282Mem. S.A.It. Vol. 75, 282c! SAIt 2004 Memorie della

C. J. Odman1 , C. Scorza2 , G. K. Miley1 and C. Madsen3

1 Leiden Observatory, Postbus 9513, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands. e-mail:odman@strw.leidenuniv.nl

2 Landessternwarte, Heidelberg University, Konigstuhl, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany3 European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2, 85748 Garching,

Germany

Abstract. From the dawn of history, the beauty of the sky and its intimate connectionwith the development of human civilisation have inspired countless generations with asense of wonderment. Modern astronomy continues to play a unique role in conveying theexcitement of science to the general public. In recent years considerable resources havebeen devoted to astronomical outreach in developed countries, aided by the spectacularimages produced by modern astronomical facilities and the continuing list of majorastronomical discoveries that have changed our views of the Universe.

Universe Awareness is a new programme intended to reach a target group that hasso far been neglected by such outreach programs, namely children between 4 and 10 yearsof age.

Universe Awareness is motivated by the premise that access to simple knowledgeabout the Universe is a basic birth right of everybody. The formative ages of 4 to 10 yearsare crucial in the development of a human value system. This is also the age range in whichchildren can readily appreciate and enjoy the beauty of astronomical objects and can learnto develop a “feeling” for the vastness of the Universe. Exposing young children to suchmaterial is likely to broaden their minds and stimulate their world-view.

The programme concentrates on disadvantaged young children for two reasons. First,most other children will be exposed to some knowledge about the Universe in later years.Secondly, the educational disparities between advantaged and disadvantaged children aresmallest for the youngest children.

A very successful pre-pilot project took place in Venezuela in January 2006. Fromspontaneous observation of the sky in remote locations to a teacher-training workshop inthe ”Centro de Investigaciones de Astronomıa” in Merida, this turned out to be a wonderfulexperience for participants and organisers alike. This first project provides a glimpse ofhow successful the Universe Awareness programme can become.

Key words. Astronomy outreach – astronomy education – ethnoastronomy

1. Introduction

Astronomy outreach programmes are numer-ous and diverse both in scope and in tar-gets. Nowadays every major astrophysical re-search project invests time and resources in thecommunication of research and observatoriesworldwide organise public observing nights.The large number of amateur astronomy clubsdemonstrates the scale of public interest in as-tronomy.

A large majority of astronomy outreachprogrammes focus on science education andtarget the general public or children in pos-session of a certain background and education.Astronomy is and has always been a broad andinclusive topic. While the interface with otherdisciplines such as the arts has often been usedto enliven astronomy courses (e.g. Fraknoi(2002), Fraknoi (2003)), the opposite is rarelythe case. Indeed, astronomy is often perceiveduniquely as a science.

Although the sky is common to us all, as-tronomy has not often been explored as a toolfor peace education. The realisation of ourplace in the Universe broadens the mind be-yond common boundaries and shows the po-tential of astronomy to be instrumental in thedevelopment of human values.

Universe Awareness is a new programmefor very young children in economically disad-vantaged regions and developing countries thatintends to exploit the full potential of astron-omy.

The idea of Universe Awareness was firstput forward by George Miley. Following amultidisciplinary workshop at the EuropeanSouthern Observatory headquarters in May2005 (Miley & al. 2005), an internationalsteering committee was set up along with twosub-committees, for education and organisa-tion. The educators, teachers, astronomers, an-thropologists and public outreach profession-als taking part in the workshop came from fif-teen di!erent countries on four continents.

Send o!print requests to: C. J. Odman

2. Goals

The aims of the Universe Awareness pro-gramme are to reach as many children as pos-sible. The ambition is mainly to communicatethe beauty and scale of the Universe, not to de-liver dry scientific facts.

The concept of Earth awareness is key inthe process of highlighting the multiculturalaspects of astronomy. This is likely to stimu-late children’s perception of the planet in at-tempt to plant the seeds of an education forpeace (UNESCO 1989).

The development of cognitive skills will betaken into account in the design of the UNAWEmaterial which will adopt a complete set of di-dactic approaches adapted to various culturaland educational environments.

3. Uniqueness of astronomy for childdevelopment

Astronomy is outstandingly suited for the aimsof the UNAWE programme. The subject of as-tronomy is the sky which is equally accessible,or inaccessible, to all.

