Active learning in optics and photonics

Abstract

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has undertaken the Active Learning in Optics and Photonics (ALOP) project, to improve photonics education and encourage teachers to teach better. Active learning is a strategy, which involves guiding students, to construct their knowledge of physics concepts, by directly observing the physical world. The ALOP project focuses on optics and photonics, while the workshops, manual, and study materials are intended for high school and university physics teachers from developing countries. Optics and photonics have been chosen as essential areas of physics that are relevant and adaptable to research and educational conditions in many developing countries. The UNESCO gathered a team of physics teachers, physicists, and optics professionals, to prepare the modules and materials that can act as workshop facilitators.