Constitution
of ESERA
Wherever
the English phrase ‘science education’ appears
in this document, it has a meaning equivalent to ‘didactique
des sciences’ in French, ‘Didaktiken der
Naturwissenschaften’ in German, ‘Didáctica
de las Ciencias’ in Spanish, or the equivalent
in other European languages (see Appendix). |
| 1
|
Name
and Status |
| 1.1
|
The
name of the association shall be ‘The European Science
Education Research Association’, hereafter referred
to as ‘The Association’. |
| 1.2 |
‘European’
shall refer to those countries which are part of Europe
as defined and recognised by the United Nations. |
| 1.3 |
‘Science Education’
shall refer to all aspects of education in respect of
the natural sciences (to include: physics, chemistry,
biology, earth science, general science, and applied science)
for learners of all ages. |
| 1.4 |
‘Research’ shall
refer to all forms of systematic enquiry. |
| 1.5 |
The Name and Logo of The
Association shall be registered, if necessary, as that
of a voluntary professional association, which is exempt
from taxation and other dues, in all European countries
of which members are nationals. |
| 1.6 |
The Executive shall, if
necessary, establish the legality of this Constitution
under national or international law as appropriate. |
| 2 |
Aims The
aims of The Association shall be: |
| 2.1 |
to enhance the range and
quality of research and research training in science education
in Europe; |
| 2.2 |
to provide a forum for collaboration
in science education research between European countries;
|
| 2.3 |
to represent the professional
interests of science education researchers in Europe;
|
| 2.4 |
to seek to relate research
to the policy and practice of science education in Europe;
|
| 2.5 |
to foster links between
science education researchers in Europe and similar communities
elsewhere in the world.
|
| 3 |
Membership
|
| 3.1 |
Personal membership is open
to researchers in science education. |
| 3.2 |
Personal membership of
The Association shall be open both to nationals of European
countries and to nationals of non-European countries.
|
| 3.3 |
Applications for personal
membership shall be made on the Application Form provided,
and accompanied by the appropriate subscription. |
| 3.4 |
The title and privileges of being a ‘Personal Member
of the Association’ shall only be enjoyed by an
individual over a period for which all the dues required
by The Association have been paid. |
| 3.5 |
Organisational membership
of The Association shall be open to organisations which
have a constitutional interest in research in science
education. |
| 3.6 |
The title and privileges
of being an ‘Organisational Member of the Association’
shall only be enjoyed by an organisation over a period
for which all the dues required by The Association have
been paid.
|
| 4 |
The Executive |
| 4.1 |
Decisions made on behalf
of The Association shall be taken by The Executive. |
| 4.2 |
Each personal member shall
have the right to one vote in any election concerning
The Association. |
| 4.3 |
The executive shall consist
of seven elected members, all nationals of different countries.
All nominations must be supported by a proposer and seconder
who are both Personal Members of The Association and who
are nationals of different European countries. Each of
those elected will serve for four years. |
| 4.4 |
Of the seven elected members
of the executive, three shall be directly elected as President,
Secretary, and Treasurer respectively of The Association.
|
| 4.5 |
Successive Presidents shall
be nationals of different European countries. |
| 4.6 |
The Organizer of the next
Summer School of The Association (which shall be organized
to support the training of researchers in science education)
and the Organizer of the next General Conference of The
Association (which shall be organised to support communication
on research matters between members of The Association
and with others) shall automatically be co-opted on to
The Executive. |
| 4.7 |
If a position on The Executive
falls vacant, The Executive shall fill it by whatever
means they deem necessary and which do not contradict
the above conditions, until the next occasion for an election.
|
| 4.8 |
A General Assembly of The
Association shall take place at each General Conference.
|
| 4.9 |
The Executive will present
a written report, which shall include Audited Accounts,
for the approval of the General Assembly and circulate
it to all Members not present at the General Conference.
In years when the general Assembly does not take place,
the written report will be sent to all Members. |
4.10 |
Elections to The Executive
shall, wherever possible, take place during a general
Conference of the Association such that results may be
announced at that Conference. |
| 4.11 |
Amendments to The Constitution
either shall be proposed by a majority decision of The
Executive or shall be proposed by at least thirty other
Members of The Association from at least three countries.
|
| 4.12 |
An amendment to The Constitution
shall be agreed by a two-thirds majority of the members
of The Association who vote in the ensuing referendum.
|
| 4.13 |
The Office of The Association
shall be established in a Town or Country at the discretion
of The Executive. |
| 4.14 |
All documents produced in
the course of Association business shall have an abstract
in two different European languages.
|
| 5 |
Activities |
| 5.1 |
The aims of The Association
shall be addressed by such means as The Executive shall
decide |
| 5.2 |
These means shall include
the organisation of Summer Schools and shall include the
organisation of the General Conferences of The Association.
|
| 5.3 |
The costs of each activity conducted on behalf of The
Association shall be met by, or on behalf of, the activity,
less any administrative input that The Executive shall
decide to make. Any surplus generated by an activity shall
be the property of The Association. |
| 5.4 |
In order to conduct the
business of The Association, The Executive shall be empowered
both to collect an Annual Membership Fee from personal
and Organisational Members of The Association and to make
applications to Fund-Awarding Bodies on behalf of The
Association. |
