The Barcelona Science Park (PCB) concludes with a positive balance its participation in the Tandem School (2011-2015) project, a singular and innovative educational program, promoted by the Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera, with the support of the Departament of Education. PCB has colaborated in this joint initiative with the 'Aids Research Institute IrsiCaixa and the  Apel·les Mestres School of Hospitalet de Llobregat with the aim of helping promote the spirit of research among students and other scientific careers and to form critical citizens in a society increasingly based on knowledge. 

Tandem Schools is a pioneering educational project –inspired by the Magnet Schools concept of the United States– where educational centers through partnership work together with benchmark institutions with the aim of promoting educational success through curricular specialization of these schools. This specialization may vary depending on the tandem reference institution (music, science, mathematics, audiovisual science, etc.) and aims to be a key element for students to gain in-depth knowledge in this area, while improving their overall academic performance.

At the Tandem Apel·les Mestres School + IrsiCaixa +  Barcelona Science Park, science has been inserted as a transversal axis of the curriculum of the school, based on a strategy structured on four main pillars: bringing current biomedical research closer to the classroom; project work, problem-based learning and interaction with different stakeholders, including politicians, industry, researchers, journalists, science communicators and teachers. This strategy will continue to be developed at the school, even though the project has ended.

“The most interesting thing about this experience is the existential character of this type of program and the activities we do. Many times science is explained at schools in a distant, far away manner from actual experience. Our workshops allow students to touch products, do experiments directly, run by the same researchers that explain the students their day-to-day. And they do it at PCB. This direct link with reality can often mean a change of attitude of young people about what science really is and motivate their vocations”, says Adela Farré, director of Communications, Marketing and Promotion at Parc Cientific de Barcelona.

The official closing ceremony of the Tandem project took place on June 17 at the Apel • les Mestres School. The event included short workshops on different projects developed by students and an official ceremony, which was attended by Manel Ramon, Director of the INS Apel·les Mestres School; Rosina Malagrida, head of outreach at IrsiCaixa Biomedical Research; Miriam Martinez, coordinator of the Research in Society Program at PCB; Lluís Farré, director of Research and Knowledge at Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera; Montserrat Llobet, director of the Territorial Services Barcelona II Regions the Department of Education and Emili Pons, coordinator of Regulatory Proceedings of the Education System.

Four years fostering the academic success in the classrooms through science

During the last four years, the students of the Apel· les Mestres School have been ‘playing at being scientists’ at PCB in over twenty experimental workshops, organized within the program ‘Do Research’ on cardiovascular diseases, diabetes or Alzheimer, using current laboratory techniques. In addition, the school has implemented into its research laboratory a workshop, part of the “Do Research” called ‘Analyse DNA and investigate the perpetrator of a crime!’ where students became familiar with molecular biology technology and concepts of law and psychology.

Several students of the Apel·les Mestres School have also been on a training at PCB that has enabled them to actively participate as tutors in the development of various workshops of the series ‘Discover research at PCB’ designed to bring science closer to the youngest students. This activity consisted of a workshop to introduce the scientific method and concepts, such as DNA or cells, and a visit to the Park to follow the steps that a drug must go through before reaching the market. The result was very satisfactory. Secondary students were able to communicate science to society and brought research closer to 125 primary school students in Hospitalet de Llobregat.

As part of the Tandem Schools project, the Barcelona Science Park has also provided support to students to conduct research work in their last two years of secondary school, and has invited them to participate in the Live Research Fair and other activities carried out within the research program in Research in Society. The primary aim of this program, according to Adela Farré, “is to bring science to society, but most importantly to bring out scientific vocations in young people by showing them science as a possible way of development and personal training and dedication in the future. We think the conception of the workshops greatly facilitates this change in attitude.”

The Research in Society Program encompasses more than 80 activities aimed at the educational community and the general population in which over 5,000 people take part every year. 

■ Tandem School project video >