In our education system where questioning the teacher is generally not encouraged and rote learning is the norm, teaching of sciences is largely theoretical — the pupil being the passive recipient of bookish knowledge.
But a small beginning has been made recently in an attempt to rethink the teaching of science. The French Académie des Sciences in Paris and Pakistan Science Foundation (PSF) in Islamabad have joined hands to work for a renewal in science education at the primary school level through a French method called LAMAP. The word is an acronym for La Main à la Pâte which literally means ‘hand in the dough’. As the name suggests, it’s a hands-on, inquiry-based learning method. It’s a way of learning science differently, and the fun way.
In Pakistan, LAMAP was introduced a year ago in 15 pilot schools in the Rawalpindi-Islamabad region. To know more about it, Blue Chip talked to the two French science professors, Michel Ouliac and Patrick Marcel who are the Resource Persons for LAMAP in Pakistan. They were in Pakistan last May to conduct the second training workshop and described at length to Blue Chip the concept behind LAMAP and how it was being implemented in Pakistan.
The concept was initiated by the renowned French physicist and 1992 Nobel Laureate Georges Charpak, in 1996. He led a group of scientists and representatives of the Ministry of National Education to visit schools in the underprivileged areas of Chicago in the United States in 1995, where a method of teaching sciences through manipulation was being experimented. He was inspired by it and wished it could be adapted in France.
Teamed up with two other scientists and fellow academicians, Pierre Léna and Yves Quéré, Charpak proposed to the French Ministry of National Education a plan of renewal of science education in France. In 1997, it was found that only 3 to 3.5 per cent of science teachers actually taught science in a practical way in class — hence, the urgency for revamping the science curriculum.
LAMAP was launched in France in 1997 with the collaboration of Académie des Sciences, Ministry of National Education and National Institute of Pedagogical Research (INRP). It was introduced on an experimental basis in a few classes. In 1998, an Internet site, www.inrp.fr/lamap was created in order to help teachers access information, activities and resources to carry out scientific activities in class. The same year, the Académie des Sciences developed the ten basic principles underlying La Main à la Pâte.
The first six principles describe the pedagogical approach advocated and the last four explicit the partnerships including the one with the scientific community. The ten principles focus essentially on the idea that the child questions the objects, the world — everything that makes up his environment. He then defines the scientific problem, comes up with hypotheses and then seeks the means to verify those and finally confirms them as he draws a conclusion – all of which constitutes the structure of scientific knowledge; for the pupils to achieve all that the teachers submit for their curiosity, objects and phenomenon of the world thus triggering scientific questioning.
By offering the teachers the possibility of engagement with scientists, trainers and other teachers in a dynamic and motivating relationship, the LAMAP operation marks its originality in promoting the teaching of sciences in the primary school.
Another original and essential feature of this method is keeping a ‘notebook of experiences’. The child doesn’t always do the action. He first anticipates, foresees what he is going to do, writes what he thinks about it, and what he ultimately finds. Even if he writes stupidities in the beginning, he can afterwards evaluate himself how he has progressed and understood things because of the record he has kept.
In June 2000, a reform plan for teaching sciences and technology at school was announced by the French Ministry of Education.
In 2002, for the first time, the science teaching method, La Main à la Pâte, was included in the national science curriculum. An assessment in 2006, ten years later, showed that nearly 35 per cent of the teachers had started teaching science the practical way. The progress was substantial but more had to be achieved.
In Pakistan, LAMAP was initiated by Pakistani physicist Dr. Yaldram. He had heard about LAMAP during one of the international lectures he attended in Paris given by Georges Charpak (who passed away last year), Yves Quéré and Pierre Léna. He expressed his desire to adopt it in Pakistan. The first request was made in 2007 by Pakistan Science Foundation but for various reasons nothing happened till 2009/2010.
The first LAMAP training workshop was organised by the PSF in October 2010 with active collaboration of the French Embassy in Islamabad which is providing the major funds for the whole project. Twenty-five teachers from different federal government schools as well as private institutions from the Rawalpindi-Islamabad area were given comprehensive training by Michel Ouliac and Patrick Marcel from the LAMAP programme in France. On completion of this five-day training, Master Trainer’s certificates were awarded to these teachers by PSF Chairman Dr Manzoor Hussain Soomro.
This led to the signing of an MoU in Paris by the Académie des Sciences and Pakistan Science Foundation. Present at the ceremony in December 2010 were the Chairman PSF Dr. Soomro, Chief Scientific Officer of PSF Dr. Farhat Rajpar and Secretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology.
The Embassy of France in Islamabad is a keen supporter of this project, financially and otherwise. But much credit has to be given to Engr. Sandie Favier, the Scientific Attaché at the Embassy who played a central role in bringing this project to Pakistan. Without her keen interest and active support, the LAMAP project would have been impossible — is the opinion of both the Pakistanis and the French involved in the project. With her efficient coordination, Engr. Favier has been the vital link between the concerned parties, they say.
At the same time, Pakistan Science Foundation has to be lauded for its efforts in taking science to the grassroots level of society despite its limited resources. Among its various science popularisation activities in which the Embassy of France played an active role was the holding of traveling expos: the first one on Mathematics in 2008; the second on Environment in 2009; and the third one on Biodiversity in 2011; informed Mr. Abdul Rauf, Senior Scientific Officer, PSF, and the focal person for the LAMAP programme in Pakistan.
LAMAP is an ongoing project. Michel and Patrick will be visiting Pakistan again this October. The purpose of the first workshop in October 2010 was to present the LAMAP method to the trainee teachers, familiarise them with its principles and approach and teach them with practical examples of how to construct their lessons.
The second workshop which was organised end of April/beginning of May this year was aimed at ‘anchoring’ the method in Pakistani soil, explained Patrick. For doing that, they visited some public and private schools selected by Mr. Rauf of PSF and which the French team found to be very different and interesting as they showed the different faces of education in Pakistan. The trainees prepared class sequences which were filmed and studied, analysed and discussed upon. Then collectively, class sessions were prepared with the participants which were to be demonstrated at PSF on May 2. Some of these teachers have become trainers themselves having attended the earlier workshop. They will train other teachers who in their turn will train others thus expanding LAMAP to more and more schools. But unfortunately, all plans were scuttled due to Osama bin Laden’s killing that day. Patrick, Michel and Roseline (Michel’s wife) regretted their visit was thus cut short and they were instructed to leave for France that very day.
The French team were satisfied with the participants’ output after assessing the manner of their preparation and its implementation in class. However, there was one major difficulty which they thought might impede the success of LAMAP in Pakistani schools. The weight of examinations in Pakistan’s education system overshadows all other aspects with a strict emphasis on learning the syllabus by heart, whereas, LAMAP is developed around reasoning. But, at the same time, they were happy to observe that the teachers of the government schools tried to innovate and presented good ideas and expressed the desire to do real things. The two resource persons felt that such teachers should be supported, while Roseline, who is also a science teacher, said that the government should also support and promote them by offering them good salaries and material support.
Pakistan Science Foundation has chosen 15 schools for establishing science clubs, giving Rs. 25,000 to each for buying material for LAMAP projects. Science activities will be carried out in these clubs and not always during the normal classes. Moreover, as an incentive, PSF will be giving Rs. 10,000 to each of the 20 teachers from these 15 schools.
