Our development, the development of the European Union, demands a strong European citizenship, a solid awareness of our European culture defined and characterized by the diversity and richness of each one and all of our countries. School education is certainly of utmost importance in this process.
Transnational co-operation between schools and institutions involved in teacher education may have a major impact in enhancing the quality and reinforcing this European dimension. The Comenius 1 and 2 actions of EC’ program Socrates aim the promotion and establishment of mutually beneficial cooperation projects between EU’ schools.
Socrates/Comenius Contact Seminars are excellent opportunities for the establishment of such projects.
There are already a large number of examples of highly successful Comenius 1 and Comenius 2 established from these seminars, among which several promoted by the Hands-on Science Comenius 3 network towards the two Comenius Contact Seminars we organized as part of our two first annual conferences in Ljubljana, Slovenia in 2004 and in Crete in 2005.
Science is fast increasingly gaining a major role and decisive impact and importance in the field of School Education in all field and levels.
Therefore inscribed in our 3rd International Conference and Symposium on "Hands-On Science", we will organise a major Socrates/Comenius Contact Seminar “Building bridges. Towards an improved Science Education” in Braga, Portugal, from the 3th to the 8th of September, 2006.
As Coordinator of the Hands-on Science Network and Conference and Seminar’ Chair it is my pleasure to invite and welcome you next September in Braga, Portugal.
Universidade do Minho, Portugal, November 18th, 2005.
Manuel Filipe Pereira da Cunha Martins Costa