Wednesday 26 March 2003
6:00pm – 8:00pm
Education in Science: Opportunities for UK-Japan Partnership
Daiwa Foundation Japan House
Organised by the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation in association with The Japan Society
Science education is in transition both in Britain and in Japan. The seminar surveyed some of the reasons for this situation and explored ways in which partnership between Britain and Japan can address common concerns. The seminar drew particularly on the outcomes of the UK-Japan Science, Creativity and the Young Mind Workshop which was hosted at the University of Bristol as part of the Japan 2001 Festival, and of which the Foundation was principal sponsor.
About the contributors
Dr Eric Albone
Dr Eric Albone is Director and Co-Founder of Clifton Scientific Trust, a charity dedicated to developing strategies which enable school students to share in the experience of genuine scientific exploration and application. Dr Albone holds honorary academic status in Bristol University and is member of the UK-Japan 21st Century Group. His first degree and doctorate in Chemistry are from Oxford University. He is also a qualified teacher and before embarking on work with Clifton Scientific Trust split his career between that of a research scientist and that school teaching. He has for several years been member of Council of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and received the Royal Society of Chemistry Award and Medal for Chemical Education in 1993.
Dr Toru Okano
Dr Toru Okano is Head of Science at the Rikkyo School in England. Dr Okano studied at Rikkyo University in Tokyo and King’s College, London. He has a long-term interest in the educational methods of Japan and the UK, and has been deeply involved in exchange programmes between the two countries. His involvement includes the Science Teachers’ Exchange Project, and the UK-Japan Science, Creativity and the Young Mind Workshops (organised by Clifton Scientific Trust) in which British and Japanese teachers, scientists and, in 2001, high school students come together to share their experiences.
The Rt Hon Lord Jenkin of Roding
The Rt Hon Lord Jenkin of Roding (chair) is Chairman of the Foundation for Science & Technology and was President of the Association for Science Education, 2002-03. Lord Jenkin has wide experience of government and business with a particular interest in science. Most recently, he was appointed a Member of the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology, and chaired the influential ‘Science and Society’ inquiry. Lord Jenkin has a long-standing involvement in UK relations with Japan and has been involved with, among others, the Japan Festival and the UK-Japan 2000 Group (now the UK-Japan 21st Century Group), of which he was chair for four years.