Abstract
Bringing citizen science projects into the classroom can help students understand the relevance of curriculum objectives. As part of
the ongoing CITI-SENSE project high-school students in Norway, Serbia, Slovenia and the UK were equipped with tools to study the
air quality at their schools. The CITI-SENSE project (Development of sensor-based Citizens‘ Observatory Community for improving
quality of life in cities) is a Collaborative Project under EU‘s Seventh Framework Programme, grant agreement no 308524) aims at
developing citizen observatories related to environmental quality in cities. Results from the collaboration so far indicate that students
and teachers are motivated to engage in these environmental studies, and able to perform studies of good quality. Students
involved in such projects may be valuable collaborators with broader professional or citizen‘s science projects, as they can measure
physical parameters, collect observations and perception or performance data while having a support network of experienced
teachers. Furthermore, they can provide insight into the priorities and goals of the participants as well as the drivers and barriers
for improving school environments. However, we have identified some challenges that need to be overcome to realize this potential.
(1) Successful cooperation with schools requires adaptation to curricula and relatively strict schedules. A two-week delay may
imply a full year lost. (2) Students are motivated when they are free to implement their own ideas and priorities into the projects.
This may lead to datasets that are hard to reuse or compare with others. (3) Indoor environments vary widely between rooms and
with usage and meaningful interpretation of measurements and other results often requires that a lot of context is recorded with
the measurements. This is not always practicable/feasible. Despite the challenges, there is a tremendous potential of empowering
the schools when providing them with tools to conduct research in their premises.
the ongoing CITI-SENSE project high-school students in Norway, Serbia, Slovenia and the UK were equipped with tools to study the
air quality at their schools. The CITI-SENSE project (Development of sensor-based Citizens‘ Observatory Community for improving
quality of life in cities) is a Collaborative Project under EU‘s Seventh Framework Programme, grant agreement no 308524) aims at
developing citizen observatories related to environmental quality in cities. Results from the collaboration so far indicate that students
and teachers are motivated to engage in these environmental studies, and able to perform studies of good quality. Students
involved in such projects may be valuable collaborators with broader professional or citizen‘s science projects, as they can measure
physical parameters, collect observations and perception or performance data while having a support network of experienced
teachers. Furthermore, they can provide insight into the priorities and goals of the participants as well as the drivers and barriers
for improving school environments. However, we have identified some challenges that need to be overcome to realize this potential.
(1) Successful cooperation with schools requires adaptation to curricula and relatively strict schedules. A two-week delay may
imply a full year lost. (2) Students are motivated when they are free to implement their own ideas and priorities into the projects.
This may lead to datasets that are hard to reuse or compare with others. (3) Indoor environments vary widely between rooms and
with usage and meaningful interpretation of measurements and other results often requires that a lot of context is recorded with
the measurements. This is not always practicable/feasible. Despite the challenges, there is a tremendous potential of empowering
the schools when providing them with tools to conduct research in their premises.
