Having a first contact with the University, being able to experiment in a real laboratory, meeting people with similar interests… the motivations that drive each of the girls and boys who enroll in a Summer Science Campus are multiple and varied, but all of them are united by their interest in coming into direct contact with the daily work of the research community in a university and multicultural environment, which will help them define their future study plans. This Monday, the eighth edition of the Summer Science Campus-Campus do Mar 2018 started in Vigo, an event that will once again bring to the city 120 girls and boys, secondary and high school students with brilliant records from all over the country, divided into four shifts of 30 students.
Early in the morning, the first shift was welcomed by the rector, Manuel Reigosa; the new director of the Campus do Mar, Daniel Rey; the professor from the Faculty of Educational Sciences, María Álvarez Lires, responsible for the teaching program that they will follow throughout the week, and the coordinator of the activity, Lorena Cariño. “I am sure that our teaching staff will take great care of you and that you will be very happy, just like the colleagues who came in previous years”, the rector emphasized, while inviting them to think of Vigo as their destination university, or “in any case, whether you study here or not, which we would like, and to leave a part of your hearts on this campus and remember us, if not for the degree, then for the master’s degree or to collaborate with us in the future”, because, as he emphasized, despite being a still very young university “we are looking forward to establishing a rich network of relationships both nationally and internationally”.
They have one week left to complete a scientific outreach program, divided into groups of 7 or 8 students per project, to make a formal presentation of the results of their experience at the end of the weekend. They will dedicate the mornings to carrying out laboratory work and making field trips to collect samples, and the afternoons are reserved for other types of activities more related to leisure and dissemination. “This year, for the first time, the program includes a two-hour visit to the Port of Vigo, one of the most representative in the entire country, and the excursion to the Galician Sea Museum is still on, as well as the possibility of having a surfing baptism on Patos beach, in Nigrán,” explained the camp coordinator.
Half come from Andalusia and Madrid
The participants are students in the 1st year of high school (years 1 and 2) and in the 4th year of secondary education (years 3 and 4) born in 2001 and 2002, all with a grade higher than 9.4 and a common interest in research and science. They come from all over Spain, but especially from Andalusia (32) and Madrid (28). Coming from Almería, Itziar Gil explains that she loves everything that has to do with the scientific world, “although mine is a particular case since, although I love Genetics and Biotechnology, I think I will finally choose a career in piano, my other great passion”. Next to him, Gonzalo de la Cruz from Madrid, admits that “I am delighted to be here, I enrolled because it seemed like a super interesting project and I don’t think I made a mistake”.
Neither the rain nor the fog that reigned on campus this morning dampened the spirits of these students. “In fact, I am delighted that it is raining and a bit cold”, explained Eva Núñez from Malaga. Next to her, the student from León, Raquel Arancio, confirmed that “the atmosphere among all the participants is being great, we all love science and I think we are going to have a great time”. For Olga Laredo (Gijón), Helena Falcó (Valencia) and Gema López (Granada), this is their first experience in a project of this nature and they admit that they will make the most of every minute. “I am sure that it will also help us decide what we are going to study in the future”, emphasized López.
Combining laboratories with field trips
After the presentation, held in room 1 of the Miralles building, one group left for the Toralla Marine Science Station, another for the Spanish Institute of Oceanography and the other two went on field trips to the Monteferro and Sabarís area to later work in the laboratory. There are four projects in total: Geology (A beach: much more than sand and water), in which they work mainly in the field of geological oceanography, combining the collection of samples on Valmiñor beaches with the analysis of the same in the campus laboratories; Botany (They invaded us, and now what?), focused on the effects of global change and, more specifically, on invasive species in coastal ecosystems; Genetics (And who are you from?), aimed at identifying commercial specials and Biology (Life through marine organisms), in which a simplified vision of an oceanographic research campaign is formulated.
Ademáis dos docentes e investigadores ligados ao Campus do Mar, que desenvolverán as actividades científicas, colabora nesta iniciativa un equipo de profesionais da Facultade de Ciencias da Educación do campus de Pontevedra, que guiarán durante os campus aos alumnos e alumnas, de cara á sesión de presentación de resultados que realizarán ao finalizar a súa estancia, na que se pretende que os estudantes desenvolvan as súas capacidades comunicativas e divulgativas transmitindo os coñecementos adquiridos durante a súa estadía en Vigo.
Source:DUVI
