Astronomy education in France: survey and analysis
15:45 - 16:00
Coauthor: Paulo S. Bretones
We have surveyed and analysed the production of studies related to the education of astronomy in France. On top of making available a list of documents and studies that will undoubtedly be useful to teachers, this survey shows that astronomy education is a relatively new and sparse field in France, the first documents found dates from the 1980’s. Also, while the first works focussed clearly on the practical pedagogical aspects, our survey clearly shows that recent developments deal rather with developmental psychology and science education. We shall report on all those aspects. Besides, we have noticed that the void left by the official bodies (Ministry of Education and its regional and local representatives, Universities) in terms of astronomy education has been filled by initiatives from associations that have produced a wealth of resources and unpublished studies.
