Non-formal activities as a strategy to address the Physics and Chemistry curriculum The Crystallization Contest at School

Abstract

Non-formal education is nowadays recognized as a useful complement to the scientific education that is offered in the school. In this context, this paper presents a brief analysis of the Spanish national curriculum contents for the subjects of Physics and Chemistry, that may be covered while participating in a scientific out-of-school activity, a crystal-growing contest named Concurso de Cristalización en la Escuela (CCE). Results show that the methodology followed in the contest allows teachers to introduce some curricular contents and to present a more accurate view of the nature of science, supporting their students’ scientific literacy.