As a science, astronomy stimulates chil-dren’s curiosity. Where possible, they will takepart in experimental and investigative activi-ties. They will learn about their surroundingsbeyond what they would normally be able toexplore. It involves other scientific subjectssuch as chemistry and biology. Astronomicalresearch drives the development of new tech-nologies that deliver stunningly beautiful im-ages of the universe.

Astronomy plays an important role in ourcultural heritage.

All cultures carry with them myths and sto-ries about the sky and the stars, their formationand fate. The inclusion of ethnic origins of as-tronomy is not only important to ensure that theprogramme is culturally relevant and exposeschildren to a diverse human family populatingthe planet but also to give children more thanone approach to build a mental representationof the universe.

Astronomers are the ultimate historians,seeking to understand the origins of our uni-verse. Looking at the night sky we are see-

284 Odman, Scorza, Miley, Madsen: Universe Awareness

ing things that occurred many thousands ofyears ago, when humans did not exist, whendinosaurs were alive, even before the planet ex-isted.

Owing to the nature of the questions askedby astronomers, there are common groundswith various other disciplines such as philos-ophy and sociology. People have turned to thesky for answers to their most profound ques-tions for centuries.

Perhaps more importantly, astronomy is anexciting field. The exotic objects and the ex-treme conditions found in space are the per-fect backdrop for exciting adventure stories.Astronomical images are great food for chil-dren’s imagination.

UNAWE is not exclusively a science out-reach programme. Because of the reasons men-tioned above, astronomy is a natural subject tobase this programme on.

4. Structure of the programme

4.1. Environments

Three environments have been identified, forwhich UNAWE material will be developed.

Basic environment:

– Minimal schooling becomes available fromages 7 - 8.

– Television is scarce.– Educators have a poor or no training.– Parents and community leaders play an im-

portant role.– UNAWE programmes are broadcast on

television and mobile observatories tourthe country.

Intermediate environment:

– School is available from ages 6 - 7.– Television is common at home and at

school.– There is very limited and sporadic access

to the internet.– Teachers have little training.– Short UNAWE activities are carried out at

school.

Advanced environment:

– School starts at ages 4 - 5.– Access to the internet is available at school,

sometimes at home.– Teachers are well trained.– UNAWE can be incorporated to the school

curriculum.

In each of these environments di!erent mate-rial must be developed and di!erent methodsapplied. It is particularly important to involveteachers, community leaders and parents to en-sure their approval and to get their feedback onthe programme.

4.2. Material

The general characteristics of the material areas follows.

The programme has to be modular. Thereshould be short activities as well as longer pro-grammes with follow-up activities.

UNAWE has to be adapted to multiple lan-guages, cultures and beliefs. Templates will beproduced that are easily adaptable to a large di-versity of cultures.

The material has to be professionally devel-oped. We will be working with educators, an-thropologists, and professional media produc-ers: animation studios, story writers and gamedesigners.

The UNAWE programme will carry astrong message. We will use a uniform set ofcharacters that children can recognise through-out the activities and identify with.

The material must be rooted. In each tar-get region, specialists and local co-ordinatorswill ensure that the material suits the variouscultures. We will make use of the history ofastronomy to show children that it belongs totheir heritage (SAAO 2003).

Last but not least, the UNAWE programmemust be entertaining. The ambition of the pro-gramme is not to produce astronomers but togive children a glimpse of the beauty and enor-mity of the universe. We will develop activitiesthat stimulate the imagination. This includesgames, songs and adventures.

The direct involvement of children inhands-on activities is an important ingredientfor the success of such a programme. Children

Odman, Scorza, Miley, Madsen: Universe Awareness 285

learn fast through playing with models. Theyalso remember well if they can keep the mod-els they make.

Stories, both written for the programmeand taken from myths and history will provideexcitement and adventure. Set on the back-ground of astronomical environments, theywill show the beautiful and exotic objects seenin space.

In some environments we will be able to or-ganise twinning experiments between schools.This will strengthen the cultural exchange be-tween children. Developing countries also havedarker skies where children can count manymore stars than in urban areas. Twinning is away of sharing that privilege.

