Schools

At the IGC we are driven to produce the best quality research and also to work with schools to share with them the wonders of cutting-edge research, for the benefit of future scientists, and future citizens. On these pages you will find out about specific activities and projects for students and teachers. If you would like more information please contact Ana Godinho.

Online resources

We are developing online and print resources to be used in the classroom, from primary to secondary education levels. We are sure, however, that they will be interesting for the general public, too, so we invite everyone to browse our resources below:

Video: Me and my body (In Portuguese, with English subtitles; 7min40s)

This animation explores the concept of cells and the different methods used by scientists in their research. It describes some of the different types of cells in the body, their function, and how this cell diversity underlies the different organs and their functions. The animation also describes how scientific knowledge in biomedicine is acquired and contributes to human health, through the use of in vitro techniques, microscopy and animal research. Sponsored by Casa das Ciências.

Me and my body by Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at www.igc.gulbenkian.pt

Target audience: 7-12 year olds

Curriculum links: Science studies; Biology.

'Me and my Body' won First Place in the Teaching resources category of the 2011 Ciência en Acción Competition - an international science communication competition for students, teachers, researchers and science communicators, in all research areas.

Biology in Modern Times - Professional Development Seminars for Teachers

Over the last few decades, advances in the life sciences have seen an unprecedented increase in the amount of new data, ideas and knowledge. Keeping abreast of these new developments is a challenge, for scientists and educators. Targeted at secondary education science teachers, the Biology in Modern Times seminars aim to bring teachers up to date with current research questions, approaches, techniques and technology in life science research.

Each of the four sessions planned for 2012 will be organised into connecting blocks: an introduction to the topic, by an IGC researcher, followed by group activities aimed at exploring the concepts, applications and implications of the research field in question. Teachers will have the chance to discuss a scientific paper, analyse and interpret results, or plan an experiment, under guidance of IGC researchers and science communicators.

The schedule for 2012 is available here (pdf), and the registration form here (Word document, in Portuguese only). Seminars will generally be held in Portuguese, but questions and discussions in English are welcome.

The 2012 Biology in Modern Times is accredited for teachers’ continuous professional development (CPD) by the national Conselho Científico-Pedagógico da Formação Contínua (15h course, 0.6 course units). We are grateful to the collaboration of the Centro de Formação das Escolas de Torres Vedras e Lourinhã.

The presentations (in portuguese) of the 2012 sessions are available here:
SESSION 1 - Rui Gardner - Flow Citometry (PDF); Results from the activity (PDF)

Schools' Outreach

IGC scientists regularly take IGC research to schools in the greater Lisbon area and even beyond. We have taken part in schools’ science days, career fairs, science fairs. Read (here) about our outreach activities to schools. If you would like us to visit your school, please e-mail Ana Godinho (agodinho@igc.gulbenkian.pt) with information on your school and the type of activity you would be interested in.

Science project support programme

Since 2009 we have been running a dedicated programme of support for science-related student projects. Within this programme, we provide guidance on relevant topics, experimental activities, background literature, access to scientists and research facilities (for small groups).

Students and teachers are welcome to contact us for input into your projects.

Bioinformatics at School

This project is being developed by the Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Unit. Its main aims are to provide bioinformatics resources for secondary-school, based on current research projects, with an aim to encourage and support enquiry-based learning of science.

For more information on this project, please contact Isabel Marques.