
The budget for these activities was already
approved by IAP as follows:
| ITEM |
Country |
Amount
US$ |
Notes
(Money available) |
|
|
|
July
December 2007 |
Focal
Point Meeting 2007 |
México |
8.000 |
Support
IANAS Delegates |
Capacity
Building |
Bolivia |
5.000 |
Training |
Strategy
planning workshop IBSE (Pilot) |
Argentina |
5.000 |
Travel
to USA |
Short
Fellowship to training (in Panama) |
Panamá |
1.500 |
Tickets
(2) |
ABC
Programme in National Science Education,
Oct. 2007 |
Brazil |
5.000 |
Support
for IANAS participants |
CARICOM
Primary Science Conference |
Caribbean |
5.000 |
Support
for IANAS participants |
Training
of Primary and Secondary School Teachers |
Perú |
5.000 |
Support
for selected IANAS participants |
IBSE
Module Materials Exchange |
Venezuela,
Chile and Bolivia |
4.000
|
Buy
and Ship materials |
Evaluation
Adviser trains the IBSE Trainers |
Colombia |
5.000 |
support
for experts |
2.3. Activities to be performed during 2008:
The deadline to request financial support from
IAP was on June 15, 2007. Therefore, prior to
such deadline, a preliminary request for US$35.000
was presented in order to finance activities
to be performed during 2008 by IANAS SEP. The
final definition of these activities was decided
during this meeting as follows:
IANAS
2008 Budget Requested from IAP
ITEM |
Country |
Amount
USD$ |
Notes |
V Focal
Point Meeting 2008 |
Costa
Rica |
8,000 |
Travel
and expenses |
Workshop,
for training the trainers, for monitors
and /or elementary school teachers |
Costa
Rica |
4,000 |
Travel
and expenses |
Short
fellowship for professional development
(Exchange of teachers)
and visit of an Argentine expert to Uruguay
|
Argentina |
2,500 |
Travel
and expenses |
Exercise
on assessment of IBSE Program in Brazil |
Brazil
|
3,000
|
Travel
and expenses |
II
Interamerican Course of mathematics for
secondary school teachers |
Peru |
4,000 |
Travel
and expenses |
Training
the trainers workshop |
Colombia |
2,500 |
Travel
and expenses |
Training
the trainers workshop |
Venezuela |
2,500 |
Travel
and expenses |
Visit
of one expert of IBSE |
Guatemala |
2,000 |
Travel
and expenses |
Training
the trainers workshop |
Dominican
Republic |
2,000 |
Travel
and expenses |
Conference
on IBSE High School Teaching. (Grades
9-12) Convoked by the National Sciences
Resources Center, USA. |
Funds
administered by the coordinator of the
program, José A. Lozano. |
4,500 |
Travel |
Total ……………………………………………USD$
35,000 |
5. Next meetings
The President of the National Academy of Sciences
of Costa Rica, Gabriel Macaya Trejos, through
his delegate Maria Eugenia Venegas, proposed
to have the next meeting of focal points for
2008, in San José, Costa Rica. The proposal
was unanimously accepted.
Sally Shuller, Executive Director of the National
Science Resources Center, proposed to have the
2009 focal points meeting in Washington. The
proposal was unanimously accepted.
6. Comments
It was a very successful meeting. The Mexican
Academy of Sciences made everything possible
to make the stance of the delegates agreeable.
It also compromised to sponsor many activities.
The president of the Academy is trying to get
support from the Ministry of Education to inject
to the IANAS Science Education Program. He wants
to be able to double the amount of money of
the program to favor those countries that need
more help.
There is a lot of pressure for IBSE modules
from eight to twelve grades in schools where
the IBSE methodology has been applied for several
years.
A few of the national projects are well financed
by their own governments, but most of them need
local support that is not provided by the IANAS
Program. Mexican founding could help but other
sources have to be looked for.
IAP has proposed the program to become regionally
managed. There are three regions involved. It
is believed that it would be convenient to maintain
a global coordination that would benefit the
three regional programs and the world program
as a whole.
José A. Lozano
Coordinator of the IANAS
Science Education Program
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