Design Principles Unveiled: Capturing Innovation Insights for Future Design Breakthroughs

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Navigating Uncertainty in Innovation Ecosystems

In a world overshadowed by uncertainty, where technologically mediated connectedness can leave us feeling isolated and powerless, it is crucial to recognize that innovation seems our sole response

Regard croisé sur 10 ans d'innovation en EDD: Rétrospective et prospective

This editorial looks back over ten years of innovation in education for sustainable development (ESD), supported by the foundation éducation21, and over five years of support for innovative ESD projects at Universities of Teacher Education (UTE) in Switzerland. These anniversaries provided an opportunity to present some of the UTE projects supported by éducation21 at a meeting of UTE professors in December 2023 at the UTE in Bern. Following the meeting, some of the presentations were published in the present themed issue of PriSE. This editorial also presents éducation21's understanding of ESD, updated in 2023 and structured around three concepts: education, sustainability and sustainable development. éducation21 proposes a dynamic model of ESD that integrates scientific, political and pedagogical developments. This vision emphasises the importance of ethical, pluralistic and transformative approaches in education, adapted to the various Swiss regional contexts. 52 innovative ESD projects were submitted to education21 since 2019, 19 of which were selected for financial and conceptual support. These projects lead to the creation of teaching resources - such as guides for teachers, books and fact sheets for pupils, touring exhibitions or digital applications - aimed at promoting cross-disciplinary skills such as systems thinking, taking responsibility and managing controversies. Discussions between UTE professors at the December 2023 meeting showed that interdisciplinarity between the social and natural sciences is essential for a comprehensive understanding of the challenges of sustainable development. The participants also felt that a ‘single’ understanding of ESD was not feasible. However, a shared vision between UTEs of the specific elements of ESD would enable national progress to be made, particularly within the institutions themselves as well as within the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education or swissuniversities, the umbrella organisation of the Swiss universities. In conclusion, education21’s support for ESD projects at Universities of Teacher Education is a catalyst for innovation in ESD. It encourages collaboration, national dissemination and the sustainable anchoring of these practices in the Swiss education system

Preface

The eleventh Event in the series of CERN Latin-American Schools of High-Energy Physics took place from 15 to 28 March 2023 in San Esteban, Chile. It was organized by CERN with the support of Chilean colleagues from Universidad Andrés Bello, Universidad Tecnica Federico Santa Maria, and CCTVal (Valparaiso Center for Science and Technology). Our thanks are due to the lecturers and discussion leaders for their active participation in the School and for making the scientific programme so stimulating. The students who in turn manifested their good spirits during two intense weeks undoubtedly appreciated their personal contributions in answering questions and explaining points of theory

Effects of out-of-school learning site visits on students: A systematic review of literature for STEM-subjects

Hintergrund: Ausserschulische Lernorte sind in den vergangenen Jahren auch für den MINT-Bereich entstanden (Baar & Schönknecht, 2018) und haben zunehmend an Bedeutung gewonnen (Kuske-Janßen et al., 2020), sodass aktuell eine Stärkung ausserschulischer Angebote gefordert wird (Anger et al., 2024). Eine aktuelle Forschungsaufgabe besteht in der datenbasierten Weiterentwicklung ausserschulischer Lernangebote (Beyer et al., 2020).  Ziel: Zur Darstellung empirischer Daten wurde ein systematisches Literaturreview angefertigt, die Auswirkungen des Besuchs eines ausserschulischen Lernorts im MINT-Bereich auf Schüler:innen betrachtet sowie weiterführende Forschungsdesiderate hergeleitet. Methode: Im Zuge des systematischen Literaturreviews wurde ein mehrschrittiges Vorgehen verfolgt. Zunächst wurde in den Datenbanken ‚Web of Science‘ und ‚FIS Bildung‘ eine Literaturrecherche mit festgelegten Suchbegriffen durchgeführt. Anschliessend wurden die Publikationen anhang festgelegter Ausschlusskriterien in mehreren Durchgängen selektiert. Dies fand zunächst anhand einer Betrachtung des Titels, anschliessend durch eine Begutachtung des Abstracts sowie abschliessend einer Sichtung des Volltextes statt. Es verblieben 28 Publikationen, die im Volltext analysiert wurden. Ergebnisse: Es zeigte sich, dass der Besuch eines ausserschulischen Lernorts affektiv-motivationale Konstrukte meist positiv beeinflusste und darüber hinaus zu einem Fachwissensgewinn führen konnte, der in der Schule meist nachhaltiger, aber kurzfristig meist geringer oder nicht unterschiedlich ausfiel. Insbesondere in Bezug auf affektiv-motivationale Konstrukte blieb unklar, inwiefern der Besuch eines ausserschulischen MINT-Lernorts zu positiveren Änderungen als schulischer Unterricht führt. Es zeigte sich jedoch meist, dass ausserschulischer Unterricht auf Schüler:innen positivere Auswirkungen als schulischer Unterricht besitzt oder keine Unterschiede zu schulischem Unterricht ausgemacht wurden. Insbesondere hingen die Auswirkungen des Lernortbesuchs von der Art der Einbindung in den Regelunterricht ab und waren in Bezug auf praktische Arbeitsweisen positiver als schulischer Unterricht. Schlussfolgerungen: Besuche ausserschulischer Lernorte im MINT-Bereich eignen sich auf Grundlage der analysierten Publikationen weniger zu Steigerung des Fachwissens von Schüler:innen. Um die positiven Auswirkungen eines solchen Besuchs auf affektiv-motivationale Konstrukte zu nutzen, empfiehlt sich eine Einbindung des Besuchs in den Regelunterricht sowie eine Fokussierung praktischer Arbeitsweisen am ausserschulischen Lernort. Es zeigte sich überdies, dass wenig Publikationen das Potenzial ausserschulischer Lernorte zu Steigerung MINT-bezogener Berufswünsche von Schüler:innen untersuchen und methodische Schwächen aufweisen. Diese Forschungslücke sollte in weiteren Forschungsvorhaben geschlossen werden.Background: Over the last years, out-of-school learning sites have been established for the STEM-sector (Baar & Schönknecht, 2018) and have gained considerable importance (Kuske-Janßen et al., 2020) leading to current calls for strengthening of out-of-school learning opportunities (Anger et al., 2024). The data-based development of out-of-school learning opportunities can thus be considered as a current research task in the field (Beyer et al., 2020). Objectives: For this contribution, a systematic review of literature was conducted to present empirical data. Additionally, the effects of the visit of an out-of-school STEM learning site on students were investigated and further research desiderata were derived. Methods: In the course of the systematic review of literature, a multi-step procedure was followed. First, a literature search was carried out in the databases ‘Web of Science’ and ‘FIS Bildung’ using defined search terms. The publications were then selected in several rounds according to defined exclusion criteria. This was initially done by looking at the title, followed by a review of the abstract and finally a review of the full text. This left 28 publications that were analyzed in depth. Results: It turned out that the visit of out-of-school learning sites mostly positively impacted students’ affective-motivational constructs and led to increased content knowledge even though this learning gain mostly was more lasting but usually lower or not different in the short term in school interventions. Especially in relation to affective-motivational constructs it remained unclear whether visiting an out-of-school learning site leads to more positive effects than lessons at school. Nevertheless, it was usually found that the visits of out-of-school learning sites showed more positive effects on students compared to school lessons or that no differences to school lessons were found. In particular, the effects of the out-of-school learning site visits depended on the type of integration into regular school lessons and were more positive than those lessons in terms of practical working methods. Conclusion: Based on the publications analyzed, visits to out-of-school learning sites in the STEM field are less recommended for increasing students' content knowledge. In order to utilize the positive effects of such a visit on affective-motivational constructs, it is advisable to integrate the visit into regular lessons and to focus on practical working methods at the learning site. It also emerged that few publications investigate the potential of out-of-school learning sites to increase STEM-related career aspirations of students and that these publications have methodological weaknesses. This research gap should be closed in further research projects.