4.3. Contents

The educational programme is still under de-velopment and substantial input from educa-tors and teachers in target countries will helpdevelop it into a suitable form. In order to op-timise the learning process, it is important toadopt a step-wise approach. Four core topicshave been identified which lead from home tothe universe.

Observing the sky is a first step to awakenchildren’s curiosity. The observation that ob-jects move across the sky in a coherent fash-ion leads to the second, and possibly mostchallenging topis in terms of abstract thinking:Earth awareness.

This subject is not only about understand-ing the Earth’s spherical shape, its orbit or theseasons. It provides the opportunity to showother places, other skies, other people andother cultures and to stimulate a sense of Earthcitizenship.

The third topic, the solar system, allows tomake use of ancient astronomical argumentssuch as the zodiac to give children a feeling forthe planets. Many legends and myths can betold in this context (Scorza 2002). The plan-ets’ similarities and di!erences with the Earthmake them the perfect ground for adventurestories.

The last topic, the galaxy and beyond,pushes the scale even further. Owing to the al-most two-dimensional shape of the Milky Way,

children can build and play with rotating mod-els of the galaxy and place the solar system onit. The diversity of galaxies found in the uni-verse provides exotic and beautiful images.

4.4. Methods

Various didactic approaches have been identi-fied to make a complete programme that canresonate with every child. Direct observationsare a starting point that involves the children’sattention and curiosity. Hands-on activities al-low them to develop a mental image of whatthey have observed. Playing games, songs andtelling adventures stories taking place in thoseastronomical settings ensure experience-basedlearning. This should be fun and include theirown cultural heritage. Twinning activities helpstrengthen the human multicultural experience.

Based the topics and methods mentionedabove, a modular programme for the di!erentage groups will be developed such that shortone-o! activities are possible as well as co-herent activities spread over a longer period oftime.

4.5. Teacher training

In order to reach as large a number of childrenas possible UNAWE will generally be deliv-ered by teachers. The teachers and educatorsinvolved in the implementation of UNAWEwill play a key role in ensuring the pertinenceof the programme. UNAWE will therefore or-ganise teacher training workshops.

Teachers in each of the target countrieswill also play an active role in the designof the material and delivery methods. This ispart of the bottom-up approach we are takingand should to give educators the confidence tocarry out the implementation of UNAWE intheir schools.

Obtaining continuous feedback from thosepeople involved in implementing UNAWE willbe an important aspect of the programme.

The teacher training workshops and thedistribution of the UNAWE programme willbe coordinated in each country by a NationalAction Committee (NAC) which will serve as

286 Odman, Scorza, Miley, Madsen: Universe Awareness

central communication point between the in-ternational programme management and thenational implementation. The NACs will alsobe involved in raising funding at the nationallevel.

Interdisciplinary workshops will form anintegral part of the development of UNAWEand will provide a platform for exchanges ofexperiences and material.

5. Pre-pilot project in Venezuela

With enthusiastic support form the VenezuelanUNESCO National Commission, one of us(CS) went to Venezuela in January 2006 to starta pre-pilot project and to test the principles ofthe UNAWE programme.

Venezuela is an interesting country becauseit is very multicultural owing to its heritageand colonial history. The hostile geography ofthe country also leads to some communitiesbeing very isolated thus all three educationalenvironments identified for the programme arepresent.

5.1. Chuao, a village on the coast

Cecilia Scorza’s first destination was a villageo! the Venezuelan coast which is only accessi-ble by boat. She made contact with children onthe road to the village and showed them someastronomical images printed on transparencies.This sparked their interest and they started toshare their own experience of the night skyspontaneously. They identified the moon as be-ing distant and therefore apparently “follow-ing” them.

In the village children but also womenshowed interest. This is very positive aswomen often play a major role in children’s ed-ucation, especially at a very young age. Withinhours, the children were playing a game mim-icking the solar system on the village plaza.

The astronomical images printed on trans-parencies were a great success. Clearly thebeauty of astronomical objects appealed verymuch to the children.

5.2. Teacher training workshop inMerida

Dr. Gustavo Bruzual, former director of theCentro de Investigaciones de Astronomia inMerida hosted a four-day long teacher trainingworkshop. The attendance to the workshop wasimpressive: the event was overbooked althoughit had been advertised at very short notice andmany teachers had to be turned down. Somehad travelled days to come to Merida.

