Early childhood centres in South Auckland are blowing fresh air into atmospheric research
NIWA is assisting a cluster of five Early Childhood Education centres in South Auckland to incorporate participatory science into their daily teaching.
The cluster has one of the six community science projects funded in the 2015 round of the Participatory Science Platform (PSP): South Auckland pilot (locally known as SouthSci).
In a collaborative project with scientists from NIWA, the group is investigating air quality and the development of a tool to measure particulates in air with a data read-out understandable to our youngest scientists.
Using participatory science to engage across demographic groups
Gustavo Olivares, NIWA air quality scientist, says “the PSP project was the perfect way to continue NIWAs community engagement efforts with a new group of South Aucklanders. We’re really looking forward to being challenged by the pre-schoolers and their parents; it’s a great test of scientists’ ability to communicate and collaborate across all demographics”.
Relevance of air quality to South Auckland children
The group has reason to focus on air quality science. The South Auckland area has many industrial properties. Children often ask about teh the smoke billowing out of the various smoke stacks in their neighbourhood. South Auckland has a high incidence rate of respiratory illness.
Giving capable kids an opportunity
Grace Ikiua, CEO of the Good Seed Trust, says “we can’t wait to show everyone just how capable our kids are at learning and doing science, even at such a young age. Curiosity develops from birth, we’re just giving it room to grow”.
Future for the project
The cluster has plans to instigate a wider network at the ECE level for teaching science to under-5s, a sharing space for learning and support. They hope to share with other teachers their journey and pass on tips on how to get in touch and collaborate with scientists.
Further information
Participating schools
The 5 ECE Centres involved in the project are:
- Good Seeds Children Centre, Mangere
- Le Malelega a le To'elau ECE Mangere
- Agape Aoga Amata, Mangere
- Akaiti Mangarongaro Punanga Reo Preschool
- Puna O le Atamai Aoga Amata, Mangere.
The Participatory Science Platform
This Participatory Science Platform is currently being piloted in three areas: South Auckland, Taranaki and Otago. It is an initiative under A Nation of Curious Minds, a Government programme to encourage all New Zealanders to get involved with science and technology.
