HUNGARIAN RESEARCH
TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION

In 1995 a new program has been established in Hungary to find mentors for talented high school students (in the age between 14 and 20). They introduce them to scientific research in Hungarian universities or research institutes.
The program gained an overwhelmingly positive response from the Hungarian scientific community.
Since 1996, the number of the individually involved students has been steadily growing due to the intensive media support and the nationwide and international reputation. "Old students" indicates those youths who
passed the age of 20 and quitted the HRSA Mentorship Program. Most of them joined research clubs and teams at their university. Some of them have already finished their PhD studies and became a mentor of the Mentorship Program.

Most of the students have their own field of interest when they join the Mentorship Program. In the past few years, there was a swift increase in the "Natural Sciences" topics, which is in line with the rapid development of biosciences. The cooperation between talented students and professors is helped by a book containing the list of our mentors who accept high school students in their laboratories.

There are more than 700 researchers who support our initiative. Many of these senior scientists are of the highest scientific merit: 118 are members of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, including Nobel Laureate George Olah. The list of mentors is originally published as a book and it is delivered to each member also via e-mail containing a wide range of keywords (approximately 3000 from abortion to X-ray micro-analysis) to help the students decide what their field of interest really is. Every high school head teacher gets it in Hungary and in the surrounding countries as well, because several hundred ethnic Hungarian students are from neighboring countries (Slovakia, Ukraine, Rumania, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia).

Since the beginning, we have been able to offer for more than 7,000 students—not only from Hungary, but also from other Eastern European countries—a chance to work in research laboratories. It is a great success so far, as many of these students become interested in pursuing a career in scientific research or teaching. All around the world there is an increasing number of initiatives that ensure research possibilities for motivated secondary school students.

At the Talented Education conference a new initiative has been launched, namely to establish an association for teachers supporting active research students, just like Hungarian Research Student Association. After a year of prearrangements, the Hungarian Research Teacher’s Association was founded in December 2005. The program has nearly 150 founders.

Members of the Hungarian Research Teachers Association are:  

• teachers carrying out research, contributing scientific publications, taking part in conferences and other special scientific events. Students are often also involved in research work lead by teachers;
• teachers with high pedagogic experience supporting research students on special fields of science,
• teachers doing subject related research, developing education materials and methods, writing and editing learning materials and books contributing to a higher-level education.

The association has members from Hungary and other countries (Rumania, Serbia, and Slovakia).

These categories are not strictly separated, as there are teachers involved in all three categories listed above, since these activities are strongly related. Some of the founder members are not qualified as teachers but during their activities they have close relation to education, so they are absolute supporters of the program and regularly contribute to students’ research work.

The patrons of both programs are 

• LÁSZLÓ SÓLYOM, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY,
• ISTVÁN HILLER, MINISTER OF EDUCATION and
• SZILVESTER VIZI, PRESIDENT OF THE HUNGARIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.

The main aims of Hungarian Research Teacher’s Association are to bring national and international researchers closer to each other through organized events, to provide them with help they need and establish an organization to defend and represent their interests. The 2^nd Conference of Research Teachers was held at LÁNCZOS KORNÉL SECONDARY SCHOOL OF SCIENCES in Székesfehérvár this February.

The aim of the conference was to set the long-term concept of the association in form of a workshop.

Aims and ideas were formulated which contribute to make the program aims and teachers’ interests widespread known: 

• Organizing the conference of Research Teachers – twice a year, in spring and autumn – with presentations and workshops that enforce to build and keep contact between teachers, and publish research results and achievements.
• Creating an electronic journal on the net to provide the possibility for research teachers to publish their achievements.
• Establishing a database – like students’ mentors list – containing the names of university researchers and professors who make research work possible for secondary school teachers.
• Taking part in education of teachers at universities, which enable graduate teachers to acquire research methodology, setting up organizations for research students and supporting teachers working at public education institutions to attain PhD qualification.
• Providing research circumstances for teachers: a day for research and to establish science fund.
• Interest organization of research teachers: formulating proposals to Ministry of Education and research budget sector.
• Making and keeping contact with Hungarians in other countries and international pedagogy associations.

Further information about the association is constantly available at website of Hungarian Research Teacher’s Association (www.kuttanar.hu).