The third International Symposium on Science Education (ISSE2013) gathered STEM teachers to Helsinki Finland in June 2013 to discuss and learn about global environmental challenges in science education.
Finland’s Science Education Centre LUMA organized the third International Symposium on Science Education (ISSE 2013) on 10th – 12th of June 2013. The conference was held at the Kumpula science campus of the University of Helsinki. The Kumpula campus is a hotspot of expertise in natural sciences and mathematics as well as teacher education in these areas, which makes it the ideal venue for the ISSE symposium.
The theme of ISSE 2013 was global environmental challenges in science education. Plenary talks by internationally recognized experts tackled important issues linked to the main theme. Professor Mauri Åhlberg, for example addressed developments in sustainability education while Markku Kulmala, professor of atmospheric sciences, discussed the underlying reasons and mechanisms of climate change.
Global water resources and making our limited supply of clean water last for future generations are some of the most important current challenges. The plenary lecture by professor of geosciences, Markku Löytönen, gave insights on the mismatching global supply and demand for clean water. Löytönen emphasized how important it is to realize how little water is available for use and consumption in some areas of the World.
The International Symposium on Science Education is an event for teachers, science experts and education researchers to meet, network and share ideas with international colleagues. In addition to invited plenary lectures the program included hands-on workshops and experimentation, poster sessions and discussions.
- Check out the presentation slides and find out more from the ISSE 2013 program and abstracts for posters and workshops
The next International Symposium on Science Education (ISSE 2014) will also be held in Helsinki. Thematically the conference will focus on inquiry-based learning in science education through ICT experiments. More information will be available on the ISSE 2014 conference website.
Text: Maija Pollari