The Purpose

Imagine science classes WITHOUT the opportunities to DO any science. This would include NO laboratory work, experimental lessons, outdoor field work, projects, physical demonstrations, science research, or working with the enormous range of Internet resources (information searches, access to articles and videos, computer simulations, etc.). Without these activities, a student's science experience would generally be one of lecture and memorization. This would also likely diminish interest in science, and therefore how much is learned, for most students.

While nearly all high school classes in the United States have at least occasional hands-on science activities and access to the Internet, we often lose sight that there are literally tens of millions of children around the world who do NOT have this type of science experience. This happens in poorer nations, and especially in rural areas, where there are next to no materials, equipment and supplies to do hands-on science activities, even if these were part of the class. And what's more, many of the areas we are talking about do not have electricity - the Internet is worthless in such places!

The Numbers
Just think about these numbers from a 2014 UN report on electricity and education:
- nearly 90% of primary schools in Sub-Saharan Africa have no electricity
-  27% of village schools in India lack electricity
- more than 50% of Peruvian schools have no electricity
- some 188 MILLION students go to schools with no electricity, and thus no computers or Internet
- worldwide, about one in three kids go to schools with no or limited electricity

A more recent UNESCO report from February, 2019:
- UN Sustainable Goal 4 has the goal of good schools and quality education for all children by 2030;
  topping the list of what is needed in schools is electricity, which then allows for Internet access
- only 34% of schools in 'least developed countries' have electricity
- in Sierra Leone, only 4% of schools have reliable electricity
- worldwide, one-third of primary schools do not have electricity
- another staggering statistic: only 44% of primary schools in Sub-Saharan Africa have access to
  drinking water.

How can one teach and DO science in such conditions? 

This became the question and challenge we took on. The work Miriam Mason-Sesay has done for over twenty years in Sierra Leone, one on the ten poorest nations on earth, has been so remarkable that, in 2016, she was selected as one of the Top 50 teachers in the world in the Global Teacher Prize! She works with the nonprofit organization EducAid. But even with this recognition, she wanted to change the way science is taught - she wanted to have students experience and do science, and have a chance to observe and measure how the world works. She wants her students to be able to become excited by the world, and learn how to use data and measurements to reach their own conclusions as they investigate how and why things do what they do.

But how?

This was the discussion Miriam and Mark Vondracek had in Dubai, at the Varkey Teacher Ambassador Summit, in 2018. A model developed where legitimate active, hands-on science activities would use some of the most basic materials we could think of, that schools in the poorest regions of the world could obtain. Rubber bands, string, sand and dirt, paper, any type of containers, measuring sticks, any kind of timing device, any type of magnifier or lens, cameras if available (such as from anyone who has access to a mobile phone), and so on, became our lab materials.
Mark's science students were put in charge of developing ideas for science activities that made use of only these materials. The students created the lessons, wrote up lesson plans, and are even producing short training videos for the lessons since many teachers have never done lab work and can learn how to do so at training sessions where some Internet access is available to watch the videos.

We want to share everything that is produced with anyone who is in similar situations. We want to spread the word that every student on earth, regardless of the economic and environmental conditions they live in, can learn science by doing science. We want to tap into the curiosities, questions, ideas, and creativity of every teacher and student so they realize they can develop their own experiments, and then have the confidence to go out and see if their ideas have merit or not. We want to give every teacher and student on the planet the chance to be a scientist, to experience and appreciate the excitement of discovery, and perhaps even go on to be a scientist or engineer and use their problem solving skills to make the world just a bit better!

This is the Purpose of this SEE-SAW project. See-saws only work when the two riders work together in that exchange of effort; big problems such as those found in global education, can only be solved if everyone involved helps each other in a back-and-forth exchange of ideas, resources, talents, and collaborative energy - teacher-teacher, teacher-student, and student-student. 

Our thanks to the Varkey Foundation, and its founder Mr. Sunny Varkey, for bringing us together by placing a spotlight on teachers and trying to ensure EVERY child on this planet has access to a good education.

                                        Miriam and Mark in the desert outside Dubai, 2018.