Air pollution: educational activity and research in the secondary schools

This paper describes activities conducted by researchers of Institute for the Study of the Dynamics of Environmental Processes of the National Research Council (IDPA-CNR) in relation to the Department for Education and Skills project of Ministry of Education, University, “Initiatives for the Diffusion of Scientific Culture” (MIUR). The aim was to create an educational activity which included the involvement of the students in experimental research after suitable training, with particular attention to the sampling of aerosols followed by instrumental determination of pollutants. The educational objective was to create a teaching activity, building upon the scientific curiosity of student to transfer basic environmental air pollution concepts in their daily life and to also develop their attitudes toward pollutants. The indoor and outdoor air quality in three secondary schools in Veneto (Italy) was analyzed and discussed. The final self-reflection and cultural experience assessment can prove to be much more constructive from the educational point of view, as both experiences allow for possibility to exert an active influence on forming student's personality. Self-reflection should allow students and teachers to evaluate the impact of the learning experience in their own level of environmental sensibility.