Petnica International Science School (PI 2007)

August 18-30, 2007

Petnica Science Center (Serbia)

PI 2007 is a summer program devoted to out-of-school science education. The focus of this year's program will be on critical and creative thinking and approaches in science and scientific research. Our goal is to gather
gifted, inquisitive, open-minded students motivated for scientific research, and to give them a short but intensive course on systematical problem solving.

The aim of the course is to equip students with the basic skills for evaluating and dealing with arguments, manipulating ideas, and the proper application of knowledge, through lectures, practical exercises and tasks that require analytical and problem-solving skills. Students are encouraged to think independently, be creative and exercise their presentation skills. During the course students are introduced to various
research methods (observation, measurement, experiment, simulation, results analysis, interpretation etc.) and then asked to apply these methods in the realization of small scale scientific projects under the supervision of
professional scientists. The suggested fields of research are astronomy, biology, ecology, linguistics, physics and psychology.

PI is organized and hosted by Petnica Science Center, the biggest independent nonprofit organization for out-of-school science education in SE Europe. Since 1982 Petnica has organized nearly 2,200 programs (seminars, workshops, research camps etc.) for 40,000 students and science teachers. All Petnica programs rely on its wide network of associates (over 1,500 professional scientists, successful amateurs, promoters of
science, science teachers etc.) in the country and abroad.

All students aged 17-20 (regardless of the type of school they attend or their nationality) are eligible to apply for PI 2007. The main criteria for admission are motivation for out-of-school learning and a demonstrated
interest in science and independent thinking. School results are important, but they are not a discriminative factor; an open and inquisitive mind and being ready to engage in intensive work are much more important!

Interested students should complete the student application form, write a personal statement, and provide two letters of recommendation. The personal statement should list your interests and explain why you would like to attend PI 2007, as well as anything else you think is important for us to know when selecting the right candidates - be creative. All registration materials should be submitted no later than June 1, 2007.

The program fee including tuition, learning materials, accommodation, meals, admittance to the recreation center and field trips, is 500. There are no application fees.

For more information, please visit http://www.psc.ac.yu/pi/

Or write to pi(at)psc.ac.yu or acaob(at)psc.ac.yu