TEKNIKENS HUS IN LULEÅ - A center for education in science and technology

History
The idea of creating a permanent science center for children, a house of technology, was originated at the Lulea University as early as 1979. The needs for activities that could emphasize science and technology at an early stage in the school system was clearly demonstrated by teachers and children who visited the new university. Planning activities went on for several years within the university. In 1986, financing of the project was eventually obtained. Construction was started in 1987 and in May of 1988, Teknikens Hus was opened.

Exhibits and workshops
Part of the technical and industrial environment that children see and know around them has been recreated in Teknikens Hus. The exhibition is built with our region Norrbotten as the base and put in a true context to explain complex processes.
The total exhibition area is roughly 2 200 sq meters. Many of the exhibits are full scale, some are models. Main themes are geology and prospecting, mining technology, energy and electricity, steel production technology, mechanics and industrial technology, forestry, wood and paper technology, water and water technology, air and aerodynamics, household technology and communications.
All exhibits are participatory and ”hands on”. Practical experience from the model process of for example steel making makes understanding easier. The holistic concept of the exhibitions at Teknikens Hus will help children and adults put pieces of complicated processes together.
Stars and northern lights are presented at a daily show for the public in the small planetarium at Teknikens Hus. A portable planetarium is available for the schools in the region, and guides are trained to use it in the communities.
The exhibit hall also has facilities for travelling exhibitions, related to science and technology.
The house is opened for visitors 42 hours a week. The staff of Teknikens Hus interacts with the public in the exhibitions or welcomes groups from school or daycare centers who come for scheduled visits.
In connection with the exhibitions are the workshops and laboratories, all closely linked to everyday reality. In these workshops, guided by educators of Teknikens Hus, children in smaller groups learn the practical skills of technology in the everyday setting – the kitchen, the bathroom and the garage.

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Teachers education
An important part of the activity at Teknikens Hus is teachers training. The educators at Teknikens Hus collaborate with collegues at the Luleå university of technology to find ways for teacher students to use the science center in their studies. Workshops and exhibitions are always open for the teacher students to use and educators of Teknikens Hus teach particular courses of the curriculum.
Teknikens Hus has become a special resource in science and tech-nology education for teachers in elementary school. A variety of courses are offered to educators in the region every year, custom made as well as open. Special grants from the government are given to Teknikens Hus for development of teachers training in the field of science and technology.

Organization
Teknikens Hus is an independent, non profit foundation. Responsible for the activities are the founders: Luleå University of technology, the communities of Norrbotten, the community of Luleå and three of the biggest benefactors LKAB mining company, SSAB steel producer and Vattenfall, water power producer.

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Financing
At the time of the opening in 1988, more than 26 million SEK had been raised, either as donations of money or as materials, both from companies and private donors. This sum has since increased by another xx million SEK. No government subsidies were granted for the investments.
The communities of the region have committed themselves to supporting the activities of Teknikens Hus by paying fees in advance for their school children to go to Teknikens Hus for scheduled visits. A capital fund, created from various donations, is an important reserve. The interest from the fund is an important income.
University grants, project money, revenue from sales in the shop and various other sources of income form a total to cover the annual cost of operations. Total cost of running Teknikens Hus was xx million SEK in 2000.

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Results of activitiesIn the original plans for Teknikens Hus, attendance was estimated at about 50 000 visitors a year. Even this seemed to be optimistic, regarding a total of only 70 000 people in the community of Luleå and 260 000 in the region. But interest in the new house of technology proved to be highly underestimated – 175 000 visitors came during the first year. Yearly attendance has stabilized at around 170 000 people. Since the start, 2 000 000 people have visited Teknikens Hus.
Close to 70 % of our visitors are children between the ages of 5 and 15. About 10 000 school children come for scheduled visits every year. In smaller groups, they take part in a science or technology lesson guided by one of the teachers at Teknikens Hus. Free time in the exhibitions is always included and instructors are there to help and guide the children, aswell as all other visitors at Teknikens Hus.

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Experiences and future role
Teknikens Hus has become a regional centre for education and further education in the field of technology and science. We present a chance to study complete processes of industrial technology, indeed in a smaller scale but with the possibility for our visitors to experiment and try things out.

Teachers can motivate their students by making the school work more concrete. Children and youth can discover the connections between theory and real life by visiting Teknikens Hus and taking part in lessons here. Activities at Teknikens Hus place facts into context and increase understanding. This holistic viewpoint is especially important for children and female teachers in elementary school.

Activities at Teknikens Hus have always stressed the importance of putting theoretical knowledge of industrial technology into practice, as a supplement to school´s teaching. This method for understanding and learning has also met the need for further education of teachers in elementary- and preschool in untraditional ways.

Teknikens Hus was a local initiative. It has it´s own, unique profile: the holistic approach to science and technology and the startingpoint in everyday reality. This organization has attracted national attention and served as a model for education and further education on a national level. It has also proved that it is possible to start a large project and keep up extensive activities on donations and on a limited budget.

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