SUPERCOMET Project
SUPERCOnductivity Multimedia Educational Tool
The SUPERCOMET project started in December 2001 and ran until December 2004. Financial support of € 491 500 through the Leonardo da Vinci programme phase II of the European Union amounted to 75% of the project’s total budget of approximately € 650 000. The project code is N/01/B/PP/131.014.
The Challenge
According to the Physics On Stage conference at CERN, Geneva in November 2000, there is a crisis in physics education, and a need for evitalization of physics teaching. Physics education in Europe is facing a crisis regarding lack of recruitment and the large numbers of hysics teachers that will soon end their active careers. This affects the potential for technology progress and the development of society. The SUPERCOMET project aimed to contribute to changing this unfortunate trend through providing educational materials that are challenging, interesting and fun for both pupils and teachers.
Short Description
SUPERCOMET targeted on-the-job training of physics teachers by offering a new toolkit for inspiring and encouraging pupils to learn exciting physics in a non-traditional fashion.
Combining modern pedagogical methods (e.g. collaborative learning and student-centered problem solving) with computer animations, the SUPERCOMET project aims to connect the intriguing phenomenon of superconductivity with the curricula subjects of upper secondary schoolsi n several countries. An accompanying teacher guide and in-service teacher training seminar will ensure that the developed tools and methods are successfully implemented.
Existing computer graphics and animations have been developed through the previous Superlab project by NTNU and Simplicatus, focusing on the general dissemination of superconductivity research. These resources were made available for the SUPERCOMET project, allowing for a flying start with respect to the extensive use of graphics in order to visualize the (usually) invisible physical phenomena of electricity and magnetism, as well as connecting with important curriculum subjects like the particle model of matter and energy transfer.
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