A Robotic Telescope with a host
of Learn Astronomy Projects
http://www.telescope.org &
www.schools.telescope.org
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges – Ed Hand
What we are?
What we do?
Why?
Moving to the OU?
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges – Ed
Hand
The Robot is on one of the best sites in
the world – 2,400m Tenerife
The Robot is completely autonomous: No
human presence: 4 service trips p.a.
The Robot sits at the centre of:
• Two web sites structured to support
language translation:
http://schools.telescope.org/
http://telescope.org/
•
•
•
•
Partially translated into Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese
One for school children organised in classes
One for students/amateur astronomers
Ideas to generate a site for individual learners.
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
All Users get a user
name and password
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
All Users See:– An archive of images with full details of how they were
obtained and processed.
– Notes on the system status
– Details of your personal requests
– Telescope with full support for generating requests
– A dozen web cams & archive: day/ night/ time lapse
– Weather graph and archive.
– Real time data indication of the instruments and systems
Tallon – Dan Hedges –
– The job queue John Baruch – ChrisEd Hand
The Schools Site Includes:A programme of astronomy experimental projects
including some maths and physics.
A learning management system supporting learners
A learning management system supporting teachers
A classroom management system
A school management system
A partnership management system with a contact
management system including invoicing.
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
Access to Real World Facilities is
highly motivational
• The programme has a dramatic impact on those who
use it.
• The pupils return many times to continue using it
from home and persuade their teachers to do more in
the classroom
• Very effective pupil driven teacher subject knowledge
CPD
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
Ogden funded support for Rural
Schools in Derbyshire
• The programme has a dramatic impact on those who
use it. E.g. 20 Rural schools in Derbyshire:-
• 907 pupils
• 5553 images
• 250 pupils logging on outside school hours.- many do
no have internet at home
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
Why?
• Supporting teachers who have little or no science background –
delivering subject knowledge CPD
• Inspiring learners with Science
• Teaching how science works
• Widening Participation- The Knowledge Economy
• Supporting University Recruitment
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
• Research into all the above
using
Robotic systems
Ed Hand
Moving to the OU - How?
• Making the project self supporting:– Through a national programme of University Recruitment
– Seeking sponsorship to guarantee first two years of operation
• Ogden/Nuffield/ NESTA
– Raising the income from amateur usage
– Consolidating income from schools usage
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
Moving to the OU-Developing Research
• Developing Research programmes for the use of Robotics in
Education
• How best to use robots in schools, universities and with self
learners?
• Extending subject area across all the sciences following pilot
programme with Drax and Moss Moran
• Working across the world – developing knowledge economies
– How best to develop the skills of innovation and creativity.
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges –
Ed Hand
Thank-you
http://www.telescope.org
www.schools.telescope.org
John Baruch – Chris Tallon – Dan Hedges – Ed
Hand