Space goes to school
Educating
If we are to train the engineers and technicians of tomorrow's Space industry, we need to raise awareness about science and Space studies among the young people of today. We need to capture their imaginations, inspire them to dream and lead them towards an area of science which is too often neglected today, when compared with other areas of study which seem more interesting and much less 'difficult'.
Space education has therefore become a major communications policy objective for CNES and its partners in French Guiana. School visits, micro-rocket activities, exhibitions, websites, Space kits for schools, lectures, etc, are just some of the tools for communicating, raising awareness and exchanging information, in order to persuade more schoolchildren to discover the universe of Space. These contacts between the worlds of Space and Education were recently formalised by the signing of a partnership agreement between CNES/CSG and the French Guiana Education Authority. However, this document is just one aspect; the two partners hope to develop a comprehensive policy for popularising and raising awareness of careers in Space.
The signing of this agreement on 11 March 2006 by Mr Jean-Michel Blanquer, President of the Education Authority and Mr Jean-Louis Marcé, Director of CNES/CSG, represented a major milestone in the shared history of the two organisations. Furthermore, the presence of François Goulard, Minister Delegate for Research and Higher Education, and Yannick d'Escatha, President of CNES, testified to the recognition by France's highest authorities of the need to popularise Space activities among students in the region hosting Europe's Spaceport.
Having the launch base in French Guiana presents an unrivalled opportunity to develop multidisciplinary activities here. This strategy aims to attract students to science by initially giving them something to aspire to, through the major Space programmes developed by Europe, then by transforming their dreams into reality.
The current policy for targeting schoolchildren in the popularisation of Space activities revolves around a number of approaches and activities developed by CNES/CSG, particularly its Communications department.