Shaping Creativity: What Participants Say Works (and Doesn’t) in Short-Term Educational Teams

Creativity is a critical 21st century skill that generates innovative solutions to complex problems. This study examines participant perceptions on creativity during a three-week summer school where multidisciplinary teams developed novel applications for innovative technologies. Participants were surveyed on the effectiveness of the tools and techniques used. Findings highlight prototyping and external team interactions as major creativity enhancers. Relational rewards, breaks, and icebreakers were also perceived positively. However, certain tools such as supervisor influence and formal presentations were considered detrimental or ineffective. These findings offer practical insights for designing educational programs that stimulate creativity

Beam-beam collisions with an arbitrary crossing angle: analytical tune shifts, tracking algorithm without Lorentz boost, crab-crossing

The beam-beam collision with a finite crossing angle has become a reality since the DAΦNE and KEKB colliders were put in operation. Nowadays, designs or/and upgrade options for a number of colliders and particle factories are based on lattices having a crossing angle. Recently new innovative schemes were proposed, such as crab-crossing for KEKB and very large crossing angle for DAΦNE-II. Hence it is clear that the beam physics related to the crossing angle has become critically important. In this paper we would like to continue discussing these questions, already raised in ICFA Beam Dynamics Letter 34 by Y. Cai

How to measure Mathematical Modelling in science education? An atomistic approach.

Background: Models and mathematical modelling play pivotal roles in understanding complex scientific phenomena. Their application ranges widely across educational and scientific disciplines, notably in natural sciences and chemistry, facilitating the translation between conceptual understanding and practical applications. Purpose: This study aims to develop and validate a test instrument for assessing mathematical modeling competencies in the natural sciences, with a particular focus on chemistry and biology, exploring the empirical substantiation of theoretically implied subcategories and their interactions. Sample/setting: The study involved 390 STEM students from German universities, with a final dataset comprising 309 participants. The testing occurred during the winter semester of 2022/2023. Design and Methods: Utilizing a quantitative design, the study employed Rasch analyses based on probabilistic test theory to ensure the reliability and objectivity of the test instrument. Items were crafted to reflect various aspects of the mathematical modelling process, categorized into understanding, simplifying, mathematizing, interpreting, validating, and communicating. Results: Findings suggest that the test instrument effectively measures mathematical modelling competencies across the specified categories. The analysis confirmed the instrument's unidimensionality, reliability, and substantive validity of the mathematical modelling constructs it aims to assess. Conclusions: The development of this test instrument holds significant potential for educational practice and future research by providing a reliable means to assess and understand students' competencies in mathematical modelling within the natural sciences. Keywords: Mathematical Modeling, Natural Sciences, Chemistry Education, Test Instrument, Rasch Analysis, Assessment of competencies

Photograph of participants

Group photo of the participants

Statistics and machine learning for high-energy physics

These lectures introduce some of the main ideas of frequentist and Bayesian statistics as well as supervised machine learning with a focus on the probabilistic interpretation of the latter. The ideas are illustrated using simple examples from particle physics