Education Science and Technology and Life

  Local, regional and national competitions of a type similar to the "Jugend Forscht"- Programme in Germany (young people at research) could get young people interested in science and technology and show them how innovative thinking can help them to get better qualifications for work. Such competitions are, at the same time, a creative and entertaining approach to involvement with the new communications technologies. Regardless of whether or not pupils opt for Computer Science as a subject at school, they should all acquire basic computer literacy while attending school (i.e. word processing, information retrieval, information processing) as well as a basic knowledge of the role played by the information technologies in our society. This basic education should take place in all school subjects and should be taught by all teachers, not just Computer Science teachers. Responsibility for transmitting science and technology literacy does not only lie with schools, but also wi...

  Special extracurricular programmes and special support should be given to both weaker and highly gifted pupils. Weaker pupils need programmes, the speed and developmental increments of which are adapted to their abilities. Highly gifted pupils may be found in a variety of areas, not just in mathematics or science, but they may need special forms of teaching to help them discover and develop their talents. If, for instance, someone is highly gifted in manual applications, but is not intellectually gifted, he or she may not be able to develop the gift in question, if he or she does not have a basic knowledge of science and technology. Thus, special teaching approaches often need to be developed for groups of this kind. With a view to counteracting social disadvantages, all educational institutions should see to it that the quality of education and training does not suffer as a result of a lack of technical equipment at home. If necessary, schools should provide all pupils with ma...

  The use of the new technologies should by no means be limited to scientific and technological subjects. In modern language teaching the use of computers is already taken for granted. The new technology is also gaining ground in the teaching of literature, art, and music. The traditional system of pupil assessment should stop branding young people as failures. Instead, it should provide an incentive and motivate them to be interested in science and technology. The desire to do well in final school examinations and competition for university admission should not result in young people taking what they consider to be the easier road to university entrance by neglecting science and technology subjects at school. The equality of men and women in society sometimes requires specific measures for promoting basic education in science and technology for girls and young women. Special further education opportunities (also in the form of distance learning courses) should be provided for ...

  Schools will have to show a stronger interest in the world of work and maintain closer contact with companies and public authorities. They should invite scientists and persons with practical work experience and send pupils to periods of practical training. In this context students should witness the interplay of science and technology in everyday life and be exposed to more than just the piecemeal application of textbook knowledge. Industry and public administration should be willing to provide training opportunities of this kind for thousands of secondary school pupils. Enabling secondary school pupils to take part in discussions of science and technology problems requires good media. Young people need to learn how to obtain information, where to find it and they need to learn how to assess the reliability of the information found, etc. Efforts should also be made in subjects such as Civics, Sociology, Economics, and Religious knowledge/Ethics to show the importance of scien...

  Teachers of Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Computer Science and Technology should learn how to present their subjects in an engaging manner and to engender interest in them. Their teaching should relate to life experience of their pupils and to their level of intellectual development. In all subjects, not just science and technology subjects, computers should become indispensable teaching aids, just like blackboards and chalk have been up to now. With computers, teachers can achieve new dimensions in illustrating the subject matter being taught, also with regard to variability and simulations. Provided, of course, they have learned how to handle and make full use of the potentials of the new technology, and provided they have the right software, something which was often not the case in the past. In order to allow teaching to relate to the life experience of young people, school textbooks and other teaching materials should be written in language understandable and a...

  Europe's ability to compete in a world of global networks will depend to an ever increasing extent on the scientific and technological education of its citizens. The Committee of Ministers should encourage member States to devote greater attention than in the past to this kind of basic education at school and in the educational system. In addition, prerequisites for lifelong development and refreshment of science and technology literacy will have to be created and promoted in the educational system as a whole. Scientific issues should not be presented at schools just here and there, in bits and pieces, but rather in their full context. Young people should not be trained as narrow-track specialists, but rather to learn how to understand the influence of science and technology on our world in a comprehensive manner. Teachers should show how the meaningful use of science and technology could help to solve major problems facing mankind. Young people need to learn how to learn as ...