RCUK Cross-cultural Computer-supported Collaborative Learning for Student Capacity Building in Multifaceted Competencies through Astronomy Online Labs

Overview
The overall goal of this interdisciplinary project "Cross-Cultural Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning for Student Capacity Building in Multifaceted Competences through Astronomy Online Labs" (C3AOL) is to support capacity building of young adults for their Big Data analysis skills and key 21st century competences - communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking - through their participation in cross-cultural computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) activities enabled by technologically and pedagogically sound online laboratories in Astronomy. The goal will be achieved through three phases of scientific activities involving different stakeholders from the UK and Malaysia, including Astronomy experts, technology-enhanced learning (TEL) experts, university students, academic staff, school teachers and pupils, and science centre staff.
As a multifaceted discipline addressing science, technology and culture - the three core areas whose maturity and richness defining the development status of a nation - Astronomy is a unique and powerful means to engage and inspire people of all ages, who are fascinated by the infinity of the Universe and stark visual appeal of celestial events. For learners at their late teen identifying a pathway to their future careers in STEM, exploring Astronomy is of particular relevance as they can be equipped with new competences:
- a good understanding of advanced developments in electronics, optics and IT;
- knowledge and skills in applying sound scientific methods for Big Data handling and analysis;
- ability to collaborate with international teams and to communicate complex results in accessible ways to general audience, especially school children
As the main outcome of this project, the participating students will acquire these competences, which are not only deployable in Astronomy, but, more important, also transferable to different disciplines such as other STEM, management, finance and economics, contributing to growth and prosperity of their country.

Four objectives of the project C3AOL are as follows:
1. To enable Astronomy experts from both countries to exchange knowledge and practical experience in Big Data analysis and technology development, identifying specific foci for research collaboration and, in collaboration with TEL experts, enhancing approaches to educating students in STEM;
2. To inspire and enthuse students, through interacting with Astronomy experts and selected Astronomy Online Labs (AOL), to gain a deep understanding of knowledge and skills for handling Big Data;
3. To enhance students' transferable competences in communicating and collaborating with peers in local and cross-cultural contexts;
4. To support students to create new quality AOLs and disseminate them through outreach activities, consolidating their knowledge, creativity, and identity of STEM ambassadors;

Overall, the mission of the project is to promote national research and teaching programmes in Astronomy in Malaysia. Currently, there are only a handful of universities in Malaysia offering astronomy courses. This project aims to stimulate the growth of astronomy degree programmes in Malaysia through our research visits in different academic institutions in Malaysia, sharing the related practical experiences in running astronomy and other STEM degree programmes in the UK. Indeed, the UK in general and Leicester in particular has internationally recognised leading expertise in Astronomy in areas such as Big Data handling and analysis, as exemplified by the established Space Research Centre and newly launched Leicester Institute of Space and Earth Observation. The UK has demonstrated the successful use of Astronomy in STEM education programmes from primary to tertiary level. The transfer of Astronomy knowledge and skills from the UK to Malaysia via this project will have strong impact on enabling young adults to create a high-technology economy.

Our project C3AOL addresses a timely and impactful goal and is certainly ODA compliant, given its strong commitment to supporting capacity building of young adults in Malaysia for their Big Data analysis skills and key 21st century competencies (communication, collaboration, creativity, critical thinking) through cross-cultural computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) activities enabled by technologically and pedagogically sound Astronomy online labs. It involves different stakeholders in Malaysia and the UK, including astronomy experts, technology-enhanced learning experts, university students, science centre staff, STEM teachers, and pupils in secondary and primary schools. Educating young generations, who will be the driving force in shaping the future development of a developing country, with effective approaches such as cross-cultural CSCL is a powerful strategy for enhancing its societal, economic and technological growth in a long run.

The impact of the project is manifold, including:
(a) producing cohorts of students well-equipped with multidimensional competences in and beyond Astronomy: a short-term impact is their diffusion of enhanced knowledge and enthusiasm in Astronomy to school children through talks in space centres and experience sharing via social media, and a long-term impact is their contribution to technological advances and economic growth of their country;
(b) developing a good understanding of common and unique astronomy research foci in Malaysia and the UK, especially how Big Data analysis approaches are similar and different, leading to knowledge exchanges and transfer and future joint research efforts between the two countries;
(c) gaining insights into factors influencing the effectiveness of cross-cultural CSCL such as the language issue and the sociability of collaborative technologies, inferring theoretical and practical implications for addressing the challenges and thereby informing future research along this line of inquiry;

The proposed project will help Malaysia to meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDG): 4, 8 and 9. Specifically, participating Malaysian students will be given opportunities to have in-depth discussions on specific topics with Astronomy experts from the UK, who will draw on information about state-of-the-art scientific and technological development in Space and Earth Observation and other cutting-edge research areas. Furthermore, students will also gain practical experience in interacting with Astronomy online labs in collaboration with local and remote peers and in consultation with experts, getting inspired to create their own ones. This will equip the students with transferable competencies that help them to secure high-skilled jobs later on. The effectiveness of the scientific activities proposed in this project will lead to the increased employability and competitiveness of young adults and eventually an innovation-driven society (SDG 4). These positive outcomes will in turn promote economic productivity in high value-added sectors such as advanced electronic equipment and telecommunication devices (SDG8), and enhance research readiness and facilities (SDG 9).

Overall, the ultimate achievement of the project is to promote national research and teaching programmes in Astronomy in Malaysia. Currently, there are only a handful of universities in Malaysia offering astronomy courses with UKM (the project partner) being one of them. This project aims to stimulate the growth of astronomy degree programmes in Malaysia through our research visits in different academic institutions in Malaysia and the MoHE, sharing the related practical experiences in running astronomy and other STEM degree programmes in the UK.