(Re)Application of the Radio in Scientific Education and Teacher Training

Luciano Gonsalves Costa,Anair Altoé,Heliana Da Silva,Marcelo Alves Barros,Aldevino Ribeiro Da Silva

doi:10.4236/ce.2014.514144

Abstract

In this paper, we describe aspects of the “Media in the Service of Education” project which was implemented based in two (sub) projects “Physics for Everyone: Science Education on the Radio” and “Education News on the Radio”. The project “Physics for Everyone: Science Education on the Radio” proposed to disseminate science education by radio to the public least served by the Internet, and the proposed project “Education News on the Radio” is to share with serving teachers successful experiences of coping with difficulties in learning and performance in the field of exact and natural sciences. In this perspective, the “Media in the Service of Education” project aims to disseminate initiatives to improve the quality (“best practices”) of the teaching of exact and natural sciences, covering municipalities located within a radius of 150 km around Maringa (Parana State, Brazil), comprising the Metropolitan Region of Maringa and northwest of Parana State (Brazil). By way of illustration, in “Education News on the Radio,” using the signal of Radio UEM FM, the project’s activities of target Parana municipalities with a low human development index (HDI).

Highlights

Despite the rapid evolution observed in the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) from the second half of last century, access to new ICTs is currently very limited in Brazil
PNAD-2009 (Brazil, 2010b) indicates that radio is present in 87.9% of Brazilian homes, which guarantees the national broadcasting network wide geographical coverage and greater social penetration
To broadcast science education via radio, especially for the public least served by the Internet;

Summary

Introduction

Despite the rapid evolution observed in the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) from the second half of last century, access to new ICTs (computer, internet, digital TV, etc.) is currently very limited in Brazil. According to the National Research by Household Sample (PNAD) of the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), 2009 (Brazil, 2010b), only 34.7% of households have computers and 27.4% of households have computers with internet access. According to this survey, 64.6% of the population aged 10 or older does not use the Internet. PNAD-2009 (Brazil, 2010b) indicates that radio is present in 87.9% of Brazilian homes (television, in 95.7% of households), which guarantees the national broadcasting network wide geographical coverage and greater social penetration. We describe two projects of this nature in development at the State University of Maringá (UEM): one of them started in 2011 and another in 2013

Physics for Everyone

Education News on the Radio

Findings

Some Considerations