Makes STEAM attractive

These are the thoughts of David Ballesteros, one of the teachers at Newton Galicia. Together with Santiago Vietio, who holds the same role, the newly established Newton Room has been fully booked since it opened in October.

POPULAR STEAM CLASSROOM. Newton teacher Santiago Vieto and the rest of the team, has fully booked classes until June.

Along with three flight instructors, Sara Collazo, Iria Ollero, and Natalia Farina, every Friday Ballesteros and Vietio teach local students at Tecnopole Business Park, close to Ourense. To this date, the team at Newton Galicia has been teaching the module, “Up in the Air with Numbers,”, but according to Vietio they are hoping to implement  additional modules from the Newton library.

Wants more active learning

Ballesteros’ educational work has long been focused on developing projects that help young people learn through engaging with practical activities. For example, his team currently teaches as part of another project called, ‘Aulas Tecnopole’, where students develop longer-term research projects that they choose based on their personal interest in a subject. 

Ballesteros hopes that the existing educational system will continue to evolve to include more active learning that allows students to connect theoretical concepts to the real world. For him, the Newton Concept has proven to be an excellent way to engage students and have them learn by doing.

Vietio is also convinced about the value of the Newton Concept. According to him, incorporating a STEAM strategy is “the best way to approach the connected knowledge of technological disciplines in an attractive way for students. 
“It seems to me that the Newton Concept is a very interesting way to focus the attention of students in the field of mathematics, in the case of the module that we teach here at Newton Room Galicia, linking it to the field of aviation and aeronautics”, he says

The Design of the Newton Room

Studies show that classroom design impacts student engagement and learning outcomes, which is why every Newton Room is designed to facilitate a holistic and interactive STEM learning experience for all students. Each room is equipped with a standard set of elements such as mobile student workspaces to be used for group work, an area designated for collaborative discussions and reflection, and a lab where students can conduct scientific experiments using onsite equipment.

Both Ballesteros and Vietio are pleased with the design and function of the Newton Room in practice.  

“The group in the classroom participates in a very active way. This represents a break with the usual dynamics of the classes in the center. The students are eager to participate,” Vietio shares.

“The visiting teachers are very surprised by the novelty of the proposed activity,  and the students say that they enjoy the activity a lot and that, in general, it is a very fun and enjoyable way to learn,” ends Ballesteros.

Find out more about Newton in Spain