UK National Schools' Astronomer

以下两个PPARC国家奖投标，以支持天文学教育在英国，主要是通过“国家学校的天文学”（NSA）的作用，我希望继续和发展这方面的工作，通过PPARC S+S奖学金。我希望发展的特别方面是一个非常成功的“科学传播”研讨会在过去2年内在卡迪夫大学研究生院交付的延伸。我的提议将允许我每年在英国各地的大学和地区中心举办10次研讨会，特别针对专业和业余天文学家。这些讲习班将教育天文学家（特别是年轻的研究生和博士后）了解与学校受众打交道的要求，但也包含涉及一般科学传播技能以及媒体和公共工作的宝贵内容。我为这一角色设想的另一个关键职能是维持现有的区域中心网络，这些中心可以作为培训地点和参与机器人天文学的学校的“服务台”。目前由十几个站点组成的松散网络很容易扩大一倍（现有的意向书），但在每个站点提供培训、讲习班和用户支持的承诺需要增加工作人员的时间。国家安全局作用的最后一部分将是一个在线部分，以现有的资源和新闻网站www.astronomy-education.com为基础。这个网站是为了支持2005年英国深度撞击小型奖励项目而建立的，但事实证明，它非常受英国教师的欢迎，他们正在寻找一个网站，为他们提供合适的资源等。特别是在支持快速增长的GCSE天文学课程。这三个要素都联系在一起，为英国教育工作者提供一个“帮助和支持”的结构，并在较小程度上为学生，其中许多其他PPARC支持的举措将获得巨大的好处。至少，该提案将产生数百名来自天文学/空间科学界的训练有素的学校演讲者，一个在联合王国各地举办的久经考验的教师培训方案（其中有训练有素的个人可以协助当地学校），以及一个支持联合王国学校对天文学/空间感兴趣的专题和有针对性的网站。

Following two PPARC National Award bids to support astronomy education in the UK, primarily through the role of 'National Schools' Astronomer' (NSA), I wish to continue and develop aspects of this work through a PPARC S+S Fellowship. The particular aspect that I wish to develop is an extension of a highly successful 'science communication' workshop delivered for the past 2 years within the Graduate School at Cardiff University. My proposal would allow me to run 10 workshops each year at universities and regional centres around the UK, targeting professional and amateur astronomers in particular. The workshops would educate astronomers (and young postgrads and postdocs in particular) in the requirements for dealing with schools audiences, but also contain valuable elements dealing with general science communication skills and media and public work. The other key function I envisage for this role would be to maintain the existing regional network of centres that can act as training sites and 'help desks' for schools involved with robotic astronomy. The current loose network of around a dozen sites could easily be doubled in size (with existing expressions of interest), but the commitment of providing training, workshops and user support at each site requires additional staff time. The final part of the NSA role would be an online element, based around the existing resource and news website, www.astronomy-education.com. This site was established to support the Deep Impact UK small award project in 2005, but has proven very popular with UK teachers looking for a site that points them at suitable resources etc. Whilst not the one-stop-shop website that was recommended by the Barstow Report, it certainly has the potential to grow in use amongst the UK astronomy/space education community, particularly in support of the fast-growing GCSE Astronomy course. These three elements all link together to provide a 'help and support' structure for UK educators, and to a lesser extent students, within which many other PPARC-supported initiatives would gain great benefits. At the very least, the proposal would produce several hundred better-trained schools' speakers from within the astronomy/space science community, a tried-and-tested teacher training programme running at venues across the UK (and at which there are trained individuals who can assist schools in the local area) and a topical and targeted website supporting UK schools interests in astronomy/space.