National Museum of Natural Science: Summer 2024 "Wind Renewable Energy Inquiry and Practice Camp" Successfully Completed
Following its foundational training course in digital scientific measurement held on March 3, 2024, the National Museum of Natural Science (NMNS) launched a five-day, 30-hour intensive training camp on July 1, themed on wind renewable energy and pitched to the physics level of senior high school students.
For this science camp, the museum brought together professionals from the science-education community and employed a high-spec wind tunnel from the United States along with precision digital measurement equipment. Through hands-on building, students gained a deep understanding of how wind machines work while developing their scientific reasoning and creative-thinking abilities.
Notably, this Wind Renewable Energy Inquiry and Practice Camp received official certification from the U.S. KidWind education organization, making it the first certified KidWind workshop ever held in Taiwan. Over the five days, students planned and carried out numerous science experiments, honed their problem-solving skills, and prepared thoroughly for future participation in KidWind wind-energy competitions — winning teams at the national level earn the chance to represent their country at the world finals in the United States.
The participating students, aged 14 to 17, shared a keen interest in mechatronics and hands-on science. Highly motivated and diligent, they never backed down even when facing large numbers of unfamiliar components and demanding manual fabrication. Students reported that compared with traditional lecture-style classes, this kind of hands-on course kept them far more engaged — and they thoroughly enjoyed it.
Enthusiasm peaked during the final two days. By observing precise digital measurement data, students could instantly see the power-generation efficiency of their own builds and test and fine-tune them at any time. The equipment in the museum's smart-learning science classroom allowed every student to view their own and their classmates' measurements simultaneously on a large display, spurring mutual encouragement and friendly competition that further boosted learning outcomes.
The camp also placed special emphasis on keeping an "engineering notebook," a practice that dovetails with the Ministry of Education's "learning portfolio" initiative. Instructors asked students to document their learning process every day — materials used, fabrication steps, final experimental data, and improvements made. This habit will be a valuable skill not only during their school years but also in future research careers.
The success of this camp not only gave students an opportunity to explore wind renewable energy in depth, but also opened an alternative channel for energy education among Taiwan's informal education institutions.
More Event Photos and Information