Presentation given at the ASE Annual Conference, Nottingham University, January 2010. The presentation describes the Comenius funded European project which was set up to develop good quality, interesting teaching materials in chemistry for use by teachers in European secondary schools.

1. CITIES Chemistry & Industry for Teachers in European Schools 06 January 2010 1 ASE Nottingham

2. 06 January 2010 2 ASE Nottingham

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4. Ray Wallace & Keith HEALEYNottingham Trent University 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 4 Equipping Secondary School Teachers with the Tools for Inspiring the Next Generation of Young Chemists (A pan-European project called CITIES)

5. CITIES 06 January 2010 5 ASE Nottingham

6. First some questions 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 6

7. Why should this project be of any interest to you? 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 7

8. Why should what you hear now be of any relevance to what you do in the classroom? 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 8

9. Why should our materials be anymore useful or better than any others that you can find on the web? 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 9

10. To try to answer some of these questions ...... 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 10

11. ....first let me tell you something about CITIES and the philosophy & purpose which lies behind it .... 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 11

12. ... and maybe then you may see that it could awaken the idea that there is a European dimension to chemistry .... 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 12

13. ... that it could encourage students to think outside of the UK when pursuing their university education in chemistry.... 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 13

14. ... but perhaps most importantly demonstrate that chemistry is not a ‘boring’ subject by providing a source of information that is really interesting .... 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 14

15. ... and maybe then you may see that it could lead to some differently focussed undergraduates entering our universities if they encounter some of our materials whilst at school 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 15

16. ... we shall see 06 January 2010 ASE Nottingham 16

17. 06 January 2010 Where did the idea of CITIES all begin? ....... in a European Chemistry Thematic Network working group in 2005 ....... a subset of the group got together in Frankfurt in February 2006 & put together a Project proposal which was funded in October of the same year under the Comenius programme ....... the project had a total budget of a quarter of a million Euros over 3 years in ‘real money’ ....... the contracted project finished at the end of September last year 17 ASE Nottingham

19. Inspiring them to tell others how chemistry makes a difference to their lives

20. Helping teachers to make the chemistry they are required to teach more exciting, vibrant and relevant to its real life context

21. Interesting teachers and pupils alike in the European context in which all this happens18 ASE Nottingham

22. CITIES- Chemistry and Industry for Teachers in European Schools - Partners Contractor and Co-Ordinator: Europa Fachhochschule Fresenius (DE) European Chemistry Employers’ Group ECEG (BE) European Mine, Chemical and Energy Workers’ Federation EMCEF (BE) Johann-Wolfgang-Goethe-Universität (DE) Czech Chemical Society (CZ) Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (DE) Institut Químic de Sarriá (ES) Uniwersytet Jagielloński (PL) Nottingham Trent University (UK) Royal Society of Chemistry (UK) 06 January 2010 19 ASE Nottingham

23. CITIES Products Permanent Website http://cities.eu.org, (accessible to both teachers and students & shortly to go fully live), with translated content in EN, PL, DE, CZ and ES, plus parts in TR, EE and PT CD-ROMs with learning/teaching material in EN, PL, DE, CZ, ES on request to CITIES national partner pdf versions of teaching/training material as downloadable files Handbook ‘Chemical education in Europe’ (EN, PL, CZ, DE, ES), with a multilingual glossary of key ‘Euro-Chem’ terms Help for teaching staff with training based on CITIES modules by national partners 06 January 2010 20 ASE Nottingham

24. ....the Project and Website are built around 4 modules Module 1 – European Context of chemical ................. education, training & development Module 2 – Commerce and Innovation ...our future Module 3 – Chemistry changes everything Module 4 – Chemistry ...bringing it alive 06 January 2010 21 ASE Nottingham

25. 06 January 2010 What are the kinds of things that all users will find in CITIES? Size and scope of what are the Chemical and related industries and what they do (Commerce and innovation – our future) A ‘benefits landscape’ of everyday uses of chemistry (Chemistry changes everything) Experiments which relate to materials from everyday life (Chemistry – bringing it alive) Employability of graduates in the global economy (European Context of chemical education, training & development) 22 ASE Nottingham

