Stars and STEM Stories
Oral and Poster Presentation Competition Titled "Let's Explore Our Environment" Held in Mongolia
Mongolian State University of Education (MSUE) and GLOBE Mongolia organized an oral and poster competition under the resolution approved by MSUE for students at the higher and secondary schools titled "Let's Explore Our Environment.” The competition took place on 10 April at the New Era School.
The competition featured two stages. During the first stage, more than 40 presentations -- both in Mongolian and English -- were submitted to the competition, 30 of which were from international schools. The second phase was held at the international schools, New Beginning and Mongol Aspiration. 20 presentations and posters were selected from the first stage and were evaluated on alignment with Globe Protocols as well as data collection, measurement and research methods, and discussion of climate change. Students also submitted presentations that showcased water, cloud and soil fertilization aligning with GLOBE Protocols. 10 student presentations were selected to win a certificate and cash prize.
The judging team consisted of five members: scientists from the Land and Water Investigation at the Institute of Geography and Geo-Ecology at the Mongolian University of Life Sciences (MULS) and MSUE.
In collaboration with the Department of Geosciences at MULS, GLOBE Mongolia members prepared field practice instructions for students for collecting global data. A poster competition was held among the field students on climate change in settlements and provinces. By using GLOBE resources and the GLOBE Observer (GO) app, students conducted climate change research using project-based learning to collect data. Some students measured clouds using the GO app for over 2 months. At Secondary School No. 130, a training course was conducted with lectures from geography scientists at MULS on how to collect tree, soil and cloud data using these GLOBE resources.
GLOBE Protocols provide the best opportunity to develop natural science teachers' skills. In-service teacher training is conducting through simultaneous synchronous and asynchronous classes using TEAMS. Research on project-based learning can be done by using online cloud applications and open website groups for e-school and sharing experiences.
A handbook of competition abstracts and introduction to GLOBE was put together by GLOBE Mongolia during the competition. Student handbooks (which include worksheets, laboratory experiments, and advice on field work) were paid for with cooperation from the MULS Head of the Department of Land Management Tyvshinbayar Danzan, and researcher Ya Baasandorj of the Geo-Ecology Institute.
In the future, GLOBE Mongolia is focusing on developing handbooks based on GLOBE Protocols that will help develop student research methods for observing and measuring data. This type of instruction will help students determine the soil mechanics composition in the area that can be used to further research on soil.
All photos courtesy of Dr. Desh Bandu, GLOBE Asia and Pacific Regional Coordination Office.