The workshop was organised in collabo-ration with Ms. Marlene Morales-Sueke whospecialises in indigenous cultures. Variousclass activities were demonstrated and ex-plained in the workshop with the help of chil-dren. Teachers asked a large number of ques-tions, many related to supertstitious interpreta-tions of the night sky. The key was not to op-pose a scientific to a non-scientific view but toemphasize their complementarity and commonhistory.

Teachers built themselves a box containingvarious models and toys they could bring withthem to their schools. There, they could repro-duce those activities and build models with thechildren who could in turn keep them.

Two represenattives of the Ye’kuana tribefrom the Southern Amazon joined the work-shop to explain their constellations and theiruse of astronomy in every day life, includingcelebrations and seasonal holidays. Their faithsand beliefs are intertwined with astronomy anda programme like UNAWE could give themsupport in promoting their own cultural iden-tity and expose them to beliefs in other parts ofthe world but care must be taken to avoid theconfrontation of potentially conflicting pointsof view.

The event was followed by the formationof the Venezuelan National Action Committeewhich includes two astronomers, an expert inindigenous cultures, an astronomy educationspecialist and the coordinator of the UNESCOAssociated Schools Network in Merida.

The experience was a success and while itraised a number of relevant questions it showedthe immense potential and appeal of a pro-gramme based on astronomy like UNAWE.

Odman, Scorza, Miley, Madsen: Universe Awareness 287

6. Future developments

Universe Awareness is hoping to develop aprogramme and material for about four devel-oping countries and marginalised communitiesin four European countries and to start a pilotproject in 2009 which will hopefully be electedInternational Year of Astronomy by the UnitedNations.

At present strong contacts have been es-tablished in Spain, Venezuela, and Chile inthe spanish-speaking world. Within the EU wehave contacts in the Netherlands, Germany,Ireland, Italy and the United Kingdon andoutside Europe, in South Africa, India andIndonesia.

The immediate future of UniverseAwareness should focus on fund raisingfor the development of the programme, theformation of National Action Committees andthe educational and cultural programme.

In view of those objectives, we are or-ganising a multidisciplinary workshop at theLorentz Centre in Leiden in the Netherlandsin October 2006 which will bring together as-tronomers, outreach professionals, educators,early childhood specialists, experts in develop-ment and primary school teachers from a largenumber of countries.

7. Conclusion

Astronomy has many facets including science,history and cultural diversity. With the beauti-ful astronomical images obtained from the lat-est instruments and their potential to entertainand stimulate children’s imagination it is out-standingly suited for an outreach programmethat goes beyond science education.

Universe Awareness is the first programmeof its kind to adopt this cultural and scientificapproach and one of few initiatives in astron-omy outreach to target very young children.We believe this programme can benefit chil-dren and communities worldwide.

More information about UniverseAwareness can be found on our website:http://www.UniverseAwareness.org/

Acknowledgements. We are grateful to InmaDomingez and Carlos Abia for giving us the

opportunity to present Universe Awareness at theVIII Torino workshop. This has been an excellentopportunity to meet enthusiastic and experiencedpeople who we hope to see again in the context ofthe development of the programme.

GKM and CJO are funded by a grant from theRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.

The European Southern Observatory andLeiden University sponsored the material dis-tributed in Venezuela.

CS is grateful to Dr. Gustavo Bruzual and Mr.Andres Cedeno for the invitation to Merida andthe organisation of the teacher training workshop.She acknowledges the support of the VenezuelanUNESCO National Commission and extends herthanks to Mrs. Maria Clemencia Lopez-Jimenez.

References

Andrew Fraknoi, Astronomy and Poetry: AResource Guide, The Astronomy EducationReview, Issue 1, Volume 1:114-116, 2002.

Andrew Fraknoi, Teaching Astronomy withScience Fiction: A Resource Guide, TheAstronomy Education Review, Issue 2,Volume 1:112-119, 2003.

George Miley, Claus Madsen, Cecilia Scorza.Universe Awareness for Young Children,ESO Messenger 121, p. 66, September2005.

Seeds for peace, The role of pre-school educa-tion in international understanding and ed-ucation for peace, UNESCO, Paris, France1985, reprinted 1989

Young SA Astronomer introduces AfricanStarlore to the World, South AfricanAstronomical Observatory Press release,2003.

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