26. 06 January 2010 What will teachers find in CITIES? Chemistry – bringing it alive: ready-made experiments and background material Chemistry of a tin of Ravioli Everyday chemistry experiments Forensic chemistry brought alive Selling chemistry from a sample case model of a mobile experimental set with simple, safe experiments, plus Power Point presentation to relate everyday experience and chemistry Site visits to industry: organisational hints, suggestions, contacts European context of chemical education, training and development e.g. ECTN, Eurobachelor and Master, Background information (e.g. Employability, labour market, the ‘value chain’ of chemical education) Helpful links e.g. national Chem. Soc., European organisations, EuChemS, AllChemE, etc. 23 ASE Nottingham

27. Everyday chemistry is covered at three different levels A set of simple demonstration experiments which can be done everywhere by students with a minimum of effort and material (eg ‘chemistry in a case’, ‘kitchen chemistry’) A set of work sheets with background information for self study and classroom work, accessible at the CITIES homepage (module 3) A set of tested classroom experiments to be done under the guidance of a teacher (module 4) 06 January 2010 24 ASE Nottingham

28. Everyday chemistry is covered at three different levels A set of simple demonstration experiments which can be done everywhere by students with a minimum of effort and material (eg ‘chemistry in a case’, ‘kitchen chemistry’) A set of work sheets with background information for self study and classroom work, accessible at the CITIES homepage (module 3) A set of tested classroom experiments to be done under the guidance of a teacher (module 4) 06 January 2010 25 ASE Nottingham

29. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 26 ASE Nottingham

30. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 27 ASE Nottingham

31. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 28 ASE Nottingham

32. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products are described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 29 ASE Nottingham

33. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 30 ASE Nottingham

34. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 31 ASE Nottingham

35. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 32 ASE Nottingham

36. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 33 ASE Nottingham

37. 06 January 2010 The worksheets of module 3, for example, deal with everyday life products including fuel cells, liquid crystals, self cleaning materials, condoms, packaging materials, food flavourings, margarine, deodorants and perspirants. These working sheets start with the question ”When did all this begin?” . This section explains the historical background and shows how discoveries are made and how long it may take to bring useful products to the market. Under the heading “Is this really chemistry?”, the scientific and chemical background of the invention and the products is described. “So you want to try something out?” offers simple, inexpensive and illustrative experiments for the classroom or for students’ self study. “How are these materials produced?” introduces the most important aspects of the industrial production of consumer and technical products. “So what are the benefits?” and “Are there any known risks?” follows. If possible, the section ‘Future developments’ gives an outlook on relevant research topics and improvements. Finally, appropriate www-material for further studies is offered: “Intrigued by what you have read? Want to find out more?”. 34 ASE Nottingham

38. 06 January 2010 ..... and in case they worry 35 ASE Nottingham

39. Some examples of teacher training/lesson materials In-depth material in Forensic Science Experiments in Forensic Science Lesson plan for Forensic Science Teachingand Experimental material based on the science of a Tin of Ravioli 06 January 2010 36 ASE Nottingham

40. 06 January 2010 And last but not least some screenshots Live – What is Cities? Home Page: http://cities.eu.org 37 ASE Nottingham

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43. Some reflections on the questions posed at the beginning of this talk and some final thoughts 06 January 2010 40 ASE Nottingham

44. Finally our Thank You’s Project Co-ordinator: Prof Leo Gros, Europa Fachhochshule Fresenius, Idstein, Germany Some of the other contributors & organisers: W. Anusiak, H. J. Bader, C .Beudon, H. Čtrnáctová, P. Drasar, M. Frankowicz, I. Maciejowska, M. Rothweil & J. Zajíček to name only a few. 06 January 2010 41 ASE Nottingham

45. ...and thank you for your attention ...we are happy to listen to your comments 06 January 2010 42 ASE Nottingham

46. 06 January 2010 43 ASE Nottingham Any Questions?