The third edition of Mision ALBA is about to start. This science educational project, organised by the ALBA Synchrotron, ran out all the available places last school-year and this one the offer has been increased, expecting 500 teachers being registered, totally free. The mission is developed online to remove geographical barriers and its contents, related with the Synchrotron, respond to the demands of the official curriculum for this educational stage. Registration will be open until October 25th and the Mission will begin in January 2021.
The news this edition is that two “mission routes” are available: teachers can choose between the one called “Making visible the invisible” or “Discovering the power of light”. The first one was already available the two past editions and shows four experiments related with matter, force, energy and light. The second is the new one, more interdisciplinary, and offers experiments related with light and its properties: Which role plays light in our vision? How it helps us to know materials properties? How we can use light to create practical solutions to solve daily challenges? Or even, how we can create art through light?
This year, about 15,000 students from all over Spain are expected to solve challenges introduced by the ALBA staff through the virtual web via video. Students will be performing experiments in their classrooms following the instructions of the Synchrotron team to get the scientific answer, until completing the whole mission. According to the students "challenges are simple but actually, you can learn many complicated things, while having a good time working with classmates."
Teachers also value positively Mision ALBA for being “a stimulating and motivating way of showing science” that “provides resources and security to teachers when doing experiments at school” and “gives the chance to be in touch with scientists”.
Teams from all over Spain will be trying to solve the mission at the same time. Shirts, videoconferences with the scientists who have encouraged students to experiment or the visit of some of them to the school are the prizes that will be raffled among the teams that will overcome each stage.
With no doubt, this school-year is challenging due to the pandemic uncertainties. However, Mision ALBA is committed to adapting itself to all possible future scenarios. Last year the web was completely adapted so that students were able to access the content autonomously from home during the lockdown and the mission closed with an interesting live chat between ALBA staff and the youngsters. It is clear that the digital world is a great tool in the current times to keep us connected despite the distances and, in this aspect, Mision ALBA perfectly fits, while maintaining its motivating essence to transmit a closer and positive vision of science.
ALBA Mission has been produced by Eduxarxa and counted with the collaboration of Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología.
