A project by UVic-UCC will use an escape room to raise schoolchildren's awareness of the effects of drought

Water levels in rivers and reservoirs have fallen significantly due to the prolonged and increasingly frequent episodes of drought triggered by climate change. This situation, and UNESCO's decision to encourage the inclusion of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG) 6 ("Clean water and sanitation for all") in study programmes so that students understand the effects and consequences of pollution and water scarcity, has led to the "Aiguacció" research project, which is being coordinated by the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC) and began in July.

The "Aiguacció" project is based on scientific data related to a specific local problem: the decline in mallard populations in the river Ter, due to the increase in levels of pollutants as a result of the fall in the volume of water in the river. The project focuses on this local problem, although it can easily be scaled up to a global socio-environmental problem.

Water levels in rivers and reservoirs have fallen significantly due to the prolonged and increasingly frequent episodes of drought triggered by climate change. This situation, and UNESCO's decision to encourage the inclusion of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG) 6 ("Clean water and sanitation for all") in study programmes so that students understand the effects and consequences of pollution and water scarcity, has led to the "Aiguacció" research project, which is being coordinated by the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC) and began in July.

The "Aiguacció" project is based on scientific data related to a specific local problem: the decline in mallard populations in the river Ter, due to the increase in levels of pollutants as a result of the fall in the volume of water in the river. The project focuses on this local problem, although it can easily be scaled up to a global socio-environmental problem.

Laura Martín, the project's principal investigator and a member of the Knowledge Construction Research Group (GRECC) at UVic-UCC, points out that this research "not only seeks to increase boys' and girls' awareness and understanding of the phenomenon of water scarcity and its implications, but also to develop their scientific skills and practices, such as collecting and analysing data, and establishing scientific conclusions and explanations, through the innovative educational approach of game-based learning (GBL)." GBL is a teaching methodology which includes games as an educational tool and not just for fun, as "games provide a positive environment in which players can gain new learning, and use and apply the knowledge they have acquired," adds Martín.

An escape room and educational material

In order to apply GBL, the "Aiguacció" project will design an educational escape room, which will set challenges for the students, involving scientific activities, bringing their personal communication skills into play and working on their verbal and scientific competence. According to the experts, the escape room can also contribute to improving motivation and commitment to the activity, and fostering social interaction. The escape room activity will last for approximately ninety minutes, and the objective is for it to be permanently installed in the Ter Museum in Manlleu (Osona).

In addition to the escape room, the same project will produce educational activities and material for schools focusing on the subject of water scarcity, and to promote the learning of science among boys and girls from the perspective of inclusive science. The educational material produced as a result of the "Aiguacció" project will be presented to teachers and education professionals in the region, and will be available in the range educational materials available at the Ter Museum.

The educational material that is designed and implemented as a result of the project will be aimed at students in the second and third year of primary education and the first year of secondary education; in other words, boys and girls from 8 to 14 years old. This material will be implemented in two pilot tests, with two schools in Vic participating in each one: the first will take place in November 2024, and the second in May 2025. At least one hundred and fifty students and eight teachers from four different classes are expected to participate in "Aiguacció". 

The "Aiguacció" project, which will end in July 2025, will be carried out by an interdisciplinary working team made up of researchers from the Knowledge Construction Research Group (GRECC),  the Aquatic Ecology Group (GEA) and the Mediterranean Rivers Studies Centre (CERM) at UVic-UCC, in addition to the Ter Museum. The total cost of this research is 26,233 Euros, and it has received funding from the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology - Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.