Oslo Science Centre

Oslo Science Centre at The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology is a popular science experience and learning centre for technology, natural sciences and mathematics. The science centre is an arena where visitors can experience, learn or renew their knowledge on their own terms. Oslo Science Centre is the country's oldest science centre, established in 1986 and is the regional science centre for Oslo and Akershus. Oslo Science Centre is the largest science centre in the country in terms of both total visits and school visits. The science centre contains exhibitions covering the thematic areas of speed, energy, medicine, communication, physical phenomena, mathematics and astronomy.

One of The Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology 's most important tasks is to actively contribute to science recruitment, which is part of the museum's mission to spread knowledge about technology, science and medicine to the general public. Through Oslo Science Centre and its school activities, the museum works to create enthusiasm for the disciplines and provide knowledge about and interest in them. The school activities are strongly linked to curricula and the schools' educational goals. The museum works to more clearly integrate school activities with Oslo Science Centre and make the science centre a good arena for learning.

When allocating funds to the science centers from the Research Council of Norway for 2017, funds were allocated for three projects that the ten regional science centers will work together on in a targeted manner in the period 2017 – 2019. The three projects are:

• Increase competence in the use of knowledge centers among school and kindergarten teachers
• Increase families' interest in science (science capital)
• Further development of expertise internally in the science centers

All the science centres are involved in this work, but Oslo Science Centre is working specifically on the science capital project, and is part of a project group together with Innlandet Science Centre Gjøvik and the science centre in Trondheim, led by the Jærmuseet.

The goal of science capital projects is to develop and test measures that will improve the experience for visiting families, with the goal of increasing families' interest in and knowledge of science. Among the measures are various learning trails, where the intention is that the public will be helped to understand connections and contexts, and the initiative outside the museum's four walls in Oslo East.

As part of Oslo Science Centre 's regional responsibility, in 2018 the centre expanded its collaboration with Deichmanske bibliotek and their branches in Oslo East. By contributing with science shows and workshops at Stovner and Bjerke, among others, an offer is made to groups that for various reasons do not find it natural to visit the museum at Kjelsås. Research shows that such an approach to the local community helps more people feel a sense of belonging and relevance to the institution that is being showcased. In the autumn of 2018 Oslo Science Centre employed a separate person with primary responsibility for the initiative. The Oslo East initiative is financed by an increased basic grant to the science centre from the Ministry of Education and Research in the 2018 state budget.

Oslo Science Centre is part of the national network of science centres in Norway. Today, this network consists of ten regional centres, spread across the country from Tromsø in the north to Arendal in the south. In addition, several branches have been established and run by the regional science centres. During 2018, the science centre network has been awarded two new major national projects. These are the Skaperskolen, funded by the Sparebankstiftelsen, and the Technological School Backpack, funded by the Ministry of Education.