Ofanim Drives STEM Education to Beersheba Public Schools
Project Ofanim “Drives” to Beersheba
March 31, 2011: For the better part of the school year, busses transformed into mobile classrooms have come to pay a visit to students in Beersheba municipality’s public schools. The mobile units arrive loaded with lab tools and equipment, and staffed by graduate level student instructors from local programs, including Ben Gurion University Medical School. The objective of the visits
are to introduce students to a physics and science program that matches experiential learning and exploration and build positive attitudes towards learning.
In this particular class, there were four study sessions for each class. The session topics include:
1. Magnetic energy, building a compass that was placed on the backs of ducks as
they swim in water.
2. Building a complex model, in which the wheels are made of rubber.
3. Traffic patterns that involve jagged wheels and slopes.
4. Electromagnetic-using battery models, dynamo, motors, and horns.
Ofanim was created by volunteers in the Israeli business and high-tech sectors, to benefit children who live in suburban and rural areas in Israel’s periphery. In these small communities, supplemental educational opportunities are unavailable and students there are falling behind.
The mission of Ofanim is to “to contribute significantly to the well-being of children living in Israel’s periphery in poverty and strengthen the fabric of Israeli society.”
For Hebrew version, click: http://ma.beersheva.biz/index.php?m=ar&artd=5046
