“Our home in the cosmic ocean” is the title chosen for the new edition of the International Summer Course for teachers organized by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) together with other educational institutions including the Faulkes Telescope Project, which will take place online from July 26 to 30.

After the success of the last edition, held entirely online and in which some 200 teachers from more than 40 countries participated, the International Summer Course Astronomy Education Adventure in the Canary Islands repeats the format, with the aim of contributing to curb the pandemic of COVID-19 and reach more participants in a sustainable way.

The contents of this seventh edition, to be held between July 26 and 30, will focus on the Solar System, with nods to the TV series “COSMOS: A Personal Voyage”, by the astrophysicist and science popularizer Carl Sagan, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its first broadcast (in 1980 in the USA and between 1981 and 1982 in Spain and other countries).

The training will be given in English and in virtual mode, using the videoconference software ZOOM. It will last 27 hours and will be certified by the IAC and NUCLIO, within the framework of the European project Galileo Teacher Training Program. It is aimed at teachers of all educational levels and subjects who wish to immerse themselves in a real experience with the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) areas.

Registration will be open until July 15 (or until all 250 registrations are received) and places will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

The course is financed by the organizing and collaborating institutions. In this edition it has been decided to include a symbolic registration fee (10 Euros) that will go entirely to the NUCLIO Trust program to support students from developing countries to pursue university studies. Those teachers who cannot afford this donation may request a waiver of the fee.

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