YES is structured to provide Teachers and Students with a learning focus that involves inspiring projects and outside experts to bring alive subject matter and identify how these relate to real life experiences.  The learning starts here in the UK when you allocate a Science Module.

Modules are split into two versions the Full Science Module and the Virtual Module.

The first thing to establish is if you want to be physically involved in a Science Module and have the experience of taking your students away on an International field research trip or if you want to follow a module via the internet and enjoy the learning taking place in the comfort of your own school.

Full Science Module

The full Science Module is as involved as you can get.  It includes at least three visits by the Module Mentor who works with teachers to set learning targets and establish working cells to enable the students to get the best from the in-country visit and cover as many of the set curricular subjects as are feasible.

Mentors

The mentors will liaise with teachers and visit the school as an outside expert and will help shape the learning that is required by the curriculum.  These are done over three separate day visits and are usually spaced with several weeks in between.  More Mentor days can be arranged if they are deemed necessary.

Mentor day 1

The Mentor will brief the group on the science projects overall objectives, introduce the scientist, the country and the area.  The different sections of the field visit will be explained and the opportunities for being involved as well as formulating a student Research project are explored with options made clear.

Mentor day 2

Students will have researched the science Module they are undertaking and have many questions that they need answers for.  The country to be visited will also need investigating and that will also generate questions.  The students own research project must be detailed and the Mentor will ensure that it can be done in the way the way that the students would like to do it and suggest alternatives methods if theirs are not feasible.

Mentor day 3

Normally only a few weeks before departure the mentor will cover all travel arrangements, medical notes, rules and more in depth details of the visit.  The students will be given advice on their project planning and all last minute questions or problems will be addressed.

The Field Research

The field visits will last 7 – 9 days depending where it is and what are the tasks to be undertaken. There are four main sections to every Field Research Visit, the levels of each section is dependant on the individual module.

Section 1

There will be lectures given by the scientist and Mentor that address both the project and specific learning goals that were agreed before departure with the teachers.  These lectures cover the UK curriculum subjects that have been identified by YES and delivered in location.  These are classroom based and normally at the beginning of the module.

Section 2

Real live Field Research with the scientist aimed to assist them in their project with data collection or other tasks that furthers the knowledge of the project or benefits the science work.  Students will understand the true importance of science and the level of impact it has on our lives.

Section 3

Students own research study that was identified before departure set between certain learning boundaries and safety restrictions.  This project will be done under the supervision of the teachers and the aim is to give the students the power and responsibility to plan, agree and conduct there own research project in a challenging environment.

Section 4

Cultural exchange is an important ingredient of understanding the world that we live in.  Students will have the chance to visit close by schools and local communities to experience first hand how others live and work in these different areas.  If appropriate and time allowing a small community project maybe undertaken on some modules.  It is important to prepare the group for the in-country visit and to utilise the students in an efficient way which also gives them great experience of leadership, group dynamics and problem solving.

Conclusion

On Returning home the students will have to and collate all the data they collected and reflect on what they learnt from the scientist.  They must also produce the results of their own research project into a Research Report which in turn is made into a presentation that can be given to the rest of the school.  Mentors can be used to comment on Research Reports and if possible will attend presentations given by the students and in 2011 we will be running a National competition to find the best presentation.