Subject: Chemistry
The Royal Society of Chemistry’s Spectroscopy in a Suitcase (SIAS) project aimed to give students hands-on experience of spectroscopic techniques and equipment in order to learn about the principles of spectroscopy and to employ these techniques in ‘real’ situations to understand their uses and applications.
Two types of SIAS kit exist: one involves trained postgraduate students visiting schools and spending 1 – 2 hours conducting activities with groups of 15 – 20 school students. The other ‘home-made’ kit involves teachers being trained in the use of the equipment who are then allowed to borrow the equipment on a short-term basis to use in their lessons as they see fit.
In the instance of the first kit, school pupils learn techniques and participate in activities and they have the opportunity to interact with the postgraduate demonstrators, learning about life at university, studying science and science fairs. In the second case, teachers are able to provide more in-depth activities for their pupils, and the equipment is used by more students and by other teachers, often from other disciplines.
Secondary school pupils.
The RSC hosts a selection of suggested activities and guides to delivering SIAS events.
The SpectraSchool website is an additional resource for teaching spectroscopy.
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