An Update on the ALLEA Working Group on Science Education

ALLEA survey on Climate Change Education in Europe

ALLEA’s working group on science education has prepared a survey on Climate Change Education Initiatives in Europe. The aim of the initiative is to collate and submit to the European Commission a statement on the status of climate change education in Europe, identifying common trends, gaps, strengths and weaknesses in relation to the content and pedagogical approaches to climate education in formal and non-formal education settings throughout Europe. The group is looking to gather input from local, regional, and national climate change education initiatives. The Royal Irish Academy fully endorses this initiative and would appreciate if relevant organisations could take the time to complete the survey. Please click here to access the survey. The deadline for submissions is 13 September 2019.

The Royal Irish Academy would also like to congratulate Dr Cliona Murphy, Dublin City University, on her recent appointment as Chair of ALLEA’s Science Education Working Group. Dr Murphy has been the Academy’s nominee to this working group since 2015 and this recent development is a fantastic achievement for Dr Murphy, the Royal Irish Academy, and Irish science. The Academy’s Policy and International Relations Secretary, Professor Peter McHugh Peter McHugh welcomed this appointment and recognised the great work that Dr Murphy has been doing:

We are privileged to have such a strong candidate represent the Academy and I am delighted that Dr Murphy has been able to establish herself as a leader within ALLEA. The Academy is very grateful for Dr Murphy’s time, effort, and expertise, and I have the utmost confidence that she will continue to be an excellent ambassador for us.

Dr Cliona Murphy

Dr Murphy is an associate professor in Science Education. Currently her principle work focuses on the research, development and facilitation of Initial Teacher Education (ITE), Post-Graduate (PG) and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses in Science Education, Nature of Science, Sustainability Education and on the development of educational resources in Science and Sustainability. She has conducted and published research in the areas of teaching and learning in Primary Science, Nature of Science, Inquiry Based Science Education and Sustainability. Dr. Murphy was the Irish co-ordinator and principal professional development facilitator for Ireland in the European Fibonacci Project  and was the Irish co-ordinator for the EU Comenius plus SUSTAIN project.   Dr. Murphy is currently one of the principal investigators on the Educating School Teachers and Faculty for Sustainability through Continuing Professional Development project, being funded by the Global Consortium for Sustainability Outcomes (GCSO). She is a member of the management committee of the Centre for the Advancement STEM Teaching and Learning (CASTeL). Dr Murphy welcomes queries form prospective Masters and PhD students who are interested in researching the following areas:  STEM Education; Science Education; Science and Technology Education; Nature of Science; Teacher Professional Development.

ALLEA | All European Academies

ALLEA, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities, was founded in 1994 and currently brings together almost 60 Academies in more than 40 countries from the Council of Europe region. Member Academies operate as learned societies, think tanks and research performing organisations. They are self- governing communities of leaders of scholarly enquiry across all fields of the natural sciences, the social sciences and the humanities. ALLEA therefore provides access to an unparalleled human resource of intellectual excellence, experience and expertise.
 

Core Group Members of the Science Education Working Group

• Cliona Murphy (Chair)  – Royal Irish Academy
• Odile Macchi – Académie des Sciences (France; past chair),
• Pierre Lena – Académie des Sciences  (France; honorary chair),
• Maija Katariina Aksela  – Council of Finnish Academies
• Gerd Bergman – The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
• Benő Csapó – Hungarian Academy of Sciences
• Lena Kjellen – The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
• David Rios – Spanish Royal Academy of Sciences
• Petra Skiebe-Corrette, Free University Berlin (Germany)