Promoting Inquiry in Mathematics and Science Education Across Europe – PRIMAS
Within the framework of Primas, we have developed an international website, and a local one, both still active, and which play the part of resources and interactions with teachers and between countries.
Primas was given the ‘Scientix Resources Award’ for its ‘Guide of supporting actions for teachers in promoting IBL.’ Furthermore, Primas was flagged as a success story by the Commission.
This project was funded by the European Union from 1.1.2010 to 31.12.2013 (Grant agreement n°244380) in the context of of the 7th framework program for research and development, on the theme of ‘Research capacities’ under the headline ‘Science and Society’. (link)
The project brought together 14 teams from 12 countries and was aimed at the professional development of teachers in mathematics and the sciences, for every level from primary to post compulsory school. Jean Luc Dorier was head of the Geneva team (funding of 200,000 euros over 4 years for Geneva), the goal being to develop a research design (research design in the sciences and problem resolution design in mathematics) of students (Inquiry Based Learning). The actions of initial and continuous training on teachers , aim at a gradual evolution of practices and are therefore long term. The end goal is to make mathematics education and of sciences more attractive given the critical disaffection. In this sense, the project also contained about diffusion among the public (students’ parents, institutions): ‘the mathematics week,’ ‘science night,’ but also in a training leaflet in schools for parents, etc…Our team was responsible for the Working Package N°2 ‘Analysis of national contexts and existing materials,’ which lead to a first paper in July 2010 reporting on the situation in the 12 countries included in the project.
In the analysis we made use of tools from Chevallard’s anthropological theory of didactics and particularly the codetermination scale of didactics. We also undertook a second investigation and submitted a second report 6 months after the end of the project in order to update the first report.
This project let us undertake a detailed investigation, in an international context around the mathematics education and sciences, all the while preserving local ideas. As it was, promoting a investigative method in teaching is in accordance with the orientations of our canton. Indeed, since the 1980s, in the field of mathematics and the sciences, the different study plans, including the Romand study plan (PER), recommends a method through problems within a social constructivist framework. This point is included, and even stressed, within the framework of the new PER. Moreover, the project involved a partnership between the scientific fields and mathematics, in accordance with the ideas of the PER. In this way, the project was able to be a way to renew and extend the debate within the framework of the PER. It is within the framework of this project, in partnership with the DIP that we undertook a continuous training for all mathematics teachers of the Cycle D’Orientation linking the new PER and new teaching tools. Overall, the totality of continuous training that were put into place within the framework of this project have allowed for the development of new actions in order to let mathematics and sciences teachers of all teaching orders to share their experiences in this domain and train themselves in implementing some of the core principles that underpin the study plans in their classrooms. Finally, the diffusion aspect towards students’ parents and the general public has allowed for a better visibility of mathematics education and natural sciences in Geneva.
In every country, a national consultative panel has been put in place in order to allow for an interface with the professional context and local politics. For Geneva, this panel comprised members of the executive office of the Geneva Commission for the Mathematics Education (CEM) and the Presidents of the Groupe du Cycle d’Orientation in physical sciences and biology (those for mathematics are part of CEM). An international panel comprises one member from each panel. Mrs Nicolazzi, director of teaching at the level of Cycle d’Orientation was the representative during the 4 years of the project for Geneva. An international panel of experts (exterior) was also created in order to have regular evaluations and recommendations. Meetings take place every 6 months, between the project participants and the international panels. At the end of the project, we organised a symposium in Brussels in order to present the results.