A multipurpose action for learning-teaching process: The Pigelleto's Summer School of Physics

Abstract

Since 2006, forty students from high school are selected to attend a full immersion summer school of physics in the Pigelleto Natural Reserve, on the south east side of Mount Amiata in the province of Siena. Topics are chosen so that students are involved in activities rarely pursued in high school, aspects and relationship with society are underlined and discussed. Our purpose is offering to really motivated students an opportunity of testing the scientific method, the laboratory experience in a stimulating context, by deepening an interesting and relevant topic in order to orienting them towards physics. Students are encouraged in cooperating in small groups in order to present and share the achieved results. Starting from the third edition of the school, the school became a training opportunity for younger teachers which are involved in programming and realization of selected activities. The laboratory activities with students are usually supervised by a young and an expert teacher in order to fix the correct methodology. Recently, young teachers enrolled in a master in Physics Education tested in the summer school some activity designed in their courses.