BTF Namesake Projects: Science-Labs4Schools
Children are curious about everything. They ask a lot of questions, starting with why’s and how’s. The why’s and how’s from childhood can fuel further questioning and investigation when transferred to the school science laboratory. But too many students enter middle school classrooms that extinguish that passion with lessons that are disconnected from their lives and the natural world around them. Nowhere else is this more apparent than in the science classroom.
Why should science be taught differently
Science is different from any other subject that is taught in schools. Effective teaching and learning of science involve seeing, handling, understanding, and manipulating of real objects and materials. The knowledge that students attain in classrooms would be ineffectual unless they actually observe and experiment in the science laboratory.
Why schools must have science laboratory equipment
For science to be taught properly and effectively, labs must be an integral part of the science curriculum. The National Science Teaching Association (NSTA) recommends that all PreK–16 teachers of science provide instruction with a priority on making observations and gathering evidence, much of which students experience in the lab or the field, to help students develop a deep understanding of the science content, as well as an understanding of the nature of science, the attitudes of science, and the skills of scientific reasoning (NRC 2006, p. 127).
The value of a strong background in science
A society’s reaching a bright future depends on the educational environment we provide to our students. Schools shape the world of tomorrow. Today’s students will be the technicians, engineers, epidemiologists, and scientists of the future. While teachers play an important part in developing these roles, the educational environment we help create along their journey, is crucial to inspire the next generation of engineers and scientists and lay the foundation for new inventions creating new hope.
BTF Science-Labs4Schools
We believe that all students should have access to well-equipped science labs, particularly in middle schools, that are an integral part of the science curriculum.
We have been advocating for hands-on learning experiences in rural schools across Turkey since 2017 through the delivery of BTF Science4kids Sets. These sets proved to be of limited support to the science curriculum activities in the middle school classroom and a well-equipped science laboratory was more appropriate to effectively support students’ learning process.
In 2019, BTF received a generous donation to support the work of a rural school with science instruction in the classroom through hands-on laboratory science experiences and thus our first BTF Science Labs4Schools project was born. The donor, a consummate scientist on his own right, requested to remain anonymous. Working with the donor, a school was selected. Next, a work plan and budget prepared reflective of donor’s expectation. And finally, all work coordinated and delivered on site within 10 days. The following pictures show the before and after facility improvements.
Talent is everywhere but resources are not.
Since the launching of our first BTF Science-Labs4Schools Project in 2019, seven more schools have benefited from our unique approach to delivering hands-on laboratory science experiences in the classroom. Learn more about these projects in the following videos.
Değirmenli İlkokulu- Manavgat/Antalya
Tuzcular Ortaokulu- Pervari/Siirt
Sinan Ortaokulu — Bismil/Diyarbakir
Access to these experiences in the classroom are critical to better educate and prepare students for tomorrow’s challenges. Talent is everywhere but resources are not. Join us today to bring talent and resources together in rural schools across Turkey. Your donation will be memorialized with a commemorative plaque mounted on the wall of the science lab in your name.
Will you be a part of our BTF Named Projects to bring talent and resources together?
You can pick a school to sponsor with your donation or you can provide us with information about your personal preferences so that we can help you select one for you. With your selection, we will prepare a work plan and budget for the delivery of required lab improvements for your review and approval. Upon receiving your approval and donation, we will coordinate site work activities with school officials and manage delivery of all improvements as per the approved work plan. An average turnaround time for the completion of a typical project is about 20 to 30 days. Finally, a commemorative plaque will be mounted on the wall of the lab with your name to memorialize your donation.
Academic success increases in the child who learns by conducting hands-on experiments.
No school should be left without a laboratory!
Be a part of our BTF Named Projects to bring talent and resources together!
Bridge to Türkiye Fund (BTF) is a US based, volunteer run, charitable non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization. Contributions made to BTF are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by IRS. BTF’s tax identification number: 58–678